Pope Leo’s Welcome Act of Remembrance and Tribute — and Reconciliation

May 14, 2026 World News

Pope Leo XIV touches the plaque marking the spot in St. Peter’s Square where St. John Paul II was shot in an assassination attempt on May 13, 1981. Leo stopped at the plaque during his own general audience on the feast of Our Lady of Fátima, May 13, 2026.

COMMENTARY: John Paul explicitly attributed his survival of the shooting to the intercession of Our Lady of Fatima.