Pope Leo XIV arrived in Barcelona on Tuesday for the second leg of his week-long tour of Spain, where he has warned that escalating global conflicts have plunged the world into a profound crisis. The pontiff, who has adopted a more forceful tone regarding global leadership, addressed Spain's parliament on Monday, stating that a nation's moral greatness depends on how it treats migrants and other vulnerable populations.
Warm Welcome in Barcelona
As in Madrid, large crowds greeted Pope Leo as he arrived at Barcelona's 14th-century Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia to preside over midday prayers. He began his homily with a few words in Catalan before switching to Spanish. Earlier, in his farewell speech from Madrid, the first US pope urged Catholics to be selfless and help those in need. He said, "In a world that is constantly influenced by a logic of self-interest and profit ... it is important to think and live according to a more authentic mentality."
Meetings and Events
On Tuesday, the pope was scheduled to meet the leader of Catalonia's northeastern region and hold a prayer vigil with young people at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium. The highlight of his Barcelona visit will occur on Wednesday, when he visits an abbey in nearby Montserrat and inaugurates the newest tower of the Sagrada Familia, the modernist basilica that is now the world's tallest church. The visit also celebrates the legacy of architect Antoni Gaudí, whose designs were mocked during his lifetime but are now widely praised. Gaudí, a fervent Catholic who died on June 10, 1926, is on the path to sainthood.
Abuse Victims and Criticism
The pope met six victims of sexual abuse by Spanish clergy on Monday. However, some abuse survivors have criticized his plans to visit the Montserrat abbey, which was included in a 2023 report by Spain's human rights ombudsman estimating that hundreds of thousands of victims had been abused by Spanish clergy over decades. In 2019, the abbot of Montserrat publicly apologized to victims of sexual abuse at the abbey's school.
Final Stop in Canary Islands
Pope Leo's Spain tour will culminate on Friday in the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off western Africa. There, he will meet about 1,000 migrants who crossed dangerous Atlantic waters on small dinghies to reach Europe. In his Monday speech to parliament, the pope emphasized that a lack of support for migrants challenges "the ethical foundation of the international order."
