Pope Leo XIV’s Jubilee address on marriage and family in St. Peter’s Square reignited Catholic calls to defend and celebrate the family as the soul of both Church and society.
At a Glance
- Over 70,000 people from 131 countries gathered for Pope Leo XIV’s Jubilee celebration of marriage and family
- The Pope declared marriage “a love that is total, faithful, and fruitful,” rooted in divine unity
- He honored saints Louis and Zélie Martin as models of holy matrimony
- His homily emphasized the role of grandparents and children in transmitting intergenerational faith
- The address invoked the teachings of Humanae Vitae to uphold marital sanctity against modern societal fractures
A Global Gathering to Defend the Family
Under the soaring dome of St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Leo XIV stood before tens of thousands of families, children, and elders from around the world on June 1 to deliver a sweeping homily at the Jubilee for Families. His message was one of unity and moral clarity.
Echoing Pope Paul VI’s Humanae Vitae, Leo XIV declared that the marriage covenant is society’s “anchor of solidarity” and the means by which people come to know God’s love. “Today’s world needs the marriage covenant… to defeat the forces that break down relationships and societies,” he said.
Watch a report: Pope Leo XIV’s Holy Mass & Jubilee Address.
“A Love That Mirrors God”
The Pope defined marriage as a union that is “total, faithful, and fruitful”—a sacred bond modeled after divine love and entrusted with nurturing new life. This love, he said, “makes you one flesh and enables you, in the image of God, to bestow the gift of life.”
He urged parents to lead their children through moral example: “[Be] examples of integrity to your children, acting as you want them to act,” he said, imploring families to build their homes on obedience, compassion, and spiritual gratitude.
Speaking directly to the youth, Pope Leo XIV added, “[Dear children,] show gratitude to your parents… it is the first way to honour your father and your mother.”
Faith Passed “Like Food at the Table”
Pope Leo XIV reaffirmed the role of the family in transmitting religious identity: “Faith is handed on together with life, generation after generation. It is shared like food at the family table.”
The Pope also honored married saints Louis and Zélie Martin, recognizing their canonization as a reminder that holiness is possible—and necessary—within everyday family life.
Framing the family as the “cradle of the future of humanity,” Leo XIV called on grandparents to remain beacons of wisdom, and on Catholic families to become sanctuaries of grace and resilience in a fragmented world.
As pilgrims departed Rome with renewed purpose, the Jubilee served not only as a celebration, but as a resounding call to fortify the institution of marriage in the face of modernity’s moral drift.
