Inside look at Pope Francis' visit to Venice from St. Mark's Square

With a message of hope and faith, this fifth Sunday of Easter, Pope Francis has left Italy's iconic canal-filled city of Venice, after an intense morning, that marked his first pastoral visit, and travel outside of Rome, since the start of the year. This day trip represents the first of others in Italy in the months to come, and falls before his whirlwind four-country Apostolic Visit to Asia and Oceania in September.

At the Holy Father's Mass in St. Mark's Square, the Holy Father offered comforting words to the faithful, telling them to remain in the Lord, clarifying that this does not mean staying still, but rather, letting the Lord's love and closeness empower us.

Pope Francis in front of St. Mark's Basilica greeting faithful before the Mass

During his subsequent Regina Coeli address, before he privately venerated the relics of St. Mark, whose feast day was 25 April, inside St. Mark's Basilica, the Holy Father made heartfelt appeals for peace and an end to the suffering around the world, especially in Haiti, Ukraine, and the Holy Land.

First Pope to visit Venice Art Biennial

The Pope had arrived by helicopter, early this morning, in the women's prison on the Giudecca island to visit the Holy See Pavilion of the world-renowned Venice Art Biennial, a major international contemporary art exhibition. This year, the Biennial, which began in 1895, marks its 60th edition.

Pope Francis' visit also marked the first time a Pope has ever visited the event.

With the title 'With my eyes', the Pavilion, designed to remember in a special way human rights and the marginalized, was commissioned by Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, Prefect of the Dicastery for Culture and Education of the Holy See, and curated by Chiara Paris and Bruno Racine. The Pavilion is housed inside the prison facility, the same prison where Pope St. John Paul II celebrated Mass when he visited Venice in 1985.

Pope Francis visits Holy See Pavilion of the Venice Art Biennial

Encounters of joy and emotion

Upon Pope Francis' arrival to the prison, he held a moving encounter with detainees, which follows less than a month with his having washed the feet of women prisoners on Holy Thursday at the Rebbibia prison in Rome.

The Pope told the prisoners to always look to the future, to have hope, and that nothing can rob that hope. He also warmly urged them, smiling, to pray for him, before gifting them an icon of the Blessed Mother, reminding them of the exemplary, maternal tenderness of Mary. It was a very emotional encounter, bringing tears to the eyes of many.

Thereafter, Pope Francis met with artists associated with the pavilion, among others, in the prison chapel. After being welcomed by Cardinal Mendonça, he encouraged them in their creativity, as he had done a year ago when addressing artists in the Sistine Chapel.

Pope Francis in Venice

This visit will be remembered as well for its images. It was quite a scene to see the Pope's transport by patrol boat across the canal during his time in the lagoon city, to the Basilica of Maria della Salute, for the meeting with young people. We even saw him humbly pass through the vaporetto stop, which is the ordinary transit stop for tourists.

There, he encouraged young people from Venice and Veneto to remember how precious they are to God, saying that even when they may feel they do not measure up, that they should try to see themselves as God sees them.

Across the canal

From there, to reach St. Mark's Square, for the day's culminating events, Pope Francis boarded his popemobile across a provisional bridge created upon boats that connected the area of the Santa Maria della Salute to St. Mark's Square. 

In the midst of all this, from what had been somewhat dreary, grey weather, the Holy Father, in time for the Mass, seemed to bring, with him, the sun.

While all this happened in very few hours, the impact and moments of Pope Francis' visit to Venice, surely, will never be forgotten.