“One in Christ” | Postcards from Rome 2026

Visiting and walking through St. Peter’s Basilica is a unique experience because it is the place where Holy Mother Church has her “headquarters,” a.k.a. Vatican City. It is the place where St. Peter was martyred and buried, and it is the place where awe and majesty meet, with so many ornate mosaics, paintings, and sculptures decorating the chapels and corridors of St. Peter’s Basilica. St. Peter’s Basilica is and should also be very special to Catholics because it is the place where many popes are buried, and it is the church where our current Holy Father and fellow American, Pope Leo XIV, celebrates many of his public Masses.

This summer, The Rome Experience was very fortunate to receive tickets to attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass celebrated by Pope Leo on the occasion of the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul at St. Peter’s Basilica. Customarily, on this day, all the newly appointed archbishops of the world travel to Rome to join the Holy Father and receive from him the pallium. The pallium is a white wool band that the Pope wears on top of the chasuble when celebrating Mass, representing Christ the Good Shepherd, who goes after the lost sheep, placing it on His shoulders. Each new archbishop receives a pallium that has been placed near the relics of St. Peter, symbolizing the unity that exists between the Holy Father, the Successor of St. Peter, and the metropolitan bishops throughout the world. It was very uplifting to know that the Holy Father, although living in a country far from us, remains close to us through our metropolitan bishop because of the union that exists between them.

The union described in the Holy Father’s motto, “In Illo uno unum” (“In the One [Christ], one”), was not only applicable to the archbishops during the Pallium Mass but also to all the Catholics present. It was beautiful to witness the Christian faithful praying together with the Holy Father in the official language of the Church. Although we spoke different languages, during this Mass we were able to be even more deeply united by praying the same words and chanting the same chants together. It was a beautiful manifestation of both the universality and the unity of the Church. Though we are many, we are one in Christ.

Let us not forget to pray for the intentions of the Holy Father, that he may continue to foster unity among Catholics and all Christians, and that we may be docile to the Holy Spirit so that we, too, may work toward this same union in Christ.

Jessie Valdovinos
Archdiocese of Los Angeles