Bulletins, Newsletters, and Flocknotes

This morning, the Holy Father Leo XIV received in audience the President of the Swiss Confederation, His Excellency Mr. Guy Parmelin, who subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of His Holiness, accompanied by His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations.

During the cordial talks, held at the Secretariat of State, appreciation was expressed for the good and fruitful bilateral relations, highlighting the faithful and professional service of the Pontifical Swiss Guard.

As the conversation continued, attention turned to matters of mutual interest, at both international and regional level, with particular reference to the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, reaffirming the commitment to cooperate at a multilateral level to promote peace.

From the Vatican, 6 May 2026

Resignation and appointment of bishop of Honolulu, United States of America

The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Honolulu, United States of America, presented by Bishop Clarence R. Silva.

The Holy Father has appointed the Reverend Michael T. Castori, S.J., member of the Province of the West United States of the Society of Jesus, until now rector of the Arrupe Jesuit Residence in Seattle.

Curriculum vitae

Msgr. Michael T. Castori, S.J., was born on 21 October 1960 in Sacramento, California, in the diocese of the same name. He was awarded a bachelor’s degree in classical languages at Harvard University, a master’s degree in philosophy at Fordham University and a Master of Divinity at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley.

He was ordained a priest on 13 June 1998 for the Society of Jesus.

After ordination, he first held the roles of chaplain for the Tongan communities of California (1996-2024), prison ministry (1997–2005); assistant professor and assistant to the University Chaplain at Santa Clara University (2008–2013). He obtained a PhD in Near Eastern Religions at the University of California, Berkeley (2008) and went on to serve as parish vicar at All Saints Catholic Church in Hayward (2014–2024); vicar for the clergy of the diocese of Oakland (2021–2024); and rector of the Arrupe Jesuit Residence in Seattle (since 2025).

This morning, the Holy Father received in audience:

- Archbishop Paolo Borgia, titular of Milazzo, apostolic nuncio in Lebanon;

- His Excellency Mr. Guy Parmelin, President of the Swiss Confederation, with his wife and entourage.

Activities of the Holy Father in the afternoon:

- Oath of the Pontifical Swiss Guards.

Saturday 6 June 2026

ROME – MADRID

08:00

Departure by airplane from Rome/Fiumicino International Airport to Madrid

 

10:30

Arrival at Adolfo Suárez Madrid/Barajas International Airport

OFFICIAL WELCOME

 

11:30

WELCOME CEREMONY  at the Royal Palace in Madrid

 

12:00

COURTESY VISIT TO THEIR MAJESTIES THE KING AND QUEEN OF SPAIN

 

12:30

MEETING WITH THE AUTHORITIES, CIVIL SOCIETY AND THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS  at the Royal Palace in Madrid

Address of the Holy Father

18:00

VISIT TO THE STAFF AND BENEFICIARIES OF THE “CEDIA 24 HORAS   SOCIAL PROJECT”  at the Information and Welcome Center

Greeting of the Holy Father

20.30

PRAYER VIGIL WITH YOUNG PEOPLE  in the Plaza de Lima

Address of the Holy Father

 

Sunday 7 June 2026

MADRID

10:00

HOLY MASS  in the Plaza de Cibeles

Corpus Christi Procession

Homily of the Holy Father

16:30

PRIVATE MEETING WITH MEMBERS OF THE AUGUSTINIAN ORDER  at the Apostolic Nunciature

 

18:00

MEETING “BUILDING NETWORKS WITH THE WORLD OF CULTURE, ART, ECONOMY AND SPORT”  at the Movistar Arena

Address of the Holy Father

19.30

Dinner at the Residence of the Cardinal Archbishop of Madrid

 

  Monday 8 June 2026

MADRID

09:30

MEETING WITH THE PRIME MINISTER  at the Apostolic Nunciature

 

10:30

MEETING WITH MEMBERS OF THE SPANISH PARLIAMENT  at the Congress of Deputies

Address of the Holy Father

11:30

MEETING WITH THE BISHOPS OF SPAIN  at the offices of the Episcopal Conference

Greeting of the Holy Father

12:50

Lunch with the Bishops at the Apostolic Nunciature

 

18:00

PRAYER AND DEVOTION TO OUR LADY OF ALMUDENA  at the Cathedral of Holy Mary of Almudena

Greeting of the Holy Father

19:00

MEETING WITH THE DIOCESAN COMMUNITY  at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium

Address of the Holy Father

  Tuesday 9 June 2026

MADRID – BARCELONA

10:20

MEETING WITH VOLUNTEERS  in Pavilion 3 of IFEMA Madrid

Address of the Holy Father

11:10

Departure by airplane from Adolfo Suárez Madrid/Barajas International Airport

to Barcelona

 

12:25

Arrival at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona/El Prat International Airport

 

13:00

MIDDAY PRAYER  in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia

Homily of the Holy Father

20:00

PRAYER VIGIL  at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium

Address of the Holy Father

  Wednesday 10 June 2026

BARCELONA – MONTSERRAT – BARCELONA

10:50

VISIT TO THE “BRIANS 1 PENITENTIARY CENTER”

Greeting of the Holy Father

12:00

RECITATION OF THE HOLY ROSARY  at the Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat

Address of the Holy Father

13:00

Lunch with the Benedictine Community of Montserrat

 

16:30

MEETING WITH DIOCESAN CHARITY AND WELFARE ORGANIZATIONS  in the Church of Sant Agustí

Address of the Holy Father

19:30

HOLY MASS  in the Basilica of the Sagrada Família

Inauguration of the tower of Jesus Christ

Homily of the Holy Father

     

Thursday 11 June 2026

BARCELONA – LAS PALMAS DE GRAN CANARIA

 

08:30

Departure by airplane from Josep Tarradellas Barcelona/El Prat International Airport to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

 

10:50

Arrival at Gran Canaria/Gando Air Base

 

11:40

MEETING WITH ORGANIZATIONS WORKING WITH MIGRANTS  in the port of Arguineguín

Address of the Holy Father

13:30

MEETING WITH BISHOPS, PRIESTS, DEACONS, RELIGIOUS, SEMINARIANS AND PASTORAL WORKERS  in the Cathedral of Saint Anne

Address of the Holy Father

18:30

HOLY MASS  at the Gran Canaria Stadium

Homily of the Holy Father

     

Friday 12 June 2026

LAS PALMAS DE GRAN CANARIA – SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE – ROME

 

08:30

Departure by airplane from Gran Canaria/Gando Air Base to Santa Cruz de Tenerife

 

09:10

Arrival at Tenerife Norte-Los Rodeos International Airport

 

09:30

MEETING WITH MIGRANTS AT THE “LAS RAÍCES CENTER”

Greeting of the Holy Father

10:10

MEETING WITH ORGANIZATIONS WORKING FOR THE INTEGRATION OF MIGRANTS  in the Plaza del Cristo de La Laguna

Address of the Holy Father

12:15

HOLY MASS  at the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Homily of the Holy Father

14:30

FAREWELL CEREMONY  at Tenerife Norte-Los Rodeos International Airport

 

15:00

Departure by airplane from Tenerife International Airport to Rome

 

20:10

Arrival at Rome/Fiumicino International Airport

This morning’s General Auience took place at 10.00 in Saint Peter’s Square, where the Holy Father Leo XIV met with groups of pilgrims and faithful from Italy and all over the world.

In his address in Italian, the Pope focused on the theme: The Documents of the Second Vatican Council. II. Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium. 8. The Church, pilgrim in history towards the heavenly homeland (Reading: Rev 7:9-10).

After summarizing his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed special greetings to the faithful present.

The General Audience concluded with the recitation of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.

 

The Documents of the Second Vatican Council. II. Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium. 8. The Church, pilgrim in history towards the heavenly homeland

Brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

As we focus today on a section of Chapter VII of the  Second Vatican Council’s Constitution  on the Church, let us reflect on one of its defining characteristics: its  eschatological dimension . The Church, in fact, journeys through this earthly history always looking towards her final destination, which is the heavenly homeland. This is an essential dimension which, however, we often overlook or downplay, because we are too focused on what is immediately visible and on the more concrete dynamics of the life of the Christian community.

The Church is God’s people journeying through history, which has the Kingdom of God as the purpose of all her action (cf.  LG , 9). Jesus initiated the Church precisely by proclaiming this Kingdom of love, justice and peace (cf.  LG , 5). We are therefore called to consider the community and cosmic dimension of salvation in Christ and to turn our eyes to this final horizon, to measure and evaluate everything from this perspective.

The Church lives in history in the service of the coming of the Kingdom of God in the world. She proclaims the words of this promise to all and always; she receives a pledge of it in the celebration of the Sacraments, particularly the Eucharist; she puts its logic into practice and experiences it in relationships of love and service. Furthermore, she knows that she is the place and the means where union with Christ is realized “more closely” ( LG , 48), whilst at the same time recognizing that salvation can be bestowed by God in the Holy Spirit even beyond her visible boundaries.

In this regard, the Constitution  Lumen gentium  makes an important statement: the Church is the “universal sacrament of salvation” ( LG , 48), that is, the sign and instrument of that fullness of life and peace promoted by God. This means that she does not identify perfectly with the Kingdom of God, but is its seed and beginning, for its fulfilment will be granted to humanity and the cosmos only at the end. Believers in Christ, therefore, walk through this earthly history, marked by the maturation of good but also by injustices and sufferings, without being either deluded or despairing; they live guided by the promise received from the One who will “make all things new” ( Rev  21:5). Therefore, the Church realizes her mission between the “already” of the beginning of the Kingdom of God in Jesus, and the “not yet” of the promised and anticipated fulfilment. As the guardian of a hope that enlightens the path, she is also invested with the mission of speaking clearly to reject everything that mortifies life and prevents its development, and to take a position in favour of the poor, the exploited, the victims of violence and war, and all those who suffer in body and in spirit (cf.  Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church , no. 159).

As the sign and sacrament of the Kingdom, the Church is the pilgrim people of God on earth who, drawing precisely on the final promise, reads and interprets the dynamics of history through the Gospel, denouncing evil in all its forms and proclaiming, in word and deed, the salvation that Christ wishes to bring about for all humanity and His Kingdom of justice, love and peace. The Church, therefore, does not proclaim herself; on the contrary, everything within her must point to salvation in Christ.

From this perspective, the Church is called to recognize humbly the human fragility and transience of her own institutions who, despite being at the service of the Kingdom of God, bear the fleeting image of this world (cf.  LG , 48). No ecclesial institution can be treated as absolute; indeed, since they exist within history and time, they are called to continual conversion, to the renewal of forms and the reform of structures, to the continual regeneration of relationships, so that they may truly fulfil their mission.

Within the horizon of the Kingdom of God, we must also understand the relationship between the Christians who are carrying out their mission today, and those who have already completed their earthly existence and are in a state of purification or beatitude.  Lumen gentium , in fact, affirms that all Christians form a single Church, that there is communion and sharing of spiritual goods founded on the union with Christ of all believers, a  fraterna   sollicitudo  between the earthly Church and the heavenly Church: that communion of saints that is experienced in particular in the liturgy (cf.  LG , 49-51). By praying for the departed and following in the footsteps of those who have already lived as disciples of Jesus, we too are sustained on our journey and strengthen our worship of God: marked by the one Spirit and united in the one liturgy, together with those who have gone before us in faith, we praise and give glory to the Most Holy Trinity.

Let us be grateful to the Council Fathers for reminding us of this most important and beautiful aspect of being Christian, and may we strive to cultivate it in our lives.

_____________________________

Greeting in English

I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the groups from Belgium, The Netherlands, Finland, Ghana, Uganda, New Zealand, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Canada and the United States of America. I greet in particular the faculty and students from the University of Florida, Saint Mary’s College and Christendom College and all those participating in the AI Conference at the Gregorian University. Upon all of you, and upon your families, I invoke the joy and peace of the risen Jesus! May God bless you!

_____________________________

Summary of the Holy Father's words

Dear brothers and sisters, in our ongoing catechesis on  Lumen Gentium , we focus on the eschatological dimension of the Church. As the “universal sacrament of salvation,” the Church is a sign and instrument of the fullness of God’s promises. As the pilgrim People of God, the Church interprets history through the lens of the Gospel and speaks decisively against all evil. At the same time, the Church acknowledges the need for continual conversion so she may properly fulfill her mission. As members of the same Body, we too are called to renewal. We do this by remaining in communion with Christ and one another. The entire Church is most closely united in our praise of God in the liturgy. There we pray for the faithful departed and ask the Saints to intercede for us so that we may all receive the fullness of God’s promises in the Kingdom of Heaven.