Pope Leo XIV: A timeline of his first year

U.S. Cardinal Robert F. Prevost, a Chicago-born Augustinian, is elected as Pope Leo XIV, becoming the first American pope in history. “Together we must try to be a missionary church, a church that builds bridges and always dialogues, that is always open to receiving everyone like this square with its arms open to everyone, everyone in need,” he told the crowd. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

Pope Leo leads a Corpus Christi procession through streets of Rome, saying it presents Jesus “to the hearts of those who believe, so that they may believe more firmly” and “to the hearts of those who do not believe, so that they may reflect on the hunger present within them and the bread that alone can satisfy it.” (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

He blessed and imposed the pallium on 54 new metropolitan archbishops, including eight from the United States, in St. Peter’s Basilica. He said archbishops around the world can provide by their example the fraternity and unity in diversity the entire Catholic Church needs today. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass for the Care of Creation on the grounds of the Borgo Laudato Si’ ecology center in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, where he will also spend time during the summer and Tuesdays during the rest of the year for rest and reflection. (CNS photo/Cristian Gennari, pool)
 

He leads an evening prayer vigil at Tor Vergata in Rome for the Jubilee of Youth, attended by more than 1 million young people. He urged them to make courageous choices and seek authentic relationships rooted in Christ rather than fleeting online connections. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
 

He canonizes his first saints, Sts. Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati, in St. Peter’s Square, praising their devotion to the Eucharist, prayer and serving the poor. The pope urged the faithful, especially young people, to follow their examples and live the great “adventure” of following God’s plan. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

He signs his first apostolic exhortation, “Dilexi Te” (“I Have Loved You”), focusing on the Christian obligation to love the poor and decrying the injustice of the global market system. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
 

He makes his first international apostolic journey to Turkey and Lebanon, marking the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. The friendship and respect, especially between Christians and Muslims, he saw in these countries could be a helpful example for people in North America and Europe, too, he said. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
 

Pope Leo closes the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica, formally concluding the 2025 Jubilee Year dedicated to hope. During Mass, he criticized the way “a distorted economy” has tried to exploit and profit from everything, including the human desire for joy and true fulfillment — gifts that God offers freely to everyone. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Pope Leo begins the season of Lent by highlighting how people, especially younger generations, are looking for an “authentic, honest and attractive” way to take ownership and responsibility in the world, which starts with humble repentance. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
 

He moves into the newly renovated apartments traditionally set aside for the pope in the Apostolic Palace with a small number of his confreres to continue the community-focused style of the Augustinian order. In the photo, he visits the chapel May 11, 2025, before the renovations. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

He travels to Algeria, Cameroon, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea to amplify the voices of the local people and to highlight their faith, dreams and the challenges remaining. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
 

Pope Leo marks the first anniversary of his May 8, 2025, election, which fell on the day of the Supplication to Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii, by visiting Naples and Pompeii to visit the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompeii. “I therefore had to come here, to place my service under the protection of the Blessed Virgin,” he said in his homily. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)