Pope Leo calls for Christians to treat foreigners with kindness as he closes Catholic Holy Year

Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo calls for Christians to treat foreigners with kindness as he closes Catholic Holy Year

'After this year, will we be better able to recognize a pilgrim in the visitor, a seeker in the stranger, a neighbor in the foreigner?' the pope asked

Landon Mion Fox News

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January 7, 2026 12:57am EST

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Pope Leo XIV delivers message for 2026

Pope Leo appeals for world peace in New Year's Day message on Thursday at St. Peter’s Square in Rome. (Credit: Vatican Media via AP)

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Pope Leo XIV closed the Catholic Church's Holy Year on Tuesday by urging Christians around the world to help people in need and treat foreigners with kindness.

Leo, who has repeatedly stressed the importance of caring for immigrants during his papacy thus far, said at a Vatican ceremony that the record 33.5 million pilgrims who visited Rome during the Holy Year should have learned not to treat people as mere "products."

"Around us, a distorted economy tries to profit from everything," Leo said. "After this year, will we be better able to recognize a pilgrim in the visitor, a seeker in the stranger, a neighbor in the foreigner?"

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Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd in St. Peter’s Square as he arrives for his inauguration Mass in Vatican City.

Pope Leo XIV closed the Catholic Church's Holy Year by urging Christians around the world to help people in need and treat foreigners with kindness. (David Ramos/Getty Images)

Holy years, or jubilees, typically happen every 25 years, considered to be a time of peace, forgiveness and pardon. Pilgrims to Rome can enter special "Holy Doors" at four Rome basilicas and attend papal audiences throughout the year.

Leo shut the special bronze door at St. Peter's Basilica on Tuesday morning, which officially marked the end of the Holy Year.

The next Holy Year is not expected before 2033, when the Catholic Church may hold a special one to mark 2,000 years since the death of Jesus.

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Pope Leo XIV said the record pilgrims who visited Rome during the Holy Year should have learned not to treat people as mere "products." (Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP via Getty Images))

On Monday, the Vatican and Italian officials said pilgrims to Rome for the 2025 jubilee came from 185 countries, with the majority from Italy, the U.S., Spain, Brazil and Poland.

The 2025 jubilee was opened by the late Pope Francis, who died in April, and closed by Leo, who was elected in May, making him the first American pope.

It was a historical rarity not seen in 300 years for it to be opened by one pope and closed by another. The last jubilee held under two different popes was in the year 1700, when Innocent XII opened the Holy Year that was then closed by Clement XI.

The pope raises his hand in farewell from a balcony above a large crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

Pope Leo XIV shut the special bronze door at St. Peter's Basilica on Tuesday morning, which officially marked the end of the Holy Year. (Gregorio Borgia/AP)

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Leo, who has promised to keep Francis' signature policies such as welcoming gay Catholics and discussing women's ordination, echoed his predecessor's frequent criticisms of the global economic system during his remarks on Tuesday.

The markets "turn human yearnings of seeking, traveling and beginning again into a mere business," Leo said.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Pope Leo calls for Christians to treat foreigners with kindness as he closes Catholic Holy Year