Pope Leo XIV says God speaks through creation at Castel Gandolfo Mass
Celebrating Mass in the Pontifical Gardens at Castel Gandolfo on September 1, 2026, Pope Leo XIV said contemplating creation leads to an encounter with the Creator and called for personal and collective conversion
Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass in the Pontifical Gardens at Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence south of Rome, on the afternoon of September 1, 2026, for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. In his homily, he said that contemplating creation leads to an encounter with the Creator, and that this calls for a deep personal and collective conversion. The day opens the Season of Creation, an ecumenical initiative that the pope supports.
"It would be superficial to marvel at fire, wind, turbulent waters or the stars of the sky without allowing our gaze to rise to the Creator of such wonders," the pope said. He urged the faithful to accept the invitation to stop and reflect before the works of God, beginning a five-week period devoted to prayer and to commitment to caring for our "common home."
Contemplation and encounter with the Creator
The pope encouraged those present to set aside quiet moments in daily life so they can appreciate the deep harmony that everyone is part of. "We must put on 'silent mode' the many noises generated by human activity, so that we can hear the melodious voice of creation, through which God, the Author of all things, speaks to us," he said.
He said that "from the contemplation of creation and the encounter with its Creator there arises an awareness of our particular place within God's astonishing plan, and of the responsibility we have, both personally and collectively, to preserve the original harmony."
Shared responsibility and conversion
The pope called on the faithful to recognize their own limitations and failures and to renew their commitment to restoring relationships among all creatures according to the will of their Creator. The task does not fall to governments and institutions alone, he said; every person has a key role to play in protecting the environment.
He recalled St. Francis of Assisi's Canticle of the Creatures and closed his homily by saying: "With St. Francis, let us renew our commitment to live and promote that universal fraternity which is inseparably linked to the task of caring for creation."
