Pope Leo XIV celebrated Spain's centuries-old devotional tradition as a 'school of faith' on Sunday, presiding over Mass before a crowd of over a million in Madrid and highlighting one of the most distinctive symbols of Spanish popular piety with a procession on colorful flower carpets.
The leader of the Catholic Church arrived in Spain on Saturday and urged the country's people to end polarization and move toward unity.
During Sunday's Mass and procession in Madrid, local organizers said 1.2 million people gathered at Plaza de Cibeles and nearby streets, with many others trying but failing to enter.
Thick crowds cheered as the pope rode in a popemobile around the central square, everyone eager to witness the first papal visit in 15 years.
The outdoor Mass was held on the Catholic feast of Corpus Christi, a feast day traditionally marked by processions of the faithful through towns and cities, led by a priest carrying the Blessed Sacrament. In Spain, as in other predominantly Catholic countries, the processions often feature elaborate flower carpets along the route.
According to Spanish organizers, 16 flower carpets decorated the half-kilometer procession route from Plaza de Cibeles, prepared by a Spanish florists' association from Galicia. The florists used more than 30,000 flowers, mainly in the yellow and white of the Holy See's flag, to create the decorative carpets.
At the end of the Mass, Pope Leo carried a gilded monstrance with the Blessed Sacrament and walked over the flower carpets, while children sprinkled additional flower petals before him and the crowd tossed petals from behind the barriers.
