From a priest…
QUAERITUR:
I have not had time, and will probably not any time soon to go back to footage of previous last handful of Roman Pontiff to confirm, but I heard that apparently Pope Leo XIV when he gave us first Papal blessing in Latin on this past Thursday from the balcony, the formula of blessing that he used was used for first time since Pope Pius XII. Is this correct? If so then it is a great sign and if Pope Benedict was only other one and (and even Pope St. John Paul II) then still a great sign. Thanks for your service to Church and know that you are in my prayers and please pray for me as well.
I, too, have not looked into this. However, I heard a couple of priests talking about whether or not the blessing included the misereatur etc.
I have no reason to believe that Popes used different formulas. And it looks like the same book in all the photos and videos.
Here is the text used by Pope Leo. CORRECTED
Sancti Apostoli Petrus et Paulus: de quorum potestate et auctoritate confidimus, ipsi intercedant pro nobis ad Dominum.
℟: Amen.
Precibus et meritis beatae Mariae semper Virginis, beati Michaelis Archangeli, beati Ioannis Baptistae et sanctorum Apostolorum Petri et Pauli et omnium Sanctorum, misereatur vestri omnipotens Deus; et dimissis omnibus peccatis vestris, perducat vos Iesus Christus ad vitam æternam. ℟: Amen.
Indulgentiam, absolutionem, et remissionem omnium peccatorum vestrorum, spatium veræ et fructuosæ pœnitentiæ, cor semper pænitens, et emendationem vitæ, gratiam et consolationem Sancti Spiritus; et finalem perseverantiam in bonis operibus tribuat vobis omnipotens et misericors Dominus.
℟: Amen.
Et benedictio Dei omnipotentis, Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti, descendat super vos et maneat semper.
℟: Amen.
English translation
May the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, in whose power and authority we trust, intercede for us before the Lord.
℟: Amen.
Through the prayers and merits of Blessed Mary ever Virgin, Saint Michael the Archangel, Saint John the Baptist, the holy apostles Peter and Paul, and all the saints, may Almighty God have mercy on you and forgive all your sins, and may Jesus Christ bring you to everlasting life.
℟: Amen.
May the almighty and merciful Lord grant you indulgence, absolution and the remission of all your sins, a season of true and fruitful penance, a well-disposed heart, amendment of life, the grace and comfort of the Holy Spirit and final perseverance in good works.
℟: Amen.
And may the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, come down on you and remain with you forever.
℟: Amen.
Benedict XVI giving the “Urbi et Orbi”
And here is an audio recording of John Paul I.
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The signals are encouraging, are they not?
The IVE (Institute of the Incarnate Word) province centered in the Washington DC area celebrated the feast of its Patroness, Our Lady of Lujan, on her feast day: May 8. After the Mass at the Basilica we traveled to the seminary church’s hall and started our meal with a simple salad. The seminarians set up a projection TV screen and arranged for the EWTN feed showing a close-up of the chimney above the Sistine Chapel. There were a couple of gulls up there and a chick – how it got there was a source of amusement.
Anyway, we were watching only for fifteen minutes when the white smoke emerged. Not yet red/white/blue smoke (!) but the hall went into an uproar with cheers and sustained clapping. Several sisters told me they would never forget where they were and what (annual) circumstance coincided with the election. That the new Pope came out with the traditional garb and took the name Leo made all present in this growing traditional order and its extended family very happy. He looked genuinely humble and nearly overcome.
The IVE order is under a review by the Discastery for Religious Life (viz.) and I am told the review is disconcerting because the order is following its constitution and because action has already been taken against it.
Obstacles are not merely on the path: they are the path. But I trust in the Holy Spirit and in the IVE Patroness to provide a way through this difficulty for these fine men and women – some of whom end up as missionaries in places no one else will go. I am sure Pope Leo knows that aspect well. Please pray for the Institute. St Joseph and St Louis de Montfort: pray for the IVE.
Sounds like the first Pope John Paul (the one you have a recording of) didn’t say:
Indulgentiam, absolutionem, et remissionem omnium peccatorum vestrorum, spatium veræ et fructuosæ pœnitentiæ, cor semper pænitens, et emendationem vitæ, gratiam et consolationem Sancti Spiritus; et finalem perseverantiam in bonis operibus tribuat vobis omnipotens et misericors Dominus.
It also seemed like Benedict and Leo used the same formula.
Only had a chance for a quick listen on my phone, but it sounded to me like
Leo’s and Benedict’s were the same (although neither matched the Latin text above, in which the second section seems to have been chopped after omnipotens, although the English is complete). Papa Luciani’s was definitely shorter, I believe the Indulgentiam… prayer was omitted. Given the unlikely circumstances of his election and his short reign, he probably simply did what the Papal M.C. (Msgr. – later Cardinal – Noè if I recall correctly, whom he inherited from Paul VI) told him to do.
I read same info, but after listening to these recordings, they seem to be the same as Pope Leo XIV’s blessing.
First blessings of:
Pope Francis (@ 7:40 mark)
https://youtu.be/pv9jN5eoR7s
Pope Benedict XVI
https://www.c-span.org/program/international-telecasts/papal-election/156132
John Paul I (@ 4:33 mark)
https://youtu.be/X8umNO-Dsaw?si=YHa9uEmxJa0NGQRi
John XXIII (audio only, @9:00 mark)
https://youtu.be/TI2OZmpJLoY?si=yl2CFkMhrkwRxeM3
Could not find JPII or Paul VI.
Thank you for sharing your stay in Rome Fr Z. God bless you and Mary keep you!
In the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, priests will now pray for “Leo, our Pope, and Leo, our Bishop….”
It appears that the blessing they all imparted is the same, but it appears to contain an additional clause referring to Our Lord that is missing from the text provided in the post.
I could swear that I noticed Francis saying the same blessing during one of his Urbi et Orbis, but I could be wrong. I just remember noticing how it sounded very similar to what we hear in some TLM prayers like the confiteor.
Speaking of prayers and blessings, Father, the folks over at NLM have posted something about a papal litany invoking all of the papal saints in the Church. Thought might be of interest. Link: https://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2025/05/a-litany-for-new-pope.html
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See this excellent article in the Catholic Herald :
https://thecatholicherald.com/pope-leo-calls-for-freedom-of-journalists-who-report-truth/
ROME – In a speech to members of the international media on Monday, Pope Leo XIV called for a rhetoric of peace over words of anger or ideology, and issued an appeal for the freedom of journalists imprisoned for reporting the truth.
After two rounds of thunderous applause that prompted him to stand up again once he’d sat down, Leo thanked journalists for the “this wonderful reception”, jesting in English, “They say when they clap at the beginning it does not matter much, if you are still awake at the end and you still want to applaud…”
In his speech, he voiced the Church’s solidarity with journalists “who are imprisoned for seeking to report the truth,” and, to another round of applause, asked “for the release of these imprisoned journalists”.
“The Church recognises in these witnesses – I am thinking of those who report on war even at the cost of their lives – the courage of those who defend dignity, justice and the right of people to be informed, because only informed individuals can make free choices,” he said.
Leo said the suffering of imprisoned journalists “challenges the conscience of nations and the international community”, and is a call to the international community “to safeguard the precious gift of free speech and of the press”.
…
I am starting to like Pope Leo XIV.
Glaswegian.
::In the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, priests will now pray for “Leo, our Pope, and Leo, our Bishop….”::
This must happen often in Dioceses throughout the world.
In Diocese of Galloway UK during the previous papacy it would be said… pray for Francis our Pope and Francis our Bishop.
A quick search shows this form of the Urbi et Orbi has been around since at least the early 1800’s. See, for example:
Burton, Edward, “A Description of the Antiquities and Other Curiosities of Rome From Personal Observation During a Visit to Italy in the Years 1818-19”, 1828
Donovan, Jeremiah, “Rome, Ancient and Modern And Its Environs”, Volume 1, 1842.
It is likely much older, since the custom is Medieval.
When I first heard a video claim this, I watched the videos of Leo, Francis, and Benedict and screenshotted the text when the camera zoomed in. All three popes used the same blessing. The only difference is Benedict chanted it.
Why do video commentators/journalists share info without verifying it?
Also, people act like Pope Leo said his first Mass in Latin unlike Francis. But Francis did too. The only difference Francis didn’t chant it (he never seemed to sing probably b/c having one lung).
Overall, I’m optimistic about this pope!