WISDOM OF Pope Leo XIV GENERAL AUDIENCE St. Peter’s Square Wednesday, April 29, 2026 Continuing series of Catechesis by Pope Leo XIV dedicated to Vatican Council II and its documents to “rediscover the beauty and importance of this ecclesial event.” Quotation from General Audience January 7, 2026 The Apostolic Journey to Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome! Today I would like to talk about the Apostolic Journey I made from 13 to 23 April, visiting four African countries: Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea. Since the very beginning of my Pontificate, I have thought about a journey in Africa. I thank the Lord for granting me the opportunity to undertake it, as Shepherd, to meet and encourage the people of God; and also to experience it as a message of peace at a moment in history marked by conflicts and serious and frequent violations of international law. And I express my heartfelt thanks to the Bishops and Civil Authorities who welcomed me, and to all those who helped organize the visit. Providence would have it that the first stop should be the very country where the sites of Saint Augustine are found, namely Algeria. Thus, I found myself, on the one hand, revisiting the roots of my spiritual identity and, on the other, crossing and strengthening bridges that are very important for the world and the Church today: the bridge with the very fruitful age of the Fathers of the Church; the bridge with the Islamic world; and the bridge with the African continent. In Algeria I received a welcome that was not only respectful but warm, and we were able to experience first-hand and show the world that it is possible to live together as brothers and sisters, even of different religions, when we recognize ourselves as children of the same merciful Father. Furthermore, it was a timely opportunity to learn from the example of Saint Augustine: through his life experience, his writings and his spirituality, he is a teacher in the search for God and for truth. A testimony that is more important than ever today for Christians and for every person. In the next three countries I visited, the population is instead predominantly Christian, and I therefore found myself immersed in an atmosphere of celebration of the faith and warm welcome, enhanced also by the characteristic traits of the African people. Like my Predecessors, I too experienced something of what happened to Jesus with the crowds in Galilee: He saw them thirsting and hungry for justice, and proclaimed to them: “Blessed are the poor, blessed are the meek, blessed are the peacemakers”, and, recognizing their faith, said, “You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world” (cf. Mt 5:1-16).
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