Pope Leo XIV greets pilgrims gathered for his Wednesday general audience on Dec. 31, 2025, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. | Credit: Vatican Media Dec 31, 2025 / 08:08 am (CNA). Pope Leo XIV used the Vatican’s final general audience of 2025 on Wednesday to invite Catholics to look back on the past year with gratitude and repentance, and to place what lies ahead in God’s hands.In St. Peter’s Square on Dec. 31, the pope said 2025 brought both joy and sorrow, citing the jubilee pilgrimage of the faithful as well as “the passing of the late Pope Francis” and “the scenarios of war that continue to convulse the planet.”“At its end,” Leo said, “the Church invites us to place everything before the Lord, entrusting ourselves to his providence, and asking him to renew, in us and around us, in the coming days, the wonders of his grace and mercy.”Pope Leo XIV waves from the popemobile to pilgrims gathered for his Wednesday general audience on Dec. 31, 2025, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. | Credit: Vatican MediaHe tied that end-of-year spiritual “dynamic” to the Church’s Te Deum observance, saying the hymn of praise and thanksgiving helps believers recognize God’s gifts and renew hope. Leo noted that the prayer includes lines such as: “You are God: We praise you,” “In you, Lord, is our hope,” and “Have mercy on us.”According to the Vatican’s published schedule, Leo was set to celebrate first vespers for the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, at 5 p.m. in St. Peter’s Basilica, followed by the Te Deum.In his catechesis, the pope encouraged an honest examination of conscience, calling the faithful to reflect on God’s action over the past year, to evaluate their response to his gifts, and to ask forgiveness for times they failed to follow his inspirations or invest well the talents entrusted to them.Leo also returned to a core jubilee image, describing life as a pilgrimage. “This reminds us that our whole life is a journey,” he said, one that reaches its true fulfillment in “the encounter with God and in full and eternal communion with him.”Pope Leo XIV greets a young pilgrim during his Wednesday general audience on Dec. 31, 2025, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. | Credit: Vatican MediaThe pope pointed to another emblematic jubilee practice, the passage through the Holy Door, describing it as a concrete sign of conversion and of the believer’s yes to God, who “invites us to cross the threshold of a new life, animated by grace, modeled on the Gospel.”Looking to Christmas, Leo recalled St. Leo the Great’s preaching on the universal joy of Christ’s birth: “Let the saint rejoice … let the sinner rejoice … let the pagan take courage.” The pope said that invitation extends to all, including those who feel weak or fragile, because Christ has taken human frailty upon himself and redeemed it.To close, Leo cited St. Paul VI’s reflection at the end of the 1975 Jubilee, saying its core message can be summed up in a single word: “love.” He then repeated Paul VI’s emphatic profession of faith, including: “God is love! … God is mercy! God is forgiveness! … God, yes, God is life!”This story was first published by ACI Stampa, CNA’s Italian-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
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