Pope Leo XIV is restoring the tradition of staying in Castel Gandolfo during the hot summer months of July and August….a practice shunned by Pope Francis. This will no doubt bring great joy to the residents of the town, who relied on the influx of visitors during the summer months to help bolster their economy.
Pope Leo XIV will spend part of July and a weekend in August at Villa Barberini, rather than the Papal Residence at Castel Gandolfo, which was turned in to a museum during the Papacy of Pope Francis. Villa Baberini was established by Taddeo Barberini, nephew of Pope Urban VIII. The construction of the mansion and the landscaping of the gardens, apparently entrusted to Gian Lorenzo Bernini, ended in 1635. The mansion consists of the extension of the pre-existing hunting lodge of Monsignor Scipione Visconti: and in some parts of the villa the coat of arms of the “biscione” of the Milanese Visconti family still remains.
The Piazza Pia in front of it is the largest square in Albano’s historic center, opened in the seventeenth century as part of the urban reorganization of the town to create the “trident” of streets. It took its current name in 1847, in memory of Pope Pius IX’s visit to Albano the previous year: the name of the square has since undergone a series of name changes, which have not, however, changed its popularly recognized name. The square has been the scene of several visits by popes since that of Pius IX.
Pope Leo will be celebrating Sunday Mass in local churches nearby and praying the Angelus with pilgrims in the town’s Liberty Square on Sundays.
According to the official Vatican News statement, his stay will begin on the afternoon of Sunday, July 6 when he transfers from the Papal Palace in Vatican City to Castel Gandolfo.
On Sunday, July 13, at 10:00 AM, Pope Leo XIV will celebrate Mass in the Pontifical Parish of Saint Thomas of Villanova in Castel Gandolfo, and at 12:00 PM he will recite the Angelus prayer in Liberty Square, in front of the Apostolic Palace.
On Sunday, July 20, at 9:30 AM, the Holy Father will celebrate Mass in the Cathedral of Albano, just 1.2 miles (3 km) away. At noon, he will again recite the Angelus prayer in Liberty Square in Castel Gandolfo.
That afternoon, the Holy Father will return to the Vatican, to participate in The Jubilee of Youth, scheduled to take place from July 28 through August 3. He will travel back to Castel Gandolfo in mid-August.
During the month of July, all private audiences are suspended, as well as the Wednesday General Audiences on July 2, 9, 16, and 23. The weekly General Audiences will resume on July 30.
On Friday, August 15, at 10:00 AM, the Holy Father will celebrate Mass in the Pontifical Parish of Castel Gandolfo, reciting the noon-day Angelus in Liberty Square.
He will again recite the Angelus on Sunday, August 17, at noon in Liberty Square. That afternoon, Pope Leo XIV will depart from Castel Gandolfo and return to the Vatican.