Pope Leo Shares Important Message While Making His Instagram Debut. Why It May Sound Familiar

Pope Leo XIV is officially on Instagram!

On Tuesday, May 13, the 69-year-old pope shared his first post on the social media platform since succeeding the late Pope Francis last week.

The post, which was later shared on X, included a photo of the new pontiff waving to a sea of people from the balcony at St. Peter’s Basilica the day of his election last week.

“Peace be with you all!” read the caption, the start of an excerpt from his first address as pontiff. “I would like this greeting of peace to resound in your hearts, in your families, and among all people, wherever they may be, in every nation and throughout the world.”

The emotional speech also included Leo’s tribute to Francis — as well as his promise that “evil will not prevail.”

The Dicastery for Communication previously announced in a press release that the new pontiff will “maintain an active social media presence through the official papal accounts on X and Instagram.”

To date, over 10 million users follow “pontifex” on Instagram, and nearly 750,000 users follow his X account.

The Vatican also announced that any content posted by Francis before his death will be archived.

Pope Leo was born in Chicago and gained missionary experience in Peru before serving as the bishop of the city of Chiclayo.

In 2023, the former cardinal was appointed by Francis to the Dicastery for Bishops, which oversees the selection of new bishops from across the globe.