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Pope sees Vatican II document as more urgent today
Confirmed
In Short: Pope Leo XIV inaugurated a new building for the Vatican Library and marked his 71st birthday with an art exhibit focused on water.
Pope Leo XIV inaugurated a new building for the Vatican Library on the same day he marked his 71st birthday, emphasizing the library's importance as a symbol of life and a heart that beats with engagement with human history.
The new building is part of an effort to address the growing manuscript collection, which has outgrown current storage facilities. Pope Leo noted that the current storage was insufficient, citing Pope Francis' 2024 move of parts of the library to the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary building.
The inauguration of the new building coincided with the launch of an art exhibit titled 'AQVA' at the Vatican Library, which will be on display until May 14, 2027. The exhibit, part of the theme 'Catastrophe and Wonder,' reflects on water as both a threat and a resource.
Archbishop Giovanni Cesare Pagazzi, the Holy See’s archivist and librarian, described the Vatican Library as a heart, mirroring the movements of contraction and relaxation. He also highlighted the role of artists like JR, who created the exhibit’s installation of an ocean wave on the outside of the library, as bridge-builders.
In his remarks, Pope Leo encouraged all present, particularly the Vatican Library employees, to find new pathways towards reconciliation. The exhibit, which includes works from Bill Moran’s ‘Letterfishes’ series, was unveiled in a ceremony with the pope.
The Vatican published the papal decree on Sept. 14, ordering the construction of the new building to house the excess holdings of the library and the Vatican Apostolic Archive. The pope also repealed provisions introduced by Pope Francis in March 2021 that reduced the salaries of cardinals and Vatican employees as a cost-saving measure during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What's confirmed
- Pope Leo XIV inaugurated a new building for the Vatican Library on the same day he marked his 71st birthday, emphasizing the library's importance as a symbol of life and a heart that beats with engagement with human history.
- The new building is part of an effort to address the growing manuscript collection, which has outgrown current storage facilities. Pope Leo noted that the current storage was insufficient, citing Pope Francis' 2024 move of parts of the library to the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary building.
- The inauguration of the new building coincided with the launch of an art exhibit titled 'AQVA' at the Vatican Library, which will be on display until May 14, 2027. The exhibit, part of the theme 'Catastrophe and Wonder,' reflects on water as both a threat and a resource.
- Archbishop Giovanni Cesare Pagazzi, the Holy See’s archivist and librarian, described the Vatican Library as a heart, mirroring the movements of contraction and relaxation. He also highlighted the role of artists like JR, who created the exhibit’s installation of an ocean wave on the outside of the library, as bridge-builders.
- In his remarks, Pope Leo encouraged all present, particularly the Vatican Library employees, to find new pathways towards reconciliation. The exhibit, which includes works from Bill Moran’s ‘Letterfishes’ series, was unveiled in a ceremony with the pope.
- The Vatican published the papal decree on Sept. 14, ordering the construction of the new building to house the excess holdings of the library and the Vatican Apostolic Archive. The pope also repealed provisions introduced by Pope Francis in March 2021 that reduced the salaries of cardinals and Vatican employees as a cost-saving measure during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What's still developing
- “Well, you know, as an artist, my role is to create bridges, and so I feel in my place, like where I need to be working, even if it’s pretty intimidating to work in a place like the Vatican,” JR told EWTN News.
- “Aquatilium Animalium Historia” (1557), the centerpiece of the Vatican Library’s “AQVA” exhibit, is a masterwork of Renaissance typography, scientific rigor, and fine engraving by Ippolito Salviani. | Credit: Daniel Ibanez/EWTN News In a document issued the same day, Leo decreed that a new building be constructed in Vatican City to house the Vatican Library’s growing manuscript collection.
- “Unprecedented opportunities have arisen to create new facilities within the territory of the Vatican City State, which are undoubtedly preferable, for a variety of reasons, to the solution that had previously been identified,” the pope wrote.
- “Now they can be brought to an end, in the certainty that the institutions of the Holy See and Vatican City State will continue, through different means, their commitment to ensuring economic sustainability,” Pope Leo wrote.
- A version of this story was originally published by Vatican News and distributed through a partnership with OSV News.