Pope Leo XIV, speaking from Castel Gandolfo in Italy, urged for “merciful compassion” towards the impoverished, victims of oppression, and those affected by conflict. This call came as he held a Mass in a parish church with strong spiritual connections to his Augustinian religious community.

The Pope is currently on a break, continuing the tradition of spending summers at the papal estate in Castel Gandolfo, located south of Rome, where he conducted Mass at St. Thomas of Villanova church.

St. Thomas of Villanova, a Spanish educator from the 16th century, served as a superior in the Augustinian order—a group that follows the teachings of St. Augustine of Hippo. He is the patron of Villanova University near Philadelphia, where Pope Leo studied. St. Thomas is celebrated for his charity work, including giving away his wealth to help those in poverty.

In his homily, Leo offered a meditation on the biblical story of the Good Samaritan. Leo urged the faithful to be guided by empathy and be moved to act “with the same merciful compassion as God.”

“How we look at others is what counts, because it shows what is in our hearts,” he said. “We can look and walk by, or we can look and be moved with compassion.”

That is especially true, he said, when looking at those who are “stripped, robbed and pillaged, victims of tyrannical political systems, of an economy that forces them into poverty, and of wars that kill their dreams and their very lives.”

From his very first words as pope, Leo has repeatedly emphasized his identity as an Augustinian and infused his homilies and speeches with teachings from the 5th century theologian.

The Rev. Tadeusz Rozmus, the priest at the St. Thomass of Villanova parish, has said the return of a pope to Castel Gandolfo has filled the town with joy. In an interview ahead of Leo’s arrival last week, Rozmus also noted the spiritual connection of history’s first Augustinian pope to the town.

“St. Thomas of Villanova was an Augustinian saint, and so with him (Leo) returns to the beginning of his history, of his spirituality,” Rozmus said.

Leo is taking an initial two weeks of vacation in Castel Gandolfo, though he has already interrupted it to receive Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a group of religious superiors and to celebrate a special Mass dedicated to caring for God’s creation.

He will go back to the Vatican at the end of July and then return for another spell in August.

Winfield reported from Rome.

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