VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV vowed Sunday to work for unity in a polarized Catholic Church and world, as history’s first American pope offered a message of healing during an inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square before an estimated 200,000 pilgrims, presidents, patriarchs and princes.

Launching his papacy with a call for reconciliation and communion, Pope Leo XIV formally began his ministry as the successor of St. Peter by calling for

Tens of thousands came to St. Peter’s Square to mark the official start of the pontificate of the first American to lead the Roman Catholic Church. Vice President JD Vance was among the dignitaries who attended.