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Pope Leo XIV has given his first Sunday address since his election as the Pope with the world getting a glimpse of the pontiff’s vision for his papacy.
Returning to the central balcony of St Peter's Basilica (loggia) where he was unveiled to the world on Thursday with a huge crowd awaiting him, pope Leo XIV called for peace in different parts of the world.
On the war in Ukraine that has dragged for years, the pontiff called for "authentic and lasting peace" that will see the guns and the drones go silent.
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Expressing deep concern for those trapped in conflicts, the pontiff denounced the ongoing conflicts across the world.
The head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics also called for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all Israeli hostages.
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Earlier in the day, the pope who is the first pontiff from the U.S.A in the church’s history of more than 2000 years celebrated a private mass near the tomb of St Peter.
Where Pope Leo headed to in 1st outing after election as pontiff
The new pontiff has had a very busy first days as he takes over from his predecessor, the late Pope Francis.
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His first outing after his election on Thursday saw the new pontiff head to St Mary Major Basilica, the final resting place of his predecessor and prayed at Pope Francis’s tomb.
The 69-year-old pope held his first formal audience in which he highlighted some of the visions of his papacy and the role that the Catholic church will play.
Challenge that the church must take the lead in facing
Speaking to cardinals who elected him at the conclave, Pope Leo XIV noted that technology is emerging as a challenge.
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The pontiff asserted that technology poses "new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labour".
He noted that the church must take the lead in facing threats to workers, mentioning Artificial Intelligence (AI) as one of the threats.
First mass as pontiff
A day after he was introduced to the world as the new pontiff, pope Leo XIV presided over his first mass in which he pledged to align himself with “ordinary people” and called for selfless missionary outreach to help heal the “wounds that afflict our society.”
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“You have called me to carry that cross and to be blessed with that mission, and I know I can rely on each and every one of you to walk with me as we continue as a church, as a community, as friends of Jesus, as believers, to announce the good news, to announce the Gospel,” the pope said, acknowledging the responsibility and the trust that the 133 cardinals had placed in him as the head of the church.
His formal installation Mass is set for May 18.