Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu has joined other world leaders for the inauguration of Robert Francis Prevost as the 267th Pope.
Pope Leo XIV, who became head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics on May 8, stood in the white vehicle as it drove through cheering crowds, smiling, waving and making the sign of the cross.
The first US pontiff made his debut tour of St Peter’s Square on Sunday in a popemobile, greeting tens of thousands of pilgrims and well-wishers ahead of his inauguration mass.
US Vice President JD Vance is among the hundreds of dignitaries due to attend the inauguration mass that begins at 10:00 am
Leo will preside over the ceremony rich in rites and symbols, where he will receive his special papal ring before giving a homily that will set the tone for his papacy.
After spending two decades as a missionary in Peru, the 69-year-old is unknown to many Catholics, but during the past week he has offered glimpses of the kind of leader he will be.
In meetings with journalists, clergy and diplomats, he repeatedly called for peace in a world full of conflicts and defended social justice.
He also emphasised traditional Catholic values, including the importance of a family built around a “stable union of a man and a woman”, and defended the rights of the unborn
Before becoming pope, the new pontiff on his personal X account reposted criticism of President Donald Trump’s administration over its approach to migration and also pilloried Vance, but the account is no longer accessible.
Vance was the last world leader to meet with Pope Francis, the day before the Argentine died on April 21 after 12 years as pontiff.
Other notable guests expected include Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky — who memorably met Trump in St Peter’s Basilica at Francis’s funeral — and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Peruvian President Dina Boluarte is also on the list provided by the Vatican, along with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Colombia’s Gustavo Petro and a host of European royals.
Leo XIV was elected the 267th pope on May 8 after a secret conclave vote of cardinals that lasted less than 24 hours.
Succeeding the charismatic but impulsive Francis, he takes over a Church still battling the fallout of the clerical child abuse scandal, and trying to adapt to the modern world.
Leo will begin by visiting the tomb of Saint Peter — who in the Christian tradition was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, and the first pope — located under the altar of the basilica that bears his name.
At the end of the ceremony, the pope will greet the delegations of heads of state, though it is not clear if any of them will also be accorded a one-to-one private audience.
