Pope Leo to host ‘Lunch with the Pope’ for 200 people in need
The annual event invites people experiencing hardship to spend a day of prayer, fellowship, and encounter with the Holy Father.
Pope Leo XIV will share lunch July 11 with 200 people experiencing poverty from the Diocese of Rome as part of the annual "Lunch with the Pope" initiative, according to Vatican News.
The gathering will take place at Borgo Laudato si' in the Pontifical Gardens of Castel Gandolfo, where participants will begin the day with Mass before touring the site and sharing a meal with the Holy Father, the outlet reported.
The initiative invites a different diocese each year to bring together poor people, refugees, migrants, and others experiencing hardship for a day with the Holy Father at Borgo Laudato si'. The outlet described the gathering as an opportunity to be immersed in the beauty of creation and to meet the Holy Father.
The event was first held in August 2025, when Pope Leo welcomed poor people from the Diocese of Albano, Italy, according to Vatican News.
This year's gathering is being organized by the Laudato si' Centre for Higher Education, the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, and the Diocese of Rome. According to Vatican News, the Laudato si' Centre for Higher Education oversees Borgo Laudato si', a project dedicated to integrating care for creation, human development, and Christian formation.
Cardinal Fabio Baggio, director general of the Laudato si' Centre, said Borgo Laudato si' reflects the conviction that "the care of creation and the care of the human person are one and the same mission." He added that the July 11 encounter is another step in Pope Leo's outreach to those living on the margins of society and reaffirms the Church's "vocation to be present wherever human dignity calls for listening, closeness, and hope."
Archbishop Luis Marín de San Martín, prefect of the dicastery, said the gathering also demonstrates how the Church lives out the Gospel.
"When the Church places the most vulnerable people at the centre," he said, "it makes the Gospel visible and bears witness that no one is on the margins of God's heart."
