Monday, Nov. 10 will be, we hope, the first in a long line of feast days for Pope Leo XIV. That day is the Memorial of St. Leo I, Pope and Doctor (440-461), also known as “the Great.”
Pope Leo XIV chose the name “Leo” especially in veneration of Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903), who championed the church’s social concerns for the poor and workers. Our Holy Father, shortly after his election May 8 to the chair of St. Peter, stated that he recognized the various technological developments today, including artificial intelligence, “that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor.”
But one can imagine that the person and the contributions of Pope St. Leo I are not far from the mind and heart of the new pontiff from Chicago.
St. Leo the Great, according to the introduction to his memorial in The Liturgy of the Hours, Volume IV, “was probably born in Rome and was raised to the See of Peter in 440. He was a true pastor and father of souls. He labored strenuously to safeguard the integrity of the faith and vigorously defended the unity of the church. He pushed back or at least softened the onrush of the barbarians. He has then deservedly won the title ‘the Great.’ He died in 461.”
A passage from one of his sermons, which declares St. Leo’s clear teaching about the church, has found its way into the Breviary’s Office of Readings for the same day. “Although the universal church of God is constituted of distinct orders of members, still, in spite of the many parts of her holy body, the church subsists as an integral whole, just as the Apostle says: ‘We are all one in Christ,’ nor is anyone separated from the office of another in such a way that a lower group has no connection with the head. In the unity of faith and baptism, our community is then undivided. There is a common dignity as the apostle Peter says in these words: ‘And you are built up as living stones into spiritual houses, a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.’ And again: ‘But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of election.’ ”
In another sermon, St. Leo the Great humbly acknowledges his feebleness, his papacy notwithstanding. “Beloved, I am both weak and lazy in fulfilling the obligations of my office; whenever I try to act with vigor and devotedness, the frailty of our human condition slows me down. Yet I share in the ever-present atoning work of that Almighty and Eternal High Priest, who is like us and yet equal to the Father; He brought the Godhead down to our human level and raised our humanity to the Godhead. Rightly, then, do we rejoice in what He established; for, though He delegated to many shepherds the care of His sheep, He has not ceased to watch over in person the flock that is dear to Him.”
On June 27 — this year’s Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests during the Jubilee for Priests — Pope Leo XIV spoke about the importance of unity in the world and the church and has charged priests with doing their part. “In a world marked by growing tensions, even within families and ecclesial communities, priests are called to promote reconciliation and foster communion.” He added: “The Lord does not look for perfect priests, but for humble hearts that are open to conversion and prepared to love others as He Himself loved us.”
Asking Pope St. Leo I for his heavenly intercession for the current Vicar of Christ and successor of St. Peter, we joyfully exclaim: Happy Feast Day, Pope Leo XIV!
Msgr. Mangan is on the faculty of Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md.
Made for communion