What the Pope Said This Week

Jason Scott’s weekly review of Pope Leo XIV’s audiences

27 October — Audience with His Holiness Mar Awa III, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East

At the Vatican Apostolic Palace, Pope Leo XIV received His Holiness Mar Awa III and members of the International Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue. In his address, he observed:

“Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. … This triptych provided the framework for the successive phases of our theological dialogue. … On this journey towards full communion, synodality presents itself as a promising path forward. … May Christians in the Middle East always bear faithful witness to the risen Christ, and may our dialogue hasten the blessed day when we will celebrate together at the same altar.”

Pope Leo emphasised that fraternal encounter and theological dialogue are not optional, but foundational to unity — rooted in truth and charity, not domination or absorption.

28 October — Apostolic Letter “Drawing New Maps of Hope”

On 28 October, marking the 60th anniversary of Gravissimum Educationis, Pope Leo XIV issued the Apostolic Letter Drawing New Maps of Hope. He wrote:

“Education is not an ancillary activity, but forms the very fabric of evangelisation … Where educational communities allow themselves to be guided by the word of Christ, they do not retreat, but are revitalised; they do not build walls, but bridges.”
He called on schools and universities to unite faith and reason, knowledge and justice, addressing the rapid changes and uncertainties of our time.

29 October — General Audience on “Nostra Aetate”

At his General Audience in St Peter’s Square, Leo reflected on inter-religious dialogue under the Jubilee theme:

“In the Gospel, this encounter reveals the essence of authentic religious dialogue: an exchange that is established when people open up to one another with sincerity, attentive listening and mutual enrichment.”
“The Church … decries hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism … directed against Jews at any time and by anyone.”
He reaffirmed that the Church must not treat other faiths as outsiders, but as companions on the journey of truth and reconciliation.

30 October — Audience with Students in the Jubilee of the World of Education

In the Paul VI Hall, Pope Leo XIV met students participating in the Jubilee of the World of Education:“Thank you for accepting the invitation to come here today … This desire is your strength … refuse to be mere spectators.”

“Thank you for accepting the invitation to come here today … This desire is your strength … refuse to be mere spectators.”
“We must learn to humanise the digital, building it as a space of fraternity and creativity … We must disarm hearts, renouncing all violence and vulgarity … That is how we become peacemakers, first where we live — in families, at school, among friends.”
He challenged young people to become protagonists in shaping the digital age, not be shaped by it.

Take-Away Points:

Dialogue and encounter across ecclesial divides are central: truth and charity go hand in hand.

Education is more than qualifications: it’s the fabric of evangelisation, building persons, community and hope.

Inter-religious engagement demands sincere listening and recognition of the “other” as sister or brother.

Young people in the digital era are called to creativity, peace-making and responsibility — not passivity.

Sources

27 October – Audience with Mar Awa III & dialogue commission: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2025/10/27/251027a.html

28 October – Apostolic Letter Drawing New Maps of Hope: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2025/10/28/251028e.html

29 October – General Audience: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2025/10/29/251029b.html

30 October – Audience with Students: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2025/10/30/251030d.html