Leo gave a prepared address and then opened the floor to any cardinal who wanted to make a comment, a different format to what previous popes have done.

At this early stage of Leo XIV’s pontificate, the text is a “must read” for Catholics. Here are three notable takeaways.

Leo XIV prayed at the tomb of Pope Francis on Saturday, just two days after being elected new head of the Catholic Church and hours after vowing to humbly follow in his predecessor’s footsteps. Vatican News published a photo of the white-robed pope kneeling before Francis’s simple marble tomb at the basilica in central Rome,