Start anew from God and rebuild with a prophetic vision, Pope tells delegations from earthquake-ravaged Italian towns

November 02, 2026

A decade after an earthquake ravaged parts of central Italy, Pope Leo XIV invoked the example of the prophet Haggai as he addressed delegations from affected municipalities.

“Haggai urges the people, preoccupied with their own homes and individual needs, not to forget that center which represented the heart of the Holy City, namely the Temple,” Pope Leo said during the audience, which took place on October 31 in Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace. “Indeed, one cannot start afresh without first rebuilding that which gives meaning and foundation to a community.”

“Otherwise, everything remains disunited and falls apart,” the Pope warned. “It is therefore a matter of starting anew from the center, of starting anew from God, from people, from the common good, and from relationships. Then our hope will be founded on the rock.”

He added, “Dear friends, I encourage you in this work of reconstruction with the words of the prophet Haggai himself: ‘Take courage, all you people of the land, says the Lord; work, for I am with you’ (Haggai 2:4).

Invoking the example of Nehemiah and several regional saints—Saints Rita of Cascia, Nicholas of Tolentino, Benedict, and Francis of Assisi—the Pontiff also called upon the delegations to rebuild with a “prophetic vision” that “is able to look ahead and discern the common good to be actively pursued.”

 

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Further information:

• To the delegations of the municipalities affected by seismic events in central Italy (Dicastery for Communication - Vatican Media, 10/31/26)
• Audience with delegations from the municipalities affected by earthquakes in Central Italy (Holy See Press Office, 10/31/26)
• Ten years after earthquakes, Pope calls for renewed push to rebuild (Vatican News, 10/31/26)