Foreign
Pope Leo XIV, celebrates first Mass, wants Church to be beacon of light
- /home/naijuinz/public_html/wp-content/plugins/mvp-social-buttons/mvp-social-buttons.php on line 27
https://naijablitznews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Pope-Leo-XIV1-1000x600.jpg&description=Pope Leo XIV, celebrates first Mass, wants Church to be beacon of light', 'pinterestShare', 'width=750,height=350'); return false;" title="Pin This Post">
- Share
- Tweet /home/naijuinz/public_html/wp-content/plugins/mvp-social-buttons/mvp-social-buttons.php on line 72
https://naijablitznews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Pope-Leo-XIV1-1000x600.jpg&description=Pope Leo XIV, celebrates first Mass, wants Church to be beacon of light', 'pinterestShare', 'width=750,height=350'); return false;" title="Pin This Post">
Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first Mass on Friday in the Sistine Chapel where he was elected less than 24 hours earlier, warning of the dangers caused by a lack of faith and hoping the Catholic Church could be a beacon lighting the world’s “dark nights”.
Leo, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost and the first U.S. pope, looked calm as he delivered the Mass in the famous, frescoed chapel with the same cardinals who chose him to be the 267th pontiff and the successor to Pope Francis.
Dressed in relatively simple white and gold vestments, Leo, who was born in Chicago but spent two decades as a missionary in Peru, said a few words in English before continuing his homily in fluent Italian.
In the homily, Leo, 69, painted a picture of the Church he would like to see, saying he would seek to serve as the “faithful administrator” for the Church as a whole.
The new pope, who leads 1.4 billion Catholics around the world, acknowledged that the Christian faith is sometimes “considered absurd” and the preserve of “the weak and unintelligent”.
“A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society,” he said.
MAY 18 INAUGURATION
An inauguration Mass for Leo will be held in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday May 18, the Vatican said.
World and religious leaders are invited to the inauguration, which marks the formal launch of a papacy. Pope Francis’ inauguration in 2013 attracted a crowd estimated at 200,000 people.
The new pope will also leave senior Vatican officials in their roles for the time being, giving him time to decide before making definitive appointments, the Vatican said.
All Vatican senior officials, appointed for five-year terms, serve at the pleasure of the pope. A new pontiff usually rolls over existing mandates at least initially before deciding whether to change key positions.
The pope was elected at the end of a two-day conclave that was wrapped up on Thursday evening when white smoke billowed from the chimney on the Sistine Chapel.
Item 1 of 8 Pope Leo XIV conducts Mass in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican, May 9, 2025. Vatican Media/Simone Risoluti Handout via REUTERS
Given the nature of the conclaves, when cardinals are shut away from the world and sworn to secrecy, little or nothing is likely to emerge – at least for now – about how Leo obtained the required two-thirds majority of the vote so swiftly.
The successor to Pope Francis, who died last month at the age of 88, inherits a number of major challenges, ranging from a budget shortfall to divisions over whether the Church should be more welcoming towards the LGBT community and divorcees, and should let women play a greater role in its affairs.
He will also have a packed agenda, with the Vatican celebrating a Holy Year that brings millions of additional tourists to Rome.
THE FIRST US POPE
Before Leo’s election, U.S. cardinals had largely been written off as papal contenders because of a widespread assumption that the global Church could not be run by a superpower pope.
However, he also holds Peruvian citizenship, meaning that he has deep knowledge of both the West and less developed nations.
U.S. President Donald Trump was quick to congratulate Leo. However, the new pope has a history of criticizing Trump and Vice President JD Vance’s policies, according to posts on the X account of Robert Prevost.
Leo worked for decades in the north of Peru, first as a missionary and later as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023. Catholics took to the streets of the small city in northwestern Peru, and church bells rang out to celebrate the election of a man who they embrace as one of their own.
One of the clues to what kind of a Church leader Leo will be was in his choice of name. The last pope with this name was Leo XIII, who led the Church from 1878-1903. He was known for his devoted focus to social justice issues.
Prevost became a cardinal only in 2023. He has given few media interviews and is known to have a shy personality.
Francis brought him to Rome two years ago to head the Vatican office in charge of choosing which priests should serve as Catholic bishops, meaning he has had a hand in selecting many of the world’s bishops.
The death toll from Venezuela’s devastating earthquakes has risen to at least 188, with 971 people injured, National Assembly chief Jorge Rodriguez, said on Thursday.
Interim president Delcy Rodriguez had earlier said that round 30 aftershocks have been recorded following the two strongest quakes on Wednesday.
Authorities initially reported 32 dead and more than 700 injured.
The earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 struck the same area of Venezuela on Wednesday, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), causing buildings in the capital to crumble and forcing the closure of the country’s main airport.
US President Donald Trump said late Wednesday that “the two major earthquakes that just hit the great people of Venezuela are both massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths.”
“The U.S.A. stands ready, willing, and able to help! I have instructed all agencies of our government to get ready to move quickly,” the American president wrote on his Truth Social platform.
An AFP journalist saw a 22-story building completely destroyed in the capital’s Altamira neighborhood, where people cried out relatives’ names as volunteers climbed over the rubble.
“We need flashlights,” one of them said.
The first quake, with an epicenter 21 kilometers (13 miles) west of the coastal town of Moron, occurred at 2204 GMT, USGS said. Within a minute, a 7.5-magnitude quake struck about 45 kilometers away.
“This earthquake was the second event in a doublet. This magnitude 7.5 mainshock was preceded by 39 seconds by a 7.2 foreshock,” USGS said.
The United States government has identified a Nigerian national among several individuals and organisations accused of facilitating financial operations for the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as part of a broader crackdown on the group’s global funding network.
In a statement issued by the U.S. Department of State, officials said the action targeted three individuals and six entities operating across Europe, the Middle East, and West Africa, who are allegedly involved in moving funds used to support ISIS activities.
According to the department, the measures are aimed at disrupting the terrorist group’s ability to finance attacks and sustain its international operations.
“Under the leadership of President Trump, the United States is dismantling ISIS’s ability to finance terrorism around the world. We are cutting off the financial lifelines from around the world that enable ISIS to fund attacks, support its regional affiliates, and threaten civilians, including religious minorities,” spokesperson Thomas Pigott said.
The statement noted that the network spans France, Syria, Türkiye, and Nigeria, and is believed to have facilitated the cross-border movement of funds linked to the extremist group.
Officials alleged that the designated individuals include a France-based facilitator connected to explosives-related information shared with ISIS supporters, a Syria-based operator who reportedly used cryptocurrency to transfer funds internationally, and a Nigeria-based facilitator whose money exchange businesses were allegedly used as channels for ISIS financing.
The U.S. government said the designations are part of ongoing efforts to dismantle financial pipelines supporting terrorist organisations and to restrict their global operations.
Britain will have its seventh prime minister in 10 years after Labour leader Keir Starmer was ousted on Monday by his own party.
The party’s self-inflicted wound was a trend set by the Conservatives when they were in office.
Starmer announced his resignation on Monday following months of nose-diving poll ratings and manoeuvring by his own MPs.
Veteran Labour politician Andy Burnham has confirmed he will seek to replace him.
The main opposition Tories went through five prime ministers between 2016 and July 2024 when Starmer swept to power in a landslide general election victory.
The rapid turnover at the top prompted Starmer — before he became prime minister — to call for an end to the “chaos” of chopping and changing leaders.
After less than two years, Starmer has now met a similar fate himself.
Here’s what happened to his predecessors:
David Cameron (May 2010 to July 2016)
Britain’s decision to leave the European Union ended Cameron’s second term as prime minister.
After the country voted to leave in a June 2016 referendum, Cameron, who had campaigned to remain in the bloc, resigned.
Theresa May (July 2016 to July 2019)
Tolga AKMEN / AFP
May took over amid the fallout from the Brexit referendum after a long tenure in the notoriously difficult post of interior minister.
She called a snap election the following year to strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations, but the move backfired when her party emerged as the biggest in parliament but without a majority.
Unable to get her Brexit deal through parliament, the Conservatives suffered a drubbing in European Parliament elections in May 2019, leading to her resignation.
Boris Johnson (July 2019 to September 2022)
Johnson, a maverick politician famed for making a career out of breaking the rules, had to navigate the coronavirus pandemic and Britain’s departure from the European Union.
He led the Conservatives to victory in the December 2019 snap general election.
But weakened by scandals, he was eventually forced to step down following a cascade of resignations by ministers and aides.
Liz Truss (September 2022 to October 2022)
Truss was prime minister for just 49 days, the shortest on record, before being ousted over her disastrous tax-cutting mini-budget.
Her economic agenda spooked the markets and took the UK to the brink of financial meltdown, losing her the support of her own party.
Rishi Sunak (October 2022 to July 2024)
Sunak was at the helm for 20 months before losing the 2024 general election to Starmer, bringing to an end 14 years of Conservative rule.
He brought some stability following the Truss debacle but failed to stop bitter Tory infighting.
The privately wealthy former financier ultimately failed to connect with regular voters struggling with a cost-of-living crisis.
AFP
NNPC slashes petrol price twice within four days
Lokoja Court order: INEC speaks on NDC, says it’s yet to receive CTC
Just in: Police rescue five abductees in Ogun
-
News16 hours agoYou Clearly Didn’t Read the State Police Bill — Akpabio’s Aide Fires Back at Obi
-
News16 hours agoPeter Obi Reacts To court Ruling Nullifying NDC’s Registration
-
News16 hours agoMy Dad’s Wife Needs Money To Maintain Her Lavish Lifestyle- Mr. Ibu’s Son
-
Metro16 hours agoTwo killed in fresh Imo bomb explosion
-
News16 hours agoArmy to recruit 28,000 additional soldiers to combat insecurity
-
News16 hours agoEdo CJ constitutes special court to try cultists, kidnappers
-
Metro16 hours agoAlakija Building Collapse: Sanwo-Olu Directs Demolition Of Distressed Structures, Owner To Be Prosecuted
-
Entertainment16 hours agoNollywood Actor Joseph Momodu Joins US Army
Warning: Undefined variable $user_ID in /home/naijuinz/public_html/wp-content/themes/zox-news/comments.php on line 49
You must be logged in to post a comment Login