Pope Leo XIV Shocks Youth with Surprise Appearance at Jubilee Celebration!

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV surprised tens of thousands of young Catholics on Tuesday when he showed up unexpectedly at a Holy Year welcome ceremony, thrilling the children and receiving a rock star’s welcome at the first major youth event of his pontificate.

Leo emerged in St. Peter’s Square in his popemobile at the end of an evening Mass that kicked off the Jubilee of Youth, a weeklong celebration for young Catholics. The estimated 120,000 young pilgrims who had packed the square erupted in shocked cheers and chants as Leo looped around the square and up and down the boulevard leading to it.

For 20 minutes, Leo beamed, waved, and clearly enjoyed the outpouring of enthusiasm from his perch on the popemobile, taking in a sea of cheering, flag-waving young people from around the world while the setting sun cast a golden glow over the basilica.

In a brief off-the-cuff salute and blessing from the altar, he told the young pilgrims that they were beacons of light, hope, and peace that the world needs today.

“The world needs messages of hope. You are this message and must give hope to everyone,” he said in a mix of Spanish, English, and Italian. “We want peace in the world. We want peace in the world!” Leo, the first American pope, wasn’t slated to meet the young pilgrims en masse until the weekend’s main events—a Saturday vigil and Sunday Mass marking the pinnacle of the Jubilee week.

While Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella, the Holy Year’s organizer, led Tuesday’s Mass, he urged attendees to linger afterward, hinting that the pope “had a surprise in store.”

The crowd erupted with the time-honored chant of Catholic youth gatherings: “This is the youth of the pope.”

Throughout the week, Rome’s city center has been a hive of activity, teeming with exuberant teenage Catholic scouts, church groups, and parochial school students. Their ranks are expected to swell to a staggering 500,000 by the end of the week.

The atmosphere evoked a compact version of World Youth Day, the triennial Catholic extravaganza often dubbed the “Catholic Woodstock.” Inaugurated by St. John Paul II, the tradition has been upheld by every subsequent pontiff.

Earlier Tuesday, Catholic influencers — including priests, nuns, and laypeople who use social media to spread the faith — participated in a significant rite of passage. They passed through the basilica’s Holy Door, an act shared by an estimated 32 million faithful taking part in the Vatican’s 2025 Holy Year celebrations.

In a meeting with these digital evangelists, Pope Francis expressed gratitude for their use of online platforms to disseminate the faith. However, he cautioned against sacrificing genuine human connections in the pursuit of likes and followers. The pontiff also warned of the dangers of fake news and the potential superficiality of online interactions.