Pope Leo calls for treating foreigners with kindness as he closes Catholic Holy Year

Pope Leo XIV closed the Catholic Church’s Holy Year on Tuesday by calling on Christians around the world to help people in need and to be kind to strangers.

Leo, who has repeatedly emphasized the importance of dealing with immigrants during his papacy, said at a ceremony held at the Vatican that the record 33.5 million pilgrims visiting Rome during the Holy Year should learn not to treat people merely as “products”.

“All around us is a distorted economy trying to profit from everything,” Leo said. “After this year, will we be able to better recognize the pilgrim in the visitor, the seeker in the stranger, the neighbor in the stranger?”

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Holy years, or jubilees, usually occur every 25 years and are considered a time of peace, forgiveness, and forgiveness. Pilgrims to Rome can enter special “Holy Doors” at four Roman basilicas and attend papal conclaves throughout the year.

Leo closed the special bronze gate of St. Peter’s Basilica on Tuesday morning, officially marking the end of the Holy Year.

The next Holy Year is not expected to be until 2033, when the Catholic Church may hold a special year to mark the 2000th anniversary of Jesus’ death.

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Pope Benedict XIV Leo said record pilgrims visiting Rome during the Holy Year must learn not to treat people as mere “products”. (Alberto PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images))

On Monday, the Vatican and Italian officials said pilgrims from 185 countries came to Rome for the 2025 anniversary, the majority coming from Italy, the United States, Spain, Brazil and Poland.

The 2025 anniversary 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 that had not been opened by one pope and closed by another pope for 300 years. The last jubilee held under two different popes was in 1700, when Innocent XII opened the Holy Year, which was later closed by Clement XI.

Pope Leo XIV closed the special bronze gate of St. Peter’s Basilica on Tuesday morning, marking the official end of the Holy Year. (Gregorio Borgia/AP)

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Leo, who has vowed to continue Francis’ signature policies such as welcoming gay Catholics and discussing women’s ordination, echoed his predecessor’s frequent criticisms of the global economic system in his speech on Tuesday.

Markets “merely turn people’s desire to search, travel and start over into a business,” Leo said.

Reuters contributed to this report.