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Pope, in Pavia, venerates St. Augustine’s relics, urges faithful to focus on Christ
June 20, 2026
Pope Leo XIV began a brief pastoral visit to two cities in the northern Italian region of Lombardy this afternoon.
The papal visit to Pavia and Sant’Angelo Lodigiano is scheduled to last just over eight hours, including nearly three and one-half hours of helicopter travel.
After arriving in Pavia, Pope Leo visited children undergoing cancer treatment before being driven to the Basilica of San Pietro in Ciel d’Oro. There, he venerated the relics of St. Augustine and delivered a homily (video 1, video 2).
Citing 1 Peter 2:4-10, Pope Leo preached that “Christ is the foundation of the spiritual edifice; he is the cornerstone laid as the foundation of our ecclesial journey, of pastoral action and of evangelization.”
Being built up in Christ “preserves us from the risk of getting lost and toiling ourselves in secondary things, perhaps good, but which do not go to the essential,” the Pope continued. “We must learn to be Christian communities centered on the essential, even if this means renouncing some structures and security of the past. The essential thing is to live with Christ.”
“Adhering to Christ, the cornerstone, also allows us to face today’s problems concerning the transmission of the faith and religious practice,” the Pope added. “At a time when many people seem to have lost their spiritual taste or, for various reasons, are no longer able to perceive the proposal of the Christian faith for their lives as attractive, we are called first of all to bring the proclamation of the Gospel, a joyful and liberating proclamation of Jesus Christ, which brings out the beauty of faith for our lives and for our society. There is an increasing need, today, to accompany people in the discovery or rediscovery of the faith.”
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