As he did last year, on March 8, 2024, Pope Francis will visit a parish in Rome as part of the '24 Hours for the Lord' initiative. This time of prayer, adoration, and confession takes place in dioceses around the world during Lent, in preparation for Easter.
For the 11th edition of this event, which Pope Francis established at the very start of his pontificate, and which usually takes place around the fourth Sunday of Lent, Francis will visit the Church of San Pio V (St. Pius V), located around 3 kilometers (less than 2 miles) west of the Vatican in the Aurelio district.
During this time of prayer, which will begin at 4:30pm, the 87-year-old Pontiff will hear the confessions of the faithful, as he does every year, a press release states.
This parish was built in the mid-20th century and was previously visited by Paul VI in 1969 and John Paul II in 1979, making Francis the third Pontiff to visit it.
As part of this 24-hour initiative, the Vatican is encouraging "an extraordinary opening" of churches on every continent. The Dicastery for Evangelization offers a pastoral guide in six languages - including English - which can be downloaded from its website. The 2024 edition’s theme is “Walk in the newness of life” (Rom 6:4).
Previous years
During the first '24 Hours for the Lord' event, in March 2014, Pope Francis set an example by going to confession himself in St. Peter's Basilica. His aim was clear: to encourage Catholics to rediscover a taste for this sacrament. It was also with this in mind that the Pope launched a Jubilee of Mercy the following year.
For the 2022 event, on March 25, Pope Francis presided over a 'solemn act of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary,' entrusting humanity, and in particular Russia and Ukraine, to the Virgin Mary, as the conflict in the region had broken out only a month earlier.
In 2023, for the first time the Argentine Pontiff presided over the '24 Hours for the Lord' in a Roman parish rather than St. Peter’s Basilica. It took place at Santa Maria delle Grazie al Trionfale (Our Lady of Graces at Trionfale) also located close to the Vatican.
