Matteo Bruni

Good morning, Your Holiness. We are ready for this new journey. Accompanying you on board are around 80 journalists from more than 10 countries, including about 20 from Spain. Thank you for greeting us, and thank you for the words you will share with us in the coming days.

Pope Leo XIV

Good morning to you all.

We are already over Spanish territory, and so I would first like to greet, in Spanish, the Spanish journalists travelling with us, as well as all those present here. Thank you very much for your service.

As you know very well, this is the first papal visit to Spain in quite some time. Personally, I am very pleased to be making this journey. I have visited Spain many times, but this is the first time I come with this mission. An Apostolic Journey is an opportunity to meet the faithful, to celebrate the faith and to proclaim the message of Jesus Christ. But at the same time, it is also an occasion to greet everyone, the whole of society, because the Church has a message for all people, as you may have seen, I believe, very clearly in the Encyclical Letter that was published on the 25^th of May.

I hope that everyone will have a pleasant journey and that it will be an opportunity to foster great enthusiasm. There are many Catholics, and I would especially like to highlight the presence of young people. From what I have been told, a large number of young people will participate with great enthusiasm. By sharing together in the joy of faith, I believe we can offer a very positive message. It is a message that will take on a particular significance in every place we visit, whether Madrid, Barcelona or the Canary Islands. May everything serve to live out our faith and to proclaim the message of God’s love, charity and respect for every human person.

It is a pleasure to greet you all, and I wish you a good journey.