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Pope Leo XIV addresses cardinals in English at his first Mass

AM800-News-Pope-Leo-May-8-2025 Newly elected Pope Leo XIV, left, formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, appears with, from left, Master of Ceremonies Archbishop Diego Giovanni Ravelli, and former Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin on the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican shortly after his election as the 267th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, Thursday, May 8, 2025. ((AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis))

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Pope Leo XIV, history's first North American pope, has addressed cardinals in English at the start of his first Mass, saying "you have called me to carry the cross and to be blessed" and asking for their help to spread the Catholic faith. 

It was the first time Leo made public remarks in English, after he spoke in Italian and Spanish only in his first comments to the world from the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica on Thursday. 

Leo offered off-the-cuff remarks at the start of his homily in the Sistine Chapel Friday before the cardinals who elected him.