Pope Leo XIV on the afternoon of Wednesday, Aug. 13, returned to Castel Gandolfo, where he had resided during his summer vacation in July.
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The pontiff left the Vatican around 4:30 p.m. local time and traveled by car to the papal summer home where he stayed July 6–22.
Castel Gandolfo, located 15 miles from Rome on the shores of Lake Albano, has historically been the site of the papal residence during the summer. While Pope Francis decided to stay at the Vatican during the summer, Pope Leo XIV has revived the tradition.
After a day of rest, on Friday, Aug. 15, the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to celebrate Mass at the pontifical parish in Castel Gandolfo.
On Sunday, Aug. 17, at 9:30 a.m. local time, the Holy Father will arrive at the shrine in Santa Maria della Rotonda in Albano, an Italian town bordering Castel Gandolfo, to celebrate Mass with a group of poor people receiving assistance from Caritas.
After Mass, he will head to Castel Gandolfo to pray the Angelus at noon in Liberty Plaza.
In addition, according to the Diocese of Albano, he will later share lunch with 100 low-income people at Borgo Laudato Si’, an ecological and social project inspired by Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’. On Sunday afternoon, Aug. 17, the Holy Father will return to the Vatican.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
Almudena Martínez-Bordiú is a graduate in Journalism and Advertising from CEU San Pablo University in Madrid, with studies at LUMSA in Rome. Former Vatican correspondent for ACI Prensa and EWTN. Now Europe correspondent based in Madrid, covering major Catholic events and Church affairs.
