June 6, 2026 / 10:38 AM EDT
/ AP
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Pope Leo XIV urged Spaniards on Saturday to stop "fanning the flames of polarization" as he arrived in Spain at a moment of political turmoil for the Socialist-led government 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's 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's war in Ukraine and anxiety over artificial intelligence.The pope opened his weeklong trip in Madrid, greeted at the airport by the country's Catholic monarchs, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, and 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.
Pope Leo XIV waves upon his arrival at the Adolfo Suarez Madrid/Barajas International Airport, Saturday, June 6, 2026, on the occasion of his Apostolic journey to Spain.
