On a summer evening at Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence, the gardens filled with the voices of children from several continents and the tenor of Andrea Bocelli. The concert, part of commemorations for the 800th anniversary of St Francis of Assisi’s death, saw the Italian singer deliver “Amazing Grace” and “Panis Angelicus” alongside young performers from around the world. Afterwards, Pope Leo XIV, who had presided over the prayer gathering, stepped aside for a brief interview with the American network NBC-Telemundo.

The 70-year-old pontiff, born Robert Prevost in Chicago, made a striking declaration. “I think of myself more as the pope who happens to be American,” he said, insisting he did not wish to belittle what it means to be American. He spoke of his “great love” for the United States and what it stands for: a sense of freedom, opportunity, and “having invited, for generations, people from around the world to be part of America.” That love, he noted, was rooted in his own family story. His grandparents were immigrants, and on his mother’s side, “we have people who were both slaves and slave owners.”

The disclosure was not incidental. Since his election in May 2025, Leo has conspicuously followed his predecessor Francis in championing migrants, a stance that has placed him at odds with the Trump administration, whose immigration policies he has called “inhuman.” On Independence Day, he travelled to the Italian island of Lampedusa, a harrowing crossing point for those arriving from Africa, to urge tolerance and protection. The interview, framed by the concert’s theme of peace, reinforced that emphasis. The pope reflected that the sight of children from “different nationalities, ethnicities, perhaps different religions, all singing together” was an invitation “to look beyond and see the beauty that can be created when we set aside certain differences.”

Asked whether he would carry that message in person to the United States, Leo replied, “Well, I hope to come, naturally,” though no trip had yet been planned. His words, directed partly at immigrants living in fear—he urged them to have hope and to live “in an orderly way”—reached a broad American audience through the network’s Spanish- and English-language platforms. As the evening ended, the pope’s fusion of personal heritage and universal mission lingered, much like the children’s choruses that had earlier filled the Roman night.