Prime Minister Mark Carney had a brief audience with Pope Leo Xiv in the Vatican on Sunday afternoon after his inauguration at St. Peter's Square.
Carney sat in the second row with his wife Diana, attending other world leaders and heads of state.
The Prime Minister was a devout Catholic, one of the few world leaders who kneeled during the blessing of the Eucharist and was found on two instances taking pictures of the pope on his cell phone to commemorate the occasion – after the masses began and ended.
After the Mass, he met the Pope briefly with his wife and their daughter Cleo at the Pope in St. Peter's Basilica.
Carney also met with other world leaders at the same time, which added to his growing list of official introductions over the weekend. He spoke with the Prime Ministers of Australia, Croatia and Ireland and the Presidents of Israel and Nigeria.
Kahney held a bilateral meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz earlier Sunday before driving to the Vatican. He held a similar meeting with leaders from Italy, Ukraine and the EU on Saturday.
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Thirteen Canadian MPs also attended Mass, including Jaime Battiste, who joined the Prime Minister on Saturday night in Rome with the Canadian Catholic Cardinals.
Nova Scotia legislator said he was looking forward to hearing how the pope “set the tone” for his leadership.
“It's kind of like our speech version as a member of Congress,” Baptist told reporters outside the Canadian official residence.
Pope Leo (Pope Leo) was the first American to hold a title – calling for unity in his sympathy.
“We still see too much discord during this time, too much war caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, fear of differences and the economy that utilizes the resources of the planet,” he said.
Indigenous leaders have long called on the Vatican to repatriate thousands of Indigenous artifacts occupied from Canadian communities. The late Pope Francis expressed his willingness to return to the colonial artifacts of the Vatican Museum.
Baptist said the return of the artifacts appeared during the meeting with the Cardinal and their return was an important step in reconciliation.
“I have always said that reconciliation is a journey, not a destination, and we all have steps to follow that journey,” Baptiste said.
“I’m proud to see our Prime Minister talking about reconciliation between the Indigenous community and the Catholic Church.”
Quebec MP Jean-Yves Duclos is also part of the Canadian delegation.
He said the church plays an important role in promoting peace among countries. Last week, Leo proposed peace talks in the Vatican between Russia and Ukraine.
“We need more peace in this world, and I think the pope will hear more peace,” Ducros told reporters.
“I think (presiding the peace negotiations) is a very important thing the church can do. The church is not an armed country, it is a very small country…it has a lot of influence. It is the right thing to try to bring people together, not to divide our humanity.”
& Copy 2025 Canadian Press
