The inauguration Mass for Pope Leo XIV, the newly elected head of the Roman Catholic Church, will be held on Sunday, May 18, in St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican has announced.
World leaders are expected to attend the ceremony, which comes 10 days after Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the first American pope, leading the Church’s 1.4 billion members.
According to the Vatican, Pope Leo will meet with journalists on Monday and with diplomats accredited to the Holy See on Friday.
His first general audience is scheduled for Wednesday, May 21, followed by a meeting with the Roman Curia—the Vatican’s top officials—on May 24.
Cardinal Prevost’s election was confirmed last Thursday when white smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel chimney after four rounds of voting during the papal conclave.
