‘We too can learn to ascend day by day toward heaven,’ Pope tells pilgrims

May 17, 2026

Noting that the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord is celebrated in many nations today, Pope Leo XIV reflected on Christ’s Ascension in his midday Regina Caeli address (video).

“The image of Jesus—lifted up from the earth and ascending toward heaven, as the Bible states (cf. Acts 1:1-11)—may cause us to think about this Mystery as a distant event from long ago,” Pope Leo told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square. “Yet this is not so, for we are united to Jesus as the members of one body united to the head. By ascending into heaven, then, he draws us with him toward full communion with the Father.”

“Indeed, Christ’s entire life is a movement of ascent,” the Pope continued. “Through his humanity, he embraces and involves the whole world, elevating and redeeming human beings from their sinful condition. He thus brings light, forgiveness and hope where previously there was darkness, injustice and desperation, in order that men and women may attain the definitive Easter victory.”

Pope Leo added:

The Ascension, therefore, does not speak to us of a distant promise, but of a living bond, which draws us also toward heavenly glory, already elevating and expanding our horizon in this life and directing our way of thinking, feeling and acting more closely to the measure of God’s heart.

Moreover, in this path of ascent, we recognize the way (cf. Jn 14:1-6). Indeed, we find it in Jesus—in the gift of his life, his example and his teachings. We also see it marked out for us by the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints.

With the support and intercession of the saints—including the “saints next door”—“we too can learn to ascend day by day toward heaven,” Pope Leo said. “As Saint Paul says, we must focus on whatever is true, just and loveable (cf. Phil 4:8), and put into practice, with God’s help, all that we have ‘heard and seen’ (v. 9).”

The Pontiff concluded:

In this way, the divine life, which we received in Baptism and which constantly draws us to the heights, toward the Father, can grow in and around us and spread the precious fruits of communion and peace in the world. May Mary, the Queen of Heaven, who illuminates and guides us in every moment, support us on our path.

Pope Leo then recited, in Latin, the Regina Caeli, the Minor Doxology (three times), and the prayer for the faithful departed, before imparting his blessing. In his closing remarks to pilgrims, he recalled World Communications Day and Laudato Si’ Week.

 

---

For all current news, visit our News home page.

---

 
Further information:

• Regina Caeli (Dicastery for Communication - Vatican Media, 5/17/26)