Rome welcomed thousands of men preparing for or already living a life of service — seminarians, priests, and bishops — for a Jubilee that reaffirms the joy and mission of their vocation.

Inside St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Leo was welcomed with cheers and youthful joy by the seminarians gathered for the Jubilee week celebrations. He began:

“Thank you, because with your energy you feed the flame of hope in the life of the Church!”

The Pope’s message to the seminarians was clear: their vocation must grow from the inside out. Formation, he said, is not merely about skills or academics, but about becoming men rooted in love, encouraging:

“We need to learn how to love — and to do it like Jesus.”

For many seminarians, the week has been deeply transformative. Thomas Haman and Tom Stanczyk arrived in Rome for the Rome Experience — an immersion program for American seminarians — but soon found themselves swept into the heart of the Jubilee, participating fully in both journeys of formation.

Thomas Haman, seminarian from the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Florida, shared, “While I’ve been here. It’s been so amazing to encounter the Saints to visits where they’re buried, to hear their stories, and really my hope is to return to the United States and share what I’ve experienced here and share with the United States specifically that they have a great culture and history of the Saints and that I really am convicted that especially in this time and age, God wants to raise up Saints in the United States.”

Tom Stanczyk, seminarian for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, also shared, “We’ve said mass in the catacombs. We were able to go to the Holy Father’s Wednesday audience. Actually, we got a picture with him, which was awesome. We made a poster, and we get a picture with him. It was a great privilege. We were able to also participate in the procession on Corpus Christi with the Holy Father and that was was magnificent.”

As seminarians deepened their sense of calling, the Church’s shepherds — the bishops — came together the next day for their own jubilee, a time to renew their commitment to unity and faithful leadership.

The Pope highlighted, “The Bishop is the visible principle of unity in the particular Church entrusted to him.”

The Pope urged Bishops to lead with integrity, detached from privilege and favouritism, and firmly rooted in prayer. On the issue of abuse, Pope Leo was clear and uncompromising:

“Bishops must be firm and decisive in every case of abuse, especially those involving minors.”

Then came the turn of those living the daily demands of ministry — priests from across the world, who gathered to renew their “yes” to Christ.

At the Auditorium Conciliazione, Pope Leo addressed over 1,700 priests, seminarians, and formators:

“At the heart of the Holy Year, we want to bear witness together that it is possible to be happy priests — because Christ has called us, Christ has made us his friends.”

Pope Leo reflected on priestly celibacy, presenting it as a profound expression of friendship with Christ. This relationship, he said, is the spiritual foundation of the ordained ministry — giving meaning to celibacy and energizing a life of service to the Church.

After the Pope’s address, an informal moment followed — the Holy Father welcomed one priest for a warm, fraternal embrace, a gesture that embodied the closeness he had just preached.

Speaking to the clergy, Pope Leo returned to a central theme: the importance of the spiritual life — staying close to Christ, and close to one another. He reminded:

“No one here is alone. And even if you are working in the most remote mission, you are never alone.”

The Jubilee of Vocations concluded on June 27 with the ordination of 32 new priests in St. Peter’s Basilica. Among them — a deacon from Ghana Gilbert Tika. In the next segment, we sit down with him to hear how this Jubilee has shaped his vision for the priesthood.

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Adapted by Jacob Stein

Alexey Gotovskiy contributed to this piece; Produced by Alexey Gotovskiy; Camera by Gianluca Gangemi; Video Edited by Alessio Di Cintio; Special thanks & Credits to Vatican Media