Pope Leo XIV flies back to the Vatican aboard an aircraft provided by King Felipe of Spain following a technical issue that prevented the original plane from departing from Tenerife’s Los Rodeos airport.

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Pope Leo brings his Apostolic Journey to Spain to a close in the Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, stressing that “no human being is an island”.

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PORTA OF SANTA CRUZ OF TENERIFE, Spain (CNS) -- After hearing the stories of men and women who survived harrowing journeys in unsafe boats and then faced exploitation by their captors, Pope Leo XIV harshly condemned such criminals, and he admonished those who turn a blind eye.

"For every life lost, every family deceived, every body subjugated, every woman threatened, every worker exploited, you will have to appear before divine justice," he proclaimed, sending a "clear message to those who take advantage of people's desperation," during a meeting June 12 with migrants and those assisting them.

"To those who organize death routes, traffic in human beings, withhold documents, exploit workers, threaten women, deceive families and turn the suffering of others into a business," he said, "Stop" and "Repent while there is still time."

"The money wrested from the vulnerability of the poor will bring neither peace, nor honor, nor a future," he said, on the final leg of his June 6-12 apostolic journey to Spain, ending on the autonomous archipelago of the Canary Islands, which has become a major entrypoint for migrants into Europe.

More than 3,000 people died or disappeared in 2025 while trying to reach the Canary Islands, according to the Spanish NGO Caminando Fronteras. More than 10,000 people were recorded to have drowned along this dangerous migration route in 2024, it added. 

"A human conscience, and even more so a Christian conscience, cannot remain indifferent in the face of these graveyards of the sea, to the victims of shipwrecks and the lack of aid," he said, meeting those working to help integrate newcomers in Tenerife.

Every life lost on the dangerous Atlantic route to the islands from Africa and Latin America is a "failure for the human family," he said. But then "there is also a silent shipwreck" after they land, when they are left without accompaniment and exposed to exploitation or isolation.

"Solidarity arises from the recognition of human dignity and transcends any mere act of charity or philanthropy," he said, since "Christian charity flows from the love of God poured into the heart of the believer."

"In the presence of the needy, faith becomes concrete and love for Christ is transformed into deeds," he said June 12, the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Once a person of faith realizes and embraces the love God has for them, then they are inspired "to prayer and action," he said in his homily at Mass at the large port of Santa Cruz.

"God is love," he said, and whoever "immerses themselves in it no longer lives for themselves. Open this sea of love to everyone!"

He became the first pope in history to visit the islands, after visiting Madrid June 6-9 and Barcelona June 9-11.

The strategic location of the Canary Islands, which lie below Spain and west of North Africa, made them an important stop for transatlantic voyages, beginning in the 15th century and the Age of Exploration. Colonized by Europeans, the islands became an important stop for vessels sailing to the Americas and the development of the transatlantic slave trade.

While European immigrants flooded the "new world" for centuries, today those migratory flows have essentially reversed, with high numbers of Africans as well as Latin Americans migrating to Europe.

The U.S. pope, who is a grandson and great-grandson of immigrants, was fulfilling a desire of Pope Francis, a son of Italian immigrants, to visit the Canary Islands and meet the new migrants arriving on these shores and the people who assist them.

It would have been the Argentine pope's fourth trip to a migrant entry point into Europe after Lampedusa in 2013 and Lesbos in 2016 and 2021 to draw attention to the consequences of unscrupulous traffickers taking advantage of people searching for a better future and the international community's lack of cooperation and initiative in regulating immigration and safeguarding its seas. Pope Leo will go to Lampedusa July 4. 

On the Canary Islands, Pope Leo visited a temporary shelter for those who are rescued at sea and met the men, women and children who survived their ordeals and are building a new life with the help of the islands' residents.

"Thank you for reminding the world that we are all people, that we all need love, peace and opportunities," one unidentified man living at the camp told the pope.

"We want to make a simple but deeply human request," an unnamed woman living at a nearby shelter told the pope -- that their dignity be respected and protected. "Our humanity must be held in higher regard than any legal status."

"Holy Father," Mbacke from Senegal said, "I ask you keep reminding the world that behind every young migrant there is a dream, a mother who is praying and a life that is worthy of a chance."

The festive encounter, held in an open square dedicated to Cristo de La Laguna, drew laughter and applause when Mbacke also asked the pope to do the "6-7" meme together with him to the cameras. The pope happily obliged.

The visit came as Spain recently launched a mass regularization program aimed at legalizing the status of some 500,000 undocumented migrants. Meanwhile, many European Union member states have been enacting increasingly restrictive and punitive asylum rules, according to Amnesty International's European Institutions Office; and holding centers can be slow to process and unable to properly care for massive influxes of migrants.

"Human dignity demands legal and safe pathways, rescue and assistance, real cooperation against traffickers, effective protection for victims, serious processes of reception and integration, and policies that allow every person to live with dignity in their own land," the pope had said June 11, standing at the port of Arguineguin, on Gran Canaria.

"Here, people are rescued from the sea and lifeless bodies are recovered from the waters," Pope Leo said to those gathered at the port, including dozens of rescuers, ranging from simple fishermen to government maritime patrols.

"The successor of Peter cannot ignore these docks," he said. "The Church cannot ignore these waters or any place where hunger, thirst, violence, fear or exile continue to wound human dignity. Jesus’ disciples cannot dismiss the cries of those who call out in the night."

With two young men from Africa by his side, the pope tossed a floral bouquet in the blue water to honor and pray for the dead, and he blessed a wooden cross fashioned from the wreckage of boats capsized and destroyed on their voyage.

A rescuer, a charity worker and an immigrant turned entrepreneur told the pope their stories of perseverance despite so many obstacles in their way.

The Canary Islands are beautiful by day, "but at night it’s a different story: rough seas, total darkness and fragile boats loaded with human lives," said Tito Villarmea, a ship captain working with the public rescue network, Salvamento Marítimo.

"Over the years, together with my team, I have rescued more than 20,000 people. It's a number that hits hard and is impossible to forget," he said, recalling his own father and grandfather needing rescuing while working at sea.

María Reyes Alemán Cruz, a volunteer with the local Caritas, said, "We learned that it wasn’t about solving everything, but about being there. Listening, offering gestures of kindness -- a pair of slippers, a coat, a cup of coffee -- or helping them obtain the necessary documents was, in itself, a way of supporting them."

One woman, who had been trafficked, held prisoner and forced to engage in prostitution, had her story read by another woman in order to protect her identity.

"Blessing's" story recounted the mafia holding her prisoner, subjecting her to a form of black magic, extorting her for 25,000 euros to pay them once she arrived in Europe and then witnessing people die in the boat launched ahead of hers.

The woman reading Blessing's story choked up reading aloud about Blessing being raped by her captor and forced to give up the baby that resulted when she arrived in Spain to become a sex worker.

Blessing eventually got her son back and, with the help of the Church, is building a new life.

"I thank God for having met these people who are here today, because they reached out to me when I needed it most," her written testimony said.

Pope Leo said he wanted the voices of the men and women who had spoken at the port to reach everyone, especially those in government and international organizations, and people of faith and good will.

"We cannot grow accustomed to counting the dead," he said. "Human dignity has no passport and does not lose its value when crossing a border."

In his forceful plea for migrants and refugees, the pope posed the question of what kind of world society has created "if so many brothers and sisters must risk death to seek life?"

Following his visit to the port, the pope met with the diocese's Catholic community for a meeting at its cathedral and a Mass in the island's stadium.

These were the moments the pope connected the Sacred Heart of Jesus, celebrated June 12, with the Christian duty and ability to carry the cross of real solidarity.

"Indeed, our charity must not be mere material assistance, but must foster the integral development of the person -- spiritual, intellectual and physical -- and his or her dignified and constructive integration into the community," he said in his homily during Mass in the Gran Canaria Stadium.

Those who pretend to be self-sufficient and know everything believe they don't need God or others, he said in his homily June 11.

"The Heart of Jesus is humble," he said. He teaches that to experience the true joy of life, "we must step down from the pedestals of arrogance that divide us and see ourselves in the humility that unites us."

"The first 'guiding principle,' therefore, is to take up the cross of Christ," he said earlier at the cathedral the same day. "You do this every day, for example, as good Samaritans, accompanying and helping to carry the burdens of so many brothers and sisters who are crucified by life’s trials."

"Our vocation and mission: to build the Church together, founded on Christ, the 'cornerstone,' to build on what is good, to harmonize our differences and to work together for the good of all," he said.

ORLANDO, Fla. - The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) gathered June 10-12 for their Spring Plenary Assembly in Orlando, Florida. The assembly began with the bishops sending prayers and a message to the Holy Father. Archbishop Paul S. Coakley addressed the body of bishops for the first time as Conference president. He was followed by Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio to the United States, who delivered his first plenary address to the U.S. bishops since Pope Leo XIV appointed him nuncio earlier this year.

During the plenary, the bishops held a canonical consultation on the causes of beatification and canonization for the Servant of God John Rick Miller, and for Monsignor Joseph Francis Buh. By a voice vote, the bishops affirmed the advancement of both causes of beatification and canonization on the diocesan level.

Two of the action items the bishops voted on during the plenary were put forth by the USCCB’s Committee on Divine Worship:

• The bishops voted 184 in favor, 1 against, and 0 abstentions to approve elements of a new edition of the Lectionary for Mass. The approval of this requires a two-thirds vote of the members of the USCCB, with subsequent confirmatio and recognitio by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
• They also voted 187 in favor, 0 against, and 0 abstentions to approve the 2025 Roman Missal-Liturgy of the Hours Supplement. The approval of this requires a two-thirds vote of the members of the USCCB, with subsequent confirmatio by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

Revisions to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People:

The bishops voted 179* in favor, 22 against, and 6 abstentions to approve revisions to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, a comprehensive set of procedures originally established by the USCCB in 2002 to address allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy. This revisions address elements of the Charter that the bishops determined to be in need of improvement or further development and align with the Charter’s original intention of safeguarding minors, underscoring the bishops’ continued commitment to addressing the prevention of abuse and ensuring the structures continue to be in place to respond to allegations. In putting forth these revisions, the Committee for the Protection of Children and Young People emphasized their attempts to balance its care of and sensitivity to victim-survivors, with an awareness of due-process, the rights of the accused, pertinent aspects of the revised Book VI of the Code of Canon Law, Vos estis lux mundi, and the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s Vademecum. Read Bishop Barry C. Knestout’s introduction of the action item, the final revised text of the Charter, and a Q&A on the revisions.

The plenary agenda also included:

• a reflection on Ex Corde Ecclesiae, Pope John Paul II’s apostolic constitution that guides Catholic colleges and universities on theological and pastoral principles, on the 25th anniversary of its implementation in the United States;
• an update on World Youth Day 2027, to be held in Seoul, South Korea from Bishop Paul Kyung Sang Lee, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Seoul and General Coordinator for World Youth Day Seoul; 
• an update from Bishop Juan Miguel Betancourt, SEMV, the chairman of the USCCB’s Synod Implementation and Evaluation Task Force;
• a presentation by Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre on the feedback received during the bishops’ fraternal dialogues at the November 2025 plenary on Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, the U.S. bishops’ teaching document on the political responsibility of Catholics;
• remarks by Bishop William A. Wack on Catholic prison ministry and an invitation to his brother bishops to deepen their engagement with the ministry serving those affected by incarceration and detention;
• an update by Bishop Oscar Cantú on an international pastoral initiative to prepare for the 500th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 2031.

While not on the public agenda for the plenary, the bishops also held a discussion in executive session on Pope Leo XIV’s new encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, addressing artificial intelligence.

Semi-quincentennial of the United States:
As the United States celebrates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence this year, the U.S. bishops marked the American semi-quincentennial with a special Mass consecrating the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus at the Basilica of Mary, Queen of the Universe in Orlando. To prepare for the moment, Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda, Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre, and Archbishop Alexander K. Sample each gave prayerful reflections and insights on the Sacred Heart during the morning public session before the bishops traveled to the basilica for the celebration of Mass. Archbishop William E. Lori delivered the homily. The bishops’ event was intended to be a catalyst for commemorations of the 250th anniversary at the diocesan and local levels. View re-cap video.

News updates, texts of addresses and presentations, and other materials from the plenary are posted to: www.usccb.org/meetings, including an infographic summarizing the public portions of the plenary and a re-cap of the consecration.

*following the final vote count.

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WASHINGTON – As the G7 summit approaches June 15-17 in France, the presidents of the episcopal conferences of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, issued a joint statement.  

Read the full statement (and summary) that includes Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, as a signatory.

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On the final day of his Apostolic Journey to Spain, Pope Leo travelled to Tenerife, where migration remains a defining reality. Visiting one of Europe’s main arrival points for African migrants risking the perilous Atlantic crossing, the Pope sought to draw international attention to the human suffering behind migration statistics and to reaffirm the Church’s closeness to those forced to flee their homes.

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BARCELONA, Spain (CNS) -- Flying from Spain's capital of Madrid to Barcelona June 9, Pope Leo XIV shifted his focus to the deeper and darker existential questions punctuating human life.

In Madrid -- the seat of government, the monarchy and finance as well as home to world-famous art, culture and sport -- the pope highlighted the gifts that Spain and its people already possess; saying they need to work together in their diversity to protect human dignity in order to thrive and address the many political, economic and social challenges they face. 

From the political center of Spain, Pope Leo traveled to Barcelona, the country's second-largest city and the capital of Catalonia, a region with a distinct language and culture that has long been home to a movement seeking greater autonomy or independence from Spain. Tensions escalated in 2017 after Catalan leaders organized an independence referendum that Madrid opposed and Spanish courts later ruled unconstitutional.

His remarks throughout his time in Barcelona built on a broader message: that human dignity does not depend on success, productivity or a flawless past, and that God does not abandon people in suffering or define them by their mistakes.

"We must question the dynamics of our society, the culture of individualism and the temptation of violence -- but not God," he said June 9 at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium.

While Pope Leo did not touch on current political or cultural debates there, he did read substantial portions of his written texts in Catalan, a regional language spoken in northeastern Spain. When he stumbled with its complex sounds, he received loud, appreciative applause from the crowds at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium, which was named after a former president of the autonomous region who was imprisoned by the Spanish Republic, exiled and then shot by General Francisco Franco's authoritarian regime. 

He urged the 40,000 faithful in the stadium for a prayer vigil June 9 to reflect "on our personal journey, as well as on the 'nights' of our journey as a Church and those of Spain -- its cities, its old and new forms of poverty, its society and culture."

"At times, we experience the night of faith, the weariness of believing, the fatigue of the spirit, a sense of inadequacy in the face of the Gospel's call, the bitterness of our failures and the fear of not measuring up," he said in his homily. 

The preoccupation with failure and being forsaken was clear in the painful stories three young people shared with the pope and the crowd: one young man had lived feeling "immense emptiness"; one young woman had attempted suicide; and another spent time in foster care and juvenile detention after her father had tried to kill her mother.

"Sometimes I look up to heaven and ask God, 'Where were you when I was a little girl?'" she told the pope at the stadium.

In his response, the pope asked people to reconsider who's really to blame. "Should we ask, 'Where was God?' Or should we ask ourselves about humanity?" 

Each of the three young people ended their testimonies with questions of advice to the pope on the very struggles they shared. 

"He has endowed us with intelligence and will, given us a conscience," he said in his lengthy responses, encouraging people to take responsibility to confront injustices "both personally and as a society."

At the same time, Pope Leo forcefully admonished any attempts to "spiritualize pain, superficially attributing it to 'God's will' or to some mysterious plan of his, because this risks minimizing that suffering, silencing it and hurting people."

"God does not want suffering. He carries it with us and invites us to trust in him with perseverance," he said, because "with God, life is always reborn." 

On the other hand, he said, moments of darkness and suffering must never be silenced just "because certain cultural norms demand that we always be victorious and perfect."

Pope Leo noted an apparent correlation between increased mental health issues and a "deeply wrong" strain of constant progress prevalent in modern society that "subjects people to pressures, expectations and tensions that compromise healthy balances." He also called for "a healthcare system that prioritizes this invisible and widespread malaise" of depression.

A "healthy sense of restlessness" must be cultivated instead of chasing relentlessly after profit, performance and perfection, he said. "When people learn to pause and value what is important … allowing themselves to be enlightened by the Gospel, they also develop a critical perspective on a social system that does not put people first."

The pope also reached out to those marginalized in the prison system when he visited the city's "Brians 1" penitentiary. 

From the sunny exterior of the prison where birds chirped from green trees, incarcerated women shouted from the windows, "God bless you!" and "Long live the pope!" when he arrived early June 10. In the dim, dark gray-walled hall, brightened by white flowers on the stage, the pope listened to two women share their stories of loss, anger and finding peace.

"God loves you just as you are, but he dreams of you being even better!" he said. "The Lord allows us all to start anew, for being human and being Christian does not mean never making mistakes, but rather growing in the ability to convert, repent, make amends and, above all, to reconcile and forgive."

In fact, "we too are called not to judge the 'nights' -- neither the nights of our own lives, those of the Church, nor those of the society around us," he said in his homily at the prayer service June 9.

The darkness is a sign to keep searching, asking God questions and being open to the work of the Holy Spirit, he said. "We must welcome the night no longer as a sign of failure, but as the beginning of a new life."

That new life requires putting down one's protective and sometimes violent "armor," much like St. Ignatius of Loyola did after he prayed at the statue of Our Lady of Montserrat, housed in a sanctuary of the same name, and gave up his life as a soldier.

At the same sanctuary and Benedictine monastery, built into the jagged mountain range northwest of the city, Pope Leo said, Jesus "exposes the violence that can lurk in our words and attitudes: criticism that humiliates, condemnation that destroys and aggression that divides."

"That hidden violence can often disguise itself as a kind of armor, which we use to protect our wounds, our fears and the suffering caused by injustice," he said. 

The pope made no mention of clergy sex abuse while he was in Barcelona, even though the Montserrat monastery has come to symbolize the scandal in Spain after multiple victims came forward starting in 2019, reporting decades of abuse by the monks. Just two months before the pope's visit, the Catholic Church and Spain's government agreed on a compensation program for abuse victims.

When meeting with diocesan charities and aid organizations at the Church of San Agustí in Barcelona June 10, one volunteer told the pope they recognize their limitations and do not try to "fix" people's lives; their aim is to "never turn their backs" on anyone needing help.  

Pope Leo told them that Christians must be kind, gentle, compassionate, selfless "and seek the good of others, knowing that in every brother and sister who suffers it is the Lord himself." 

The pope spent most of that address responding to Renzo, a 6-year-old boy, who asked the pope light-hearted curiosities, like whether he liked soccer, and serious queries about homelessness, poverty and forgiveness.

In this small, poor parish, made up of many immigrants and missionaries, Pope Leo was in his element, comfortably going from being playful -- speaking off-the-cuff and making his audience laugh -- to being more solemn and sticking to prepared remarks "so we do not get sidetracked."  

There were many moments the pope's fun side shone through, like when, prompted by kids in the Olympic stadium, he gestured the "6-7" meme. He sat in the cockpit for part of the flight to Barcelona and radioed the pilot of a Spanish air force fighter jet escorting the papal plane, and he met with Bad Bunny before leaving Madrid after teasing reporters that the U.S. singer might outshine him with their overlapping events.

The trip's motto of "Lift up your gaze" became literal at the pope's final event in Barcelona with the blessing of the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia's central tower, which makes it the tallest church in the world.

Standing at 566 feet high and topped by a glass and white enameled cross to reflect sunlight by day and glow at night, it was lit up during a stunning light and fireworks show to celebrate the pope's blessing and the 100th anniversary of the death of its architect, the venerable Antoni Gaudí.

As the Montserrat choir sang and music reached a crescendo, thousands of small hollow "towers" left on spectators' seats suddenly turned on and glowed in tandem with the lights glowing in the church. People immediately held aloft the small lights, which were remotely controlled to create waves and pulsate, evoking a larger living being, shining in harmony with the church and others.

The basilica is "a sign of unity and harmony for all of Spain" and to "lift their gaze to encounter the face of God the Father, shining forth in his Son made man," the pope said in his homily during Mass inside the basilica.

Construction of the massive edifice began in 1882. It survived two World Wars, a civil war, anarchist attacks and unsteady funding. The basilica remains "a work in progress today, reminding us that the Christian life is always a journey," the pope said. Each Christian is a "living stone" in the edifice of the Church and that, too, is a project that God is still carrying out, he said. 

His final message to the city was that holiness is not about perfection but about allowing God to continue his work within us, even amid mistakes, setbacks and suffering. 

"Since we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, this work consists in our very lives, which God  conceives as a masterpiece that we are to create together, and he calls us to collaborate with him."

 

Pray Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, “the Little Flower,” profoundly understood the gentle and humble heart of Jesus. In contemplating how to be transformed by Christ's love, she reflected that “What pleases [Jesus] is that he...