Pope Leo XIV to Visit Monaco, Spain, and Four African Countries

The Vatican has presented an ambitious plan for the apostolic visits abroad of Pope Leo XIV, who intends to intensify his presence on the international stage in 2026. The series of travels will begin with a historic, one-day visit to Monaco planned for March 28. This is an unprecedented event, as no sitting pope has visited this principality for nearly 500 years. The last Bishop of Rome in those territories was Paul III in 1538. The visit is a response to an invitation from Prince Albert II and aims to highlight the special relations with the Apostolic See in a country where Catholicism retains the status of the state religion. The institution of apostolic journeys in their modern form was born during the pontificate of Paul VI, who in 1964 became the first pope in centuries to leave Italy, traveling to the Holy Land. The next key point of the program will be a ten-day expedition to Africa, which will take place between April 13 and 23. Leo XIV will visit Algeria, Cameroon, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea. Particular importance is attached to the visit to Algeria, the homeland of St. Augustine, the patron saint of the order from which the current pontiff originates. This will be the first-ever visit by the head of the Catholic Church to this Muslim country. In June, the pope will travel to Spain, where, among other events, he will solemnly consecrate the new tower of the Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona. Parallel to the diplomatic plans, the pope continues his internal teaching. During a recent meeting with priests of the Roman diocese, Leo XIV warned against the "temptation of preparing homilies using artificial intelligence." He compared the brain to muscles that weaken when unused and noted that a machine is incapable of sharing living faith or personal spiritual experience. „Il cervello deve essere usato, proprio come i muscoli. L'omelia è condivisione della fede, e l'intelligenza artificiale non sarà mai in grado di condividere la fede.” (The brain must be used, just like muscles. The homily is a sharing of faith, and artificial intelligence will never be able to share faith.) — Leo XIV The visit to the Spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands, in turn, aims to draw the world's attention to the problem of migration, fitting into the programmatic line of the pontificate focused on the peripheries. The pope also called for solidarity with elderly priests, appealing to younger generations to accompany them in illness and loneliness. The entirety of the announced actions indicates the dynamic character of the pontificate of the first pope hailing from the USA, who, after the conclusion of the Holy Year 2025, wishes to personally reach the faithful on different continents.