Pope Leo XIV in Lampedusa: he prays at the graves of migrants who died at sea and crosses the threshold of Europe.

This morning, Pope Leo XIV went to Lampedusa for a journey full of emotion and symbolic meaning.

The Pope left a floral tribute and stopped to pray at the graves of migrants who died at sea in the cemetery of the nameless in Cala Pisana. The graves are marked with crosses made from the wood of shipwrecks.

Prevost then went to the Gate of Europe , a ceramic and iron monument symbolizing the entry of migrants into the Old Continent. He greeted an immigrant family and, in a highly symbolic gesture , walked through the gate , placing his hand on the right side and looking out to sea where a military ship could be seen. He then crossed it and climbed down onto the cliff alone, the wind blowing his skullcap away. Here , Leo XIV paused for a long time, alone, gazing out to sea, in what was interpreted as an invitation to see the Mediterranean as an opportunity and not just a tomb .

And again, at the Favarolo pier, which from now on will be renamed Francesco pier, he unveiled and blessed the plaque dedicated to his predecessor. He then walked toward a group of 15 migrants brought from the hotspot run by the Red Cross and shook their hands, one by one. Then he began his tour in the popemobile before the Mass.

The plane carrying the Pope landed on the island at 8:54 a.m. Leo XIV was welcomed by His Excellency Alessandro Damiano, Metropolitan Archbishop of Agrigento; Renato Schifani, President of the Sicily Region; Salvatore Caccamo, Prefect of Agrigento; Filippo Mannino, Mayor of Lampedusa; Giuseppe Pendolino, President of the Free Municipal Consortium of Agrigento; and Alfredo Mantovano, Undersecretary of State to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers.

(Unioneonline/L)