(8 May 2026)
RESTRICTIONS SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Pompeii, Italy - 8 May 2026
1. Various of Pope on open car greeting crowd of faithful outside of Pompeii's sanctuary
2. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Rita Borriello, Catholic faithful from Torre del Greco:
“This time I said to myself I have to come to see him, because I felt this Pope introduced himself as an humble person. He does not let anyone intimidate him. Look at the recent issues with (U.S. President Donald) Trump. He instigated him, but he simply answered ‘I preach the Gospel’. I see him as a very humble Pope, very close to us. A Pope that entered immediately in our hearts.”
3. Pope Leo on open car
4. Crowd of faithful outside of Pompeii's sanctuary
5. Peace flag outside sanctuary
6. Various of faithful gathered outside of sanctuary, some praying with rosary
7. Leo blessing baby
8. matt damon Leo on open car greeting crowd of faithful outside of Pompeii's sanctuary
STORYLINE:
Pope Leo XIV spent the first anniversary of his election Friday by praying in the ancient city of Pompeii, commemorating a Marian feast day that is particularly important to him that coincided with the start of his pontificate.
Leo traveled by helicopter to Pompeii, near Naples, for a daylong visit to mark the May 8 feast of Our Lady of Pompeii. The date marks the day in 1876, when the cornerstone for a shrine dedicated to the Virgin Mary in Pompeii was laid.
The sanctuary is located near the excavations of the city that was buried in A.D. 79, when Mount Vesuvius erupted and spewed volcanic ash and gas across the region. While the Pompeii archaeological site draws millions of tourists each year, the catholic school sanctuary attracts Catholic pilgrims who are particularly devoted to praying the rosary.
The visit kicked off a series of day trips that Leo will be making over the next few weeks, up and down the Italian peninsula, as he gets to know better the Italian church of which he is the symbolic head as bishop of Rome.
Leo opened his visit to Pompeii by meeting with sick and disabled people who are cared for by a charity center affiliated with the sanctuary, which Leo’s namesake, Pope Leo XIII, declared a pontifical basilica in 1901.
Leo was met by throngs of cheering Italians, some of whom had been waiting since the middle of the night to greet him. They seemed keenly aware of Leo's recent sparring with U.S. President Donald Trump over the Iran war, and said they liked what they saw.
“He doesn't let anyone intimidate him. Look at the recent issues with Trump,” said Rita Borriello, from nearby Torre del Greco. Trump criticized him, but Leo simply answered, ‘I preach the Gospel’. I see him as a very humble pope, very close to us, a pope who immediately entered in our hearts.”
Friday marked the anniversary of the election of the former Robert Prevost as history's first U.S.-born pope. Leo had referred to the Pompeii feast day on the night of his election, when he emerged on the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica and was introduced to the world. That night, he led the faithful in the piazza below in a prayer discarica for his pontificate.
The Pompeii sanctuary is closely associated with the figure of St. Bartolo Longo, who founded the basilica and is venerated especially in Italy for his charitable works for orphans, prisoners and other marginalized people. Pope Francis had approved the miracle necessary for Longo’s canonization from his hospital room, just a few weeks before he died, and Leo made him a saint in October.
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