Pope Leo XIV remembers Pope Francis a month after his death

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

“We cannot complete this encounter without remembering our beloved Pope Francis with deep gratitude, who returned to the father's house exactly a month ago.”

With these words, Pope Leo XIV reminded his predecessor, the late Pope Francis, who died exactly a month ago on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025.

His comments came at the end of his first general audience on St. Peter's Square on May 21.

Memory of the late Pope Francis

Exactly a month after the death of the late Pope, a memorial fair will be celebrated in the Marian basilica of St. Mary Major on Wednesday, which the late holy father selected as the last retirement.

Previously, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the papal Almoner and Prefect of the Dicastery, celebrated a trade fair for personnel in Casa Santa Marta.

In his sermon, the Polish -born Cardinal remembered the daily masses of the deceased Pope in the chapel of the residence, and found that he always started reading the gospel of the next day and underlining a few words that touched him.

“He used the logic of the gospel when he had to solve his problems and that of the church,” said Cardinal Krajewski. “He often said: 'If you don't know what to do, look for the Gospels to see what Jesus would have done in their place, and then you will know.”

The fair in the Casa Santa Marta was contracted by Cardinal Arthur Roche, the prefect of the Dicastery for the divine worship and the discipline of the sacraments and Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś, Archbishop of Łódź.

Pope Leo and his predecessor

After taking a trip to a Marian shrine near Rome on Saturday after he was elected Pope as the Pope, he stopped from the basilica of St. Mary Major to pray near Pope Francis.

The Holy Father also remembered the late Pope from the central loggia of the St. Peter Basilica immediately after his election and how he had given the city of Rome and the world his blessing from the same balcony on Easter Sunday.

Encourage of religious, families and youth, to live the faith happily and fertile

Even after the weekly general public, Pope Leo warmly welcomed the Italian -speaking pilgrims, including priests that he asked to “build their lives on Jesus and on the solid rock of his word so that they can be brave proclimations.”

In the same reason, the Holy Father encouraged religious sisters and calmed down: “Dear sisters, I accompany them with my prayers so that the Lord can make their apostolic commitment fruitful.”

In addition, he warmly welcomed parish groups and encouraged them to “faithfully follow the gospel of being authentic Christians in their families and in any other environment.”

And finally, his thoughts went to young people, the sick and newlywed, “always wanted to serve God with joy and love their neighbors with an gospel.”