Pope Leo XIV will visit five parishes across Rome during the season of Lent, celebrating Mass and meeting with parish communities on each of the five Sundays leading up to Easter, the Diocese of Rome announced Jan. 23.
The pastoral visits, scheduled for February and March, will take the Pope to parishes representing each of Rome’s five pastoral regions, continuing a tradition observed by his predecessors, according to Vatican News.
According to the Vicariate of Rome, Pope Leo will meet with parish groups, which include clergy, pastoral workers and young people, before celebrating Mass with the broader parish community at each stop.
Cardinal Baldo Reina, the vicar general of Rome, said the visits are intended to strengthen the Pope’s pastoral relationship with the diocese he serves as bishop.
“They will be true pastoral visits,” Cardinal Reina said.
The visits will begin Feb. 15 at Holy Mary Queen of Peace Parish in the coastal district of Ostia Lido, followed by visits to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus parish at Castro Pretorio on Feb. 22 and the Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ parish on March 1.
Additional visits are scheduled for March 8 at Our Lady of the Presentation Parish and March 15 at the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus parish in Ponte Mammolo.
The vicariate said the Pope will also meet with the diocese’s clergy on Feb. 19, the day after Ash Wednesday, before beginning the parish visits.
Cardinal Reina called the initiative “a source of great joy” for the diocese and said it reflects the Pope’s desire to remain closely connected to Rome’s parish life during Lent.