As is tradition after a new pope is elected, Pope Leo XIV presided over his first eucharistic celebration as pontiff on Friday morning in the Sistine Chapel with the cardinal electors in attendance.
Wearing black shoes and a pastoral cross made for Pope Benedict XVI and also used by Pope Francis, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost addressed his fellows the day after the end of the conclave that elected him.
"You have called me to carry a cross": these are the first words, spoken in English, of Pope Leo XIV, in the homily outlining his pontificate. "I will begin with a few words in English, the rest I will do in Italian," he began.
“I will sing a new song to the Lord, because he has done marvels," he said. "Not just with me, but with all of us, my brother cardinals, as we celebrate this morning, I invite you to recognise the marvels that the Lord has done, the blessings that the Lord continues to pour out upon all of us."
"Through the ministry of (Saint) Peter, you have called me to carry that cross, and to be blessed with that mission, and I know I can rely on each and every one of you to walk with me as we continue as a church, as a community of friends of Jesus, as believers, to announce the good news, to announce the gospel."
Answering the question of who Christ is for each person "is not a trivial question", the new pope said.
"There is first of all the answer of the world," he said, which often "considers Jesus a person totally unimportant, at most a curious character, who can arouse wonder by his unusual way of speaking and acting."
"And so, when his presence becomes bothersome because of the demands of honesty and the moral demands he makes, this world will not hesitate to reject and eliminate him."
In his homily, Prevost quoted Pope Francis, referring to the world that he has "entrusted" to his successor — "in which, as he has taught us so many times, we are called to bear witness to joyful faith in Jesus the Saviour".
Concluding his homily, Pope Leo XIV pointed out "an inalienable commitment for anyone in the Church who exercises a ministry of authority: to disappear so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified, to spend oneself to the utmost so that no one lacks the opportunity to know and love Him."
"May God give me this grace, today and always, with the help of the tender intercession of Mary Mother of the Church," he concluded.
