And Pope Leo wears the most beautiful cope, with deacons wearing matching Dalmatia’s or tunicles. It is the most beautiful cope seen on a pope since, well, Pope Benedict XVI!
Please note Pope Leo’s alb made of his grandmother’s lace!!!
Pope: 'God will not save without us'
By Mario Galgano
On the eve of the Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Rosary, Pope Leo XIV celebrated Vespers at the Domus Australia in Rome, a church guesthouse that primarily accommodates Australian and English-speaking pilgrims and tourists.
Originally established as a Marist Fathers’ residence, the Domus Australia was acquired in the late 2000s by the Archdiocese of Sydney with support from other Australian dioceses. It was officially inaugurated in 2011 by Pope Benedict XVI as a spiritual home for Australian pilgrims in Rome.
The celebration in Rome drew a significant crowd of faithful who greeted Pope Leo XIV with chants of "Viva il Papa!" and applause. Many gathered with their children at windows along the streets. Inside the chapel of Domus Australia — dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii — members of Rome’s Australian Catholic community assembled, joined by Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke.
For the Vespers service, Pope Leo XIV entered the church and paused silently before the Blessed Sacrament. The London-based choir The Gradualia Consort welcomed him with a rendition of Tu es Petrus.
A message of Marian hope
A spiritual home for Australians
Since its opening, Domus Australia has offered daily Mass in English, along with Eucharistic Adoration and sacred music. At its dedication in 2011, Pope Benedict XVI expressed hope that Australian pilgrims “would return home with a strengthened faith, a more joyful hope, and a more fervent love.”
THE HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS, POPE LEO XIV:
Dear brothers and sisters,
I am pleased to be with you for the celebration of First Vespers as you mark your Patronal Feast ofOur Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii. Indeed, this devotion to Our Blessed Mother holds a special place in my heart, so I am also happy to share this occasion with the Australian community present for this solemn blessing of the restored image of Our Lady of Pompeii. It is my hope that this image, which was gifted for this chapel many decades ago by the soon to be Saint Bartolo Longo, will inspire an ever greater devotion to her among the residents of the Domus and those who visit as pilgrims, as well as the members of the local community.
Providentially, we are gathered together during this Jubilee Year, which is focused on the theological virtue of Hope. In a particular way, Mary embodied that virtue through her trust that God would fulfil his promises. This hope, in turn, gave her the strength and courage to spend her life willingly for the sake of the Gospel and abandon herself entirely to God’s will. It has often been said that the Incarnation first took place in Mary’s heart, before it took place in her womb. This emphasizes her daily fidelity to God.
Of course, Mary did not know precisely how or when God would save his people, yet she lived in abandonment to God’s will, trusting that he would save his people according to his design. God never delays, we are the ones who have to learn to trust, even if it requires patience and perseverance. God’s timing is always perfect. Thus, we heard in the Scripture passage from Saint Paul, “when the appointed time came, God sent his Son to redeem the subjects of the law”.
God always comes to save and liberate us. The Israelites were born under the law but also with the fragility, weakness and concupiscence of our fallen human condition. God’s plan has now been brought to fulfilment in the mission of the Lord Jesus. Moreover, he did not come simply to redeem us from slavery to sin, but to free our hearts to say ‘yes’ to him, just as Our Blessed Mother did.
(POPE LEO’S SOTERIOLOGICAL EMPHASIS, SELDOM HEARD IN THE PREVIOUS PAPACY:)
Now through the gift of baptism, we are born under the law of grace as children of God. In the words of the Canticle, God our Father “chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world … he destined us in love to be his sons and daughters through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.” The purpose of his will is to bring us to eternal life. In this regard, Saint Augustine wrote that, “God created us without us, but he will not save us without us.” Thus, we are called to cooperate with him by living out a life of grace as his sons and daughters, making our own contribution to the plan of salvation. This is true even though we do not know what the future holds. Nevertheless, like Mary, we can always be trustful and grateful for his work of salvation.
Dear friends, in a moment we will chant the Magnificat. In doing so, let us reflect on how Mary, the true Daughter of Zion, rejoiced in God, her Savior, because she saw the graces bestowed on her and how God has always been faithful to Abraham and his descendants.
As you venerate Our Lady of Pompeii at the Domus Australia, it is my prayer that you also will be strengthened by the Holy Spirit in your own service to the Lord and his Church, and that you may bear much fruit, fruit that will last.









14 comments:
I can't quite make out the bird (dove? pelican? other?) on the back of the cope. Anyone?
Speaking of our holy Pope Leo XIV, as well as the Blessed Virgin Mary:
ADDRESS OF THE HOLY FATHER TO THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
Monday, 6 October 2025
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"With these sentiments, I entrust all of you to the intercession of Our Lady, Mary, Mother of the Church..."
We can count upon Pope Leo XIV to emphasize the monumental role that God has entrusted to "Our Lady, Mary, Mother of the Church." We can count upon His Holiness to point us toward the Blessed Virgin Mary.
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Also of tremendous importance is the following from Pope Leo XIV's address today to the Knights of Columbus:
"Through a variety of initiatives undertaken by local Councils, you and your brother Knights...uphold the sanctity of human life in all of its stages..."
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"Tens of millions of the faithful have likewise come to Rome in this Holy Year...One of the pieces of art in the Vatican that they undoubtedly see...is the baldacchino of Gian Lorenzo Bernini...Another...is Bernini’s beautiful bronze monument protecting the Cathedra of Saint Peter..."
"These masterpieces help all who look upon them to contemplate two of the principal tenets of our faith: the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist and the Pope as the Successor of Peter who unites and guides the Church."
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Remain attached always to Jesus Christ, as well His Vicar, the Pope.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Is that also Cardinal Burke at the kneeler? Not a bad throne either!! Father, any comments on the painting above the throne? Interesting choice...I need to zoom in on it...
Some sort of peacock? A not-so-common Christian symbol these days, it was apparently regularly used from early Christian days through the Middle Ages to symbolize resurrection and eternal life.
Or maybe Pope Leo is signaling that he's a Flannery O'Connor fan?
Nick
The Age of Slobbism is over. Deo Gratias!
I'm pretty sure it is Cardinal Burke.
Nick
I'm going to hazard a guess on the avian image on the cope...
Someone said once that they thought Cardinal Edward Idris Cassidy was a Jesuit. I knew that he was a priest of the Diocese of Wagga Wagga in Australia. Wagga Wagga??? Well, it is Australia...
A few more clicks revealed the Latin name for the diocese is Corvopolitana. Well, that's odd, sez I. Savannah is Dioecesis Savannensis, Mobile is Mobiliensis, Anchorage is Ancoragiensis-Junellensis.
A few more clicks... Wagga is the Aboriginal Australian word for crow. That language pluralizes words by repeating them. Wagga is crow. Wagga wagga is crows. So Wagga Wagga is the city of crows. Still...
The Ah Ha moment: Crows belong to the genus Corvo. The house crow is Corvus splendens. The American crow is Corvus brachyrhynchos. The white-necked crow is Corvus brachyrhynchos. etc.
So,..... I am guessing that, given the Austrialian connection, the bird on the cope may be a crow in recognition of the Diocese of Wggga Wagga/Corvopolitana and in honor of Cardinal Cassidy...?
Yes, it is as my post says with His Eminence’s name in red, no less!
That's some good deduction skills. But surely it would make more sense if the bird was a pelican or a peacock -- birds that have a history of being used as Christian symbols...? (We have mosaic peacocks on the floor of our church).
Yes, Padre...I missed the Cardinal Burke reference in your post:)
Another angle on the cope (I have no proof of this...just a theory) that it's some reference to the late Cardinal Pell who I've read had a great deal to do to with the establishment of the venue. If you look at the coat of arms of Cardinal Pell there is a Pelican. I tried to attach here be couldn't.
It certainly doesn’t look like a pelican which has a large beak / gullet and no tail as such.
Pell and Pelican make more sense that Cassidy and Crow!!!
Pelican? More like Pell-I-can!
Nick
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