Pope Leo XIV holds a deep and personal devotion to Our Lady of Good Counsel. He is set to demonstrate this once again with a special visit to Genazzano. The Holy Father will travel to the small Italian town to celebrate Mass on September 7. This falls on the eve of the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This return marks yet another chapter in a relationship between the pontiff and this humble shrine. That bond stretches back years before his election.
Pope Leo will preside over an evening Mass at the Basilica Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel. The Mass is timed deliberately to honour Mary’s birthday. During the celebration, the shrine will unveil a painting depicting the pope in prayer before the sacred image. It joins a long line of pontiffs whose likenesses already adorn the chapel walls. Father Ludovico Centra, the rector of the shrine, confirmed the details of the upcoming celebration to Vatican News. He described it as a fitting tribute to the pope’s ongoing bond with Genazzano.
This visit is far from Pope Leo’s first encounter with Our Lady of Good Counsel. As a cardinal, he celebrated Mass at the shrine on April 25, 2024, the feast day of the image itself. Then, only two days after his election in May 2025, he made a private pilgrimage there before returning to the Vatican, choosing to visit before he had even settled into his new role. That gesture spoke volumes about his priorities as the first Augustinian pope in history.
The origins of the shrine trace back to the thirteenth century. A modest church dedicated to Mary already stood on the site. In 1356, the noble Colonna family entrusted the building to the Augustinian friars, who cared for it faithfully. At the start of the fifteenth century, the friars decided to rebuild and expand the church. An Augustinian widow named Petruccia sold everything she owned to help fund the project. According to tradition, a mysterious image of the Virgin and Child then appeared on a thin sheet of plaster, seemingly unsupported in mid-air.. This fragile fresco has remained an object of profound devotion ever since.
Pope Leo is by no means the first pontiff drawn to this quiet corner of Italy. Over the centuries, several popes made their own pilgrimages to Genazzano, including Urban VIII, Pius IX, John XXIII and John Paul II. Their portraits now hang inside the shrine’s small chapel, standing alongside the new painting soon to be added. Pope Leo XIII, whose name inspired that of the current pope, held a particularly strong devotion to Our Lady of Good Counsel. Although he never managed to visit the shrine himself, he elevated it to the rank of minor basilica in 1903 and added the title “Mother of Good Counsel” to the Litany of Loreto.
Genazzano holds special meaning for the Augustinian order, since its friars have safeguarded the shrine for nearly seven centuries. As the former prior general of the Augustinians, Pope Leo carries this heritage with him into the papacy. During his 2025 visit, he told the gathered faithful that he wanted to reaffirm his trust in the Mother of Good Counsel from the earliest days of his ministry. He described her as a companion of light and wisdom, echoing words once spoken by generations of Augustinian friars before him.
Locals in the small town, home to just over five thousand residents, have welcomed the pope’s continued attention with visible joy. During his first papal visit, hundreds gathered outside the shrine to greet him and he addressed them warmly, calling his presence there “a great gift” for their community. He reminded everyone that just as a mother never abandons her children, they too must remain faithful followers of Mary. This September, that same warmth is expected to return as the town prepares to welcome him once more.
As the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary approaches, Catholics around the world can look forward to fresh images from Genazzano. This will bring renewed reflection on Mary’s role in salvation history. Readers curious about the wider significance of this Marian feast may enjoy our earlier article on the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It explores its ancient roots and lasting traditions. For the full details of the pope’s itinerary, Vatican News offers continuing coverage of the visit.
In the end, Pope Leo XIV’s return to Genazzano tells a simple story: devotion, once formed, rarely fades. Here’s the revised version, with each sentence at 20 words or fewer:
Whether as a young Augustinian friar, a newly elected pope, or now a pontiff marking his second year in office. He keeps returning to the same quiet chapel. There, he finds the same gentle image of a mother holding her child.
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