Pope Leo, King Charles, and the Archbishop of York have joined together for a special prayer service in the Sistine Chapel.
It is the first time that leaders of the Church of England and the Catholic Church have prayed together since the 16th-century Reformation.
As monarch, King Charles is the Church of England’s supreme governor, while the Archbishop of York is serving as its spiritual head until Dame Sarah Mullally is installed in March.
The ceremony opened with the Lord’s Prayer, read first in English. The King and the Pope then held a private meeting to discuss environmental sustainability—an issue both men have spoken about passionately.
Prior to the service, the heads of state exchanged gifts. The King presented Pope Leo with a silver photograph and an icon of the Anglo-Saxon King, St. Edward the Confessor. In return, the Pope gifted him a scaled-down Christ Pantocrator mosaic.
Queen Camilla wore a black veil as she joined her husband in the courtyard of San Damaso. She is the first Catholic to be married to a British monarch since the Act of Settlement in 1701, which prohibited non-Protestants from ascending the throne.
Church historian and lay canon Dr. Francis Young told Premier Christian News that both churches have faced similar challenges.
"They can learn from one another," he said. "They've both faced horrific abuse crises that have shaken both churches. They've also experienced demographic changes, including declining congregations... but they are both global churches."
Young considers the meeting a sign of encouragement and mutual respect. "Pope Leo recognizes in the King a fellow Christian leader, and that's a rare thing these days,” he said. “There aren't many Catholic heads of state, and there are even fewer heads of state who would be openly Christian in the way that King Charles is."
The King and Queen will also visit the Basilica of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, where the tomb of St. Paul is located.
They will be presented with a chair decorated with the King’s coat of arms and the Latin inscription “Ut unum sint”, which translates as "That they may be one." The seat will remain in the church exclusively for when the King or his heirs return.