Overview

• The blessing came after the Angelus as the pope halted the popemobile before the image, made the sign of the cross with his right hand, then joined his hands in prayer.
• The image entered the square following a Gran Procesión Internacional along Via della Conciliazione with delegations from Europe, the United States and South America.
• As the pope arrived, children from a Paris music school performed “El Cóndor Pasa,” a detail confirmed by the event’s organizers.
• Cardinal Pedro Barreto is presiding the Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica honoring the devotion following the blessing.
• Organizers trace the Vatican procession to a 2024 Mass that spurred global coordination, while Lima’s traditional October route continues today with the third procession.