Jewish leaders got front seats at Pope Leo XIV’s inauguration Mass. An American rabbi there, and other Jewish representatives, saw that and other gestures from Leo as hopeful signs for upswing of Catholic-Jewish relations under the first U.

Pope Leo XIV, on his popemobile, tours St. Peter's Square at the Vatican prior to the inaugural Mass of his pontificate, Sunday, May 18, 2025. (Andrew Medichini)

Pope Leo XIV said it is "with fear and trembling" that he will seek to serve all people with "faith and joy" while he was delivering his inaugural homily as pontiff in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Sunday.