Over 1.2 million people gathered in Madrid Sunday for a Mass celebrated by Pope Leo XIV, who called for a renewal of the Catholic faith in Spain, during one of the largest religious events in the country in recent years.
King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia joined throngs of devotees waving Spanish and Vatican flags in Cibeles Square for a service filled with religious symbolism.
In his homily, Pope Leo said Spaniards should not look at religion as "a museum of the past to be visited, but a school of faith from which to draw even today."
The mass comes on day two of Pope Leo's seven-day visit to Spain, a traditional Catholic bastion where religious observance has been declining sharply in recent years as in much of western Europe.
A huge logistical and security operation was in place for the event, after which the pope led a traditional procession along a route lined with white and yellow carnations – the Vatican flag colors.
Organizers said more than 1.2 million people were attending the square and the surrounding area.
Nico Aldeanueva, 28, who was visiting from Philadelphia in the United States, said the pope was "a very unifying force in a moment where we have division across so many different fronts."
"We have, it seems like, never-ending conflict and for the time being, here you get to hit pause and get to enjoy the moment and feel the faith."
Ana Milagros, 64, who was waving a Vatican flag, said she thought the U.S.-born pope seemed "approachable" and "very sincere."
"There is a lot of polarization and differences in politics, in social matters, in the economy," she said, adding: "The pope is trying with this visit ... to help all of us."
Later Sunday, Leo will meet the leading lights of culture, sport and the economy at an arena, to foster dialogue between faith and modern civil society.
Around 56% of Spaniards identify as Catholic compared to 90% in the 1970s, according to a survey last month by the Centre for Sociological Research, an autonomous government body.
On Saturday, 500,000 mostly young attendees congregated with Leo outside Real Madrid's Bernabeu stadium for a prayer vigil that stretched into the night.
Leo kicked off his visit with pomp and ceremony at a reception in Madrid's royal palace, where he called for an end to "polarizing narratives" and "sterile simplifications."
The pope also praised Spain, whose left-wing government has sparred with his native United States as well as Israel over wars in the Middle East, for its "active commitment to peace and solidarity among peoples."
Leo is due to visit Barcelona Tuesday and Wednesday, where he will notably bless the Sagrada Familia basilica's recently completed tower, which made it the world's tallest church.
His trip will end with a focus on migration Thursday and Friday in the Canary Islands, a key destination for irregular arrivals, with thousands dying in the Atlantic Ocean trying to reach them.
