Pope Leo XIV urges Spain to stop fanning flames of polarization on first papal visit in 15 years

MADRID (AP) — Pope Leo XIV urged Spaniards connected Saturday to halt “fanning the flames of polarization” arsenic helium arrived successful Spain astatine a infinitesimal of governmental turmoil for the Socialist-led authorities and a credibility situation for the Catholic Church.

The American pontiff traveled to Spain dozens of times arsenic a priest, but this is the archetypal sojourn present by a pope successful 15 years. And Spaniards turned retired successful droves to invited Leo, with an estimated 500,000 radical — galore of them young — cheering “This is the younker of the pope” astatine a raucous evening supplication vigil successful Plaza de Lima successful Madrid, wherever Leo was treated to a stone star's welcome.

Leo's sojourn signals a instrumentality of papal attraction to Europe’s Christian roots aft Pope Francis mostly stayed distant from the accepted centers of Christianity successful favour of smaller Catholic communities farther away.

Leo is seemingly keen to bring his connection of peace, unity and quality dignity to a continent sorely polarized implicit migration, the Russia-Ukraine warfare and anxiousness implicit artificial intelligence.

The pope, known arsenic León XIV successful Spanish, opened his weeklong travel successful Madrid, greeted astatine the airdrome by the country’s Catholic monarchs, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. He told reporters, portion traveling, that helium was peculiarly heartened by reports of a spiritual awakening among young radical successful the once-staunchly Catholic but present secularized country.

During his invited address, Leo appealed to Spaniards, particularly governmental leaders, to enactment polemics speech and put successful educating young radical to admit diverseness and complexity alternatively than shunning them.

“Today, the temptation to summation popularity by fanning the flames of polarization seems to person grown alternatively than diminished, and quality dignity continues to beryllium violated,” Leo said.

He appealed to Spain’s spot astatine the bosom of Christian Europe to service arsenic a exemplary for the remainder of the continent, portion besides recalling the country's 800-year Moorish past, erstwhile cities similar Toledo and Córdoba became, helium said, “centers of dialog betwixt languages, religions and knowledge.”

“For the emotion of truth, I invitation everyone to acceptable speech the divisive and polarizing narratives of your societal world and history,” helium said. Doing truthful volition assistance Europe “overcome sterile simplifications done the fruitful appreciation of complexity.”

Spaniards find themselves progressively divided implicit issues including immigration, feminism and governmental corruption, portion historically Spain was riven by territorial and independency movements.

Spain's parliament prepares for first-ever papal speech

The item of Leo’s sojourn to Madrid volition beryllium his code connected Monday to a associated parliamentary league of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate — the archetypal by a pope. Such speeches are uncommon and often go 1 of the astir important of a pontificate.

But Leo volition find a highly polarized legislature, with the authorities Socialist enactment hammered by a bid of corruption scandals. Conservative parties, including the Popular Party and Vox, person called for Sánchez to measurement down earlier a wide predetermination owed by adjacent year, and person roundly criticized his government’s migration policies.

Spain’s Socialist-led authorities has bucked a wide inclination successful Europe and the United States by announcing it volition assistance ineligible presumption to perchance hundreds of thousands of immigrants surviving and moving successful the state without authorization. Sánchez has highlighted the benefits of ineligible migration to the Spanish system with an aging workforce and debased birthrate.

Despite immoderate expected protests of Leo’s visit, his code to parliament successful peculiar is thing of a milestone for Spain’s Catholic Church. Shaped by the anticlerical unit of the country’s 1936-1939 civilian war, the religion has dealt much precocious with a credibility situation implicit revelations of decades of clergy maltreatment and cover-up.

And yet determination are signs of renewed involvement successful each forms of spirituality, Christian and otherwise, particularly among young Spaniards, said sociologist Narciso Michavila Núñez, president of the GAD3 consulting steadfast that polls young radical astir their faith, among different things.

In caller surveys, helium said, pollsters are registering newfound involvement successful religion among Gen Z Spaniards. Michavila and others mention the popularity of Spanish popular prima Rosalía’s caller deed medium “Lux,” which is overtly spiritual.

“The information from a communal presumption is not that God is successful fashion. What is caller successful this moment, successful this sojourn of the pope, is that God successful the Spanish nine is not a tattoo anymore,” helium said.

Leo pointed to the signs of a spiritual awakening successful comments to reporters en way to Madrid. But helium besides acknowledged that he's facing stiff contention from Bad Bunny, who is holding 2 concerts this weekend.

“If they are confronted with the question ‘Do you privation to spell spot Bad Bunny oregon bash you privation to spell to spot the pope?’ I deliberation galore volition spot Bad Bunny,” Leo said. “But I deliberation determination volition besides beryllium a fewer present to spot the pope. And that says something, you know.”

Pope to conscionable with maltreatment victims and migrants

In a motion that the clergy intersexual maltreatment situation continues to overshadow papal trips, Leo confirmed helium would conscionable with survivors during his visit. The Spanish Catholic hierarchy is belatedly reckoning with decades of maltreatment and cover-up.

“Abuses are inactive an unfastened wound,” helium told reporters.

Spain's king besides cited the church’s intersexual maltreatment situation successful the state successful his invited speech, but helium insisted specified cases “neither are nor tin beryllium typical of the immense ecclesial community.”

“Your clarity and firmness, which I besides privation to acknowledge, are indispensable successful the process of healing and repairing the harm inflicted: they are indispensable for the victims, for the faithful, for the church, and for society,” Felipe told Leo, successful an evident notation to a precocious launched church-state reparations strategy for immoderate victims of clerical abuse.

Leo’s travel is the archetypal papal sojourn to Spain since Pope Benedict XVI came successful 2011 for World Youth Day.

After Madrid, the different highlights of the travel see Leo’s sojourn midweek to Barcelona, wherever helium volition observe Mass successful the Sagrada Familia basilica connected the centenary of the decease of its famed architect, Antoni Gaudí.

Leo volition besides fulfill a privation of Francis by ending his sojourn with a two-day halt successful the Canary Islands, the Spanish archipelago person to Africa than the Iberian Peninsula and a cardinal destination for migrants leaving West Africa.

Leo volition conscionable with migrants and the humanitarian organizations providing attraction for them. He is expected to flip a wreath of flowers into the sea, successful representation of migrants killed during the treacherous Atlantic crossing. He’ll bash truthful from the larboard successful Las Palmas that successful 2020 earned the nickname the “Dock of Shame” due to the fact that thousands of migrants were forced to slumber successful the unfastened for weeks connected extremity during a spike successful arrivals.

Francis had made reaching retired to migrants and refugees a hallmark of his papacy, and Leo has followed suit by demanding dignified attraction of migrants, particularly successful his autochthonal U.S.

“For those of america who are immigrants and find ourselves successful this concern of having household acold away, idiosyncratic similar the pope — who is an important fig for the full satellite — coming present is genuinely thing that makes maine accidental ‘wow,’” said Constantina Nchama, an migrant from Equatorial Guinea.

“It’s thing that happens erstwhile successful a lifetime,” she said. “I’m very, precise excited astir that, truly.”

___

Associated Press religion sum receives enactment done the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with backing from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely liable for this content.

Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.