Though Pope Leo XIV will be stateside this weekend in his hometown of Chicago, he might soon find himself in Spain if he accepts King Felipe’s invitation.
A Holy See press readout shows that the recently-elected Pontiff held a phone call with Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and “expressed his gratitude that King Felipe and Queen Letizia came to Rome” for his papal inauguration.
Queen Letizia is one of the few queens granted the privilege du blanc, a Catholic rite to some queens that allows them to wear white instead of the customary black in a Pope’s presence.
Prime Minister Pérez-Castejón also passed along an invitation for Pope Leo XIV to visit while also discussing relevant issues to both Spain and Vatican City, “including the migration crisis, the need to build bridges to resolve ongoing conflicts, and the defense of human dignity.”
At Pope Leo XIV’s inauguration last month, King Felipe and Queen Letizia shared a message to their social media account in which they shared their intentions to “convey the best wishes on behalf of the Spanish people, the Government and the Royal Family for a venturous pontificate and who hope to see you soon in Spain.”
Should Pope Leo XIV visit Spain, he would become the first pope since 2011 to visit the country. Pope Francis never made an official pastoral visit to Spain, but Pope Benedict XVI visited three times: in 2006, 2010 and 2011.
Pope Leo XIV has yet to undertake any official pastoral visits but has met with several world leaders at the Vatican. On his inauguration day, 18 May, his first official visitors were President Dina Boluarte of Peru—a country where he did much missionary work and served as Bishop of Chiclayo between 2005 and 2023—and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy from Ukraine.
