Pope Leo XIV celebrates first Mass; will formally be installed on May 18

VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first Mass as the leader of the Catholic church on Friday, less than a day after being elected as pontiff by the College of Cardinals.

During the homily in the private mass for the cardinals who elected him, he spoke about faith, power and corruption, The Associated Press and CNN reported.

He also spoke about keeping faith alive during difficult times, using his Peru missionary work as inspiration.

Pope Leo XIV said, there are “contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied.”

“Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed,” he said.

“A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society,” he said.

He also allowed women to read from the Scriptures during the service, which may, according to the AP, indicate that he could give women a larger role in the church.

But CNN reported that he had previously said that tradition won’t change and that men will be the only ones permitted to be ordained.

As the cardinal responsible for the Dicastery for Bishops, the now-pope worked on his predecessor’s desire to open up the governing of the church to women, adding three women to the panel that decides what names should be submitted to the pope to make bishops.

During the mass, Pope Leo XIV addressed the cardinals in English, telling them, “you have called me to carry the cross and to be blessed,” asking them to help spread faith. Latin was the language used for the opening song and prayers, with the psalm read in Italian.

Even though he has already led his first Mass, Pope Leo XIV will be installed as pope on May 18, holding his first public Mass in St. Peter’s Square.

The mass will be held at 10 a.m. local time, or 4 a.m. ET.

His first general audience with the public will be on May 21, CNN reported.

Here is the rest of his schedule through the end of the month:

• May 10: Meeting with the College of Cardinals
• May 11: Reciting the Regina Caeli prayer
• May 12: Meeting with the world press
• May 16: Meeting with the Vatican’s Diplomatic Corps
• May 18: Mass for the Beginning of the Pontificate
• May 20: Taking possession of the Papal Basilica of St. Paul
• May 21: First general audience with the public
• May 24: Meeting the Roman Curia and Vatican City officials
• May 25: Second Regina Caeli prayer

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