Pope Leo XIV had his first truly mass event last weekend in Rome, when the recently appointed Pontiff presided the Youth Jubilee in Rome, with more than one million Catholics from all around the world. Attendance numbers, released after the event between July 28 and August 3, were confirmed by Lamberto Giannini, Prefect of Rome, which also made it the largest event held in Rome in the last 25, surpassing the funerals of Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.
"I think I can say that in the last 25 years this has been the most significant and impressive event in Italy and perhaps even in Europe", Gianni said (via Zenit). In the concluding Sunday homily, 20 cardinals, 450 bishops, and 7,000 priests participated in a completely crowded Tor Vergata esplanade.
In case you're wondering, this is what one million people gathered in one place looks like...
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The event also incorporated World Youth Day, and it was aimed at the young generation of Catholics. Naturally, Leo XIV remembered about the people affected in the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, which are specially damaging for children. "We are with the young people of Gaza, with the young people of Ukraine and of every land bloodied by war", the American Pope said. "You are the sign that another world is possible. A world of friendship in which conflicts are not resolved with weapons but with dialogue."
Initially expecting half a million visitors according to EuroNews, the city had to reinforce security measures, and paramedics had to assist 1,200 people, mostly due to heat, bruises, sunstroke, and anxiety. Two young pilgrims from Spain and Egypt died due to sudden health emergencies, and the Pope expressed his condolences.