MADRID (AP) 鈥� urged Spaniards on Saturday to stop 鈥渇anning the flames of polarization鈥� as he arrived in Spain at a moment of political turmoil for the and a credibility crisis for the Catholic Church.
The American pope, who has Spanish ancestors, traveled to Spain dozens of times as a priest, but this is the first visit by a pope in 15 years. It signals Leo is returning papal attention to Europe鈥檚 Christian roots after Pope Francis largely stayed away from the traditional centers of Christianity in favor of smaller Catholic communities farther away.
Leo is seemingly keen to bring his message of peace, unity and human dignity to a continent sorely polarized over migration, Russia鈥檚 and anxiety over .
The pope opened his weeklong trip in Madrid, greeted at the airport by the country鈥檚 Catholic monarchs, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro S谩nchez. He told reporters, while traveling, that he was particularly heartened by reports of a spiritual awakening among young people in the once-staunchly Catholic but now secularized country.
During his welcome address, Leo appealed to Spaniards, especially political leaders, to put polemics aside and invest in educating young people to appreciate diversity and complexity rather than shunning them.
鈥淭oday, the temptation to gain popularity by fanning the flames of polarization seems to have grown rather than diminished, and human dignity continues to be violated,鈥� Leo said.
He appealed to Spain鈥檚 place at the heart of Christian Europe to serve as a model for the rest of the continent, while also recalling the country’s 800-year Moorish past, when cities like Toledo and C贸rdoba became, he said, 鈥渃enters of dialogue between languages, religions and knowledge.鈥�
鈥淔or the love of truth, I invite everyone to set aside the divisive and polarizing narratives of your societal reality and history,鈥� he said. Doing so will help Europe 鈥渙vercome sterile simplifications through the fruitful appreciation of complexity.鈥�
Spaniards find themselves increasingly divided over issues including immigration, feminism and political corruption, while historically it was riven by territorial and independence movements.
The Spanish Parliament prepares for its first-ever papal speech
The highlight of Leo鈥檚 visit to Madrid will be his speech Monday to both chambers of the Spanish Parliament, the first by a pope. Such speeches are rare and often become one of the most important of a pontificate.
But Leo will find a highly polarized legislature, with the ruling Socialist party hammered by a . Conservative parties, including the Popular Party and far-right Vox, have called for S谩nchez to step down before the 2027 elections and have roundly criticized his government鈥檚 migration policies.
Spain鈥檚 Socialist-led government has bucked a general trend in Europe and the United States by announcing it will to potentially hundreds of thousands of immigrants living and working in the country without authorization. S谩nchez has highlighted the benefits of legal migration to the country鈥檚 with an aging workforce and low birthrate.
Despite some expected protests of Leo鈥檚 visit, his speech to Parliament in particular is something of a milestone for Spain鈥檚 Catholic Church. Shaped by the anticlerical violence of the country鈥檚 1936-1939 civil war, more recently, it has dealt with a of decades of clergy abuse and cover-up.
While much of Europe has secularized in recent decades, Spain stands out after it underwent a religious crisis following the 1975 death of Gen. Francisco Franco. A staunch Catholic, Franco viewed his reign as something of a religious crusade against the anticlerical anarchist, leftist and secular tendencies in Spain.
As Spain transitioned to a democracy, the percentage of Spaniards who declared themselves Catholics fell from 90% in the 1970s to just 55% in 2025, according to polling data collected by Spain鈥檚 state opinion agency. Of that group, only 19% say they regularly attend Mass.
And yet there are signs of in all forms of spirituality, Christian and otherwise, especially among young Spaniards, said sociologist Narciso Michavila N煤帽ez, president of the GAD3 consulting firm that polls young people about their faith, among other things.
In recent surveys, he said, pollsters are registering newfound interest in faith among Gen Z Spaniards. Michavila and others cite the popularity of new hit album 鈥淟ux,鈥� which is overtly spiritual.
鈥淭he truth from a common view is not that God is in fashion. What is new in this moment, in this visit of the pope, is that God in the Spanish society is not a tattoo anymore,鈥� he said.
Leo鈥檚 face has been plastered across subway cars, billboards and ads in metro stations in the Spanish capital, and souvenir shops are selling magnets of Leo and other papal knickknacks. Bakeries are selling limited-edition pope cakes and pastries.
Leo pointed to the signs of a spiritual awakening in comments to reporters en route to Madrid. But he also acknowledged he is facing stiff competition from , who is holding two concerts this weekend.
鈥淚f they are confronted with the question 鈥楧o you want to go see Bad Bunny or do you want to go to see the pope?鈥� I think many will see Bad Bunny,鈥� Leo said. 鈥淏ut I think there will also be a few here to see the pope. And that says something, you know.鈥�
Pope to meet with abuse victims and migrants
In a sign that the clergy sexual abuse crisis continues to overshadow papal trips, the Vatican confirmed late Friday that Leo would meet with survivors during his visit. The Spanish Catholic hierarchy is and cover-up in the once-staunchly Catholic country.
Leo acknowledged he could only meet with a few, telling reporters that 鈥渁buses are still an open wound.鈥�
Spain’s monarch also acknowledged the Spanish church鈥檚 sexual abuse crisis, saying such cases 鈥渘either are nor can be representative of the immense ecclesial community.鈥�
鈥淵our clarity and firmness, which I also wish to acknowledge, are essential in the process of healing and repairing the harm inflicted: they are essential for the victims, for the faithful, for the Church, and for society,鈥� Felipe told Leo, in an apparent reference to a recently launched Church-state reparations system for some victims of clerical abuse.
After Madrid, the other highlights of the trip include Leo鈥檚 visit midweek to Barcelona, where he will celebrate Mass in the Sagrada Familia basilica on the centenary of the death of its famed architect, Antoni Gaud铆.
Leo will also fulfill a wish of Francis by ending his visit with a two-day stop in the Canary Islands, the Spanish archipelago closer to Africa than the Iberian Peninsula and a key destination for migrants leaving West Africa.
Leo will meet with migrants and the humanitarian organizations providing care for them. He is expected to toss a wreath of flowers into the sea, in memory of migrants killed during the treacherous Atlantic crossing. He鈥檒l do so from the port in Las Palmas that in 2020 earned the nickname the because thousands of migrants were forced to sleep in the open for weeks on end during a spike in arrivals.
Francis had made reaching out to migrants and refugees a hallmark of his papacy and Leo has followed suit by demanding dignified treatment of migrants, especially in his native U.S.
鈥淔or those of us who are immigrants and find ourselves in this situation of having family far away, someone like the Pope 鈥� who is an important figure for the entire world 鈥� coming here is truly something that makes me say 鈥榳ow,鈥欌�� said Constantina Nchama, an immigrant from Equatorial Guinea.
鈥淚t鈥檚 something that happens once in a lifetime,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 very, very excited about that, truly.鈥�
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