Overview
- Pope Leo XIV, who led Holy Thursday services Thursday at Rome’s St. John Lateran, washed the feet of 12 priests in the traditional rite.
- In his homily he urged Christians to kneel with the oppressed and said God shows how to liberate, not dominate.
- The cathedral ceremony restored the pre‑Francis practice of washing priests’ feet, replacing recent years when popes held the rite in prisons and included women and non‑Christians.
- Vatican officials said he chose priests to show support for clergy, and the group included 11 he ordained last year plus the Rome seminary rector, Rev. Renzo Chiesa.
- The celebration comes in his first Holy Week as pope and signals a papacy that pairs clergy support with ongoing social‑justice appeals.