‘Open up your hearts to God,’ Pope tells youth gathered at White Sox ballpark

June 16, 2025

Pope Leo XIV delivered a video message to the young people of Chicago and the world as Chicago residents gathered in the White Sox ballpark to celebrate the election of the Chicago native as Pontiff.

“I want to both express my gratitude to you and also an encouragement to continue to build up community, friendship, as brothers and sisters in your daily lives, in your families, in your parishes, in the Archdiocese and throughout our world,” the Pope said on June 14, five weeks after his election.

“God is reaching out to you, calling you, inviting you to know his Son Jesus Christ, through the Scriptures, perhaps through a friend or a relative,” he continued, adding:

So I would like to invite all of you to take a moment, to open up your own hearts to God, to God’s love, to that peace which only the Lord can give us. To feel how deeply beautiful, how strong, how meaningful the love of God is in our lives. And to recognize that while we do nothing to earn God’s love, God in his own generosity continues to pour out his love upon us. And as he gives us his love, he only asks us to be generous and to share what he has given us with others.

 

---

For all current news, visit our News home page.

---

 
Further information:

• Full text: Pope Leo XIV's address to the young people of Chicago and the whole world (CNS)