“The Roman pontiff, as the successor of St. Peter, is the perpetual and visible principle and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the multitude of the faithful.” (Lumen Gentium, Par. 23) (link)
An image of the “ring of the fisherman” that was used more than a century ago by Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903).
The image shows Peter as a fisherman, after fishing all night without success, casting his net into the sea at the command of the Risen Christ. The net was miraculously filled with fish, which, when counted on the shore, numbered 153 fish. For the Church Fathers, this number represented all the nations of the world, to whom the Gospel would be preached (link)
Here below, from the Italian edition of the Vatican News website, is an actual image of the ring that will be worn by Pope Leo XIV, beginning tomorrow; you can see the name “Leo XIV” on the inside of the ring on the upper left (link):
The official document of acceptance of the Roman Pontiff and of the name taken by him, prepared by the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Ceremonies acting as an official Holy See notary (link)
Letter #50, 2025, Saturday, May 17: “Tu es Petrus“
I am sitting in a little cafe across from the Palace of the Holy Office, next to St. Peter’s Square.
It is 4 p.m. on the afternoon of May 17.
I ask Giovanni, at the cash register, when he will close.
“At 6,” he says.
“So I may sit here for an hour and write something?”
“Please do,” he says.
***
Nine days ago, on Thursday, May 8, Pope Leo XIV, 69, after the white smoke poured out above the Sistine Chapel, stepped out on the central loggia of the basilica of St. Peter and said, quoting the Risen Christ when he first appeared to His disciples, “Peace be with you.”
Leo is now completing his 9th day as Pope, and his official inaugural Mass, when he receives the Fisherman’s Ring, will be tomorrow, Sunday, May 18, in St. Peter’s Square…
***
“We have a Pope,” I say to Giovanni. “Habemus Papam… And… he is an American…”
“Yes, I know,” Giovanni says. “I know him. He is an Augustinian.”
Giovanni gestures, almost with excitement, toward the wall behind me.
“He lived right there, just next door, for many years. In the Augustinianum. Do you know the place? He was the Prior there…”
“Yes,” I say.
“Just around the corner. I saw him often.”
“And…” I said.
“A good man, an Augustinian. A guarantee of seriousness. A very good choice. He was a missionary in Peru for 20 years. His heart was for the poor. I have only good things to say about him… Always calm. Humble. No pretensions…”
***
Rome seems calm this evening, a beautiful May evening, cool, not hot, sunny, yet with some puffy clouds… the sky is May blue, but marked with cumulus clouds, floating like great ships above the dome of St. Peter’s, awaiting tomorrow’s great ceremony.
Tomorrow morning in a St. Peter’s Square packed to the colonnades with more than 200,000 people, Pope Leo XIV will receive the Fisherman’s Ring.
Following Pope Francis‘s death, the Fisherman’s Ring that Francis wore, a symbol of papal authority, was destroyed in the presence of the other cardinals, marking the official end of Francis’ authority.
Tomorrow, Robert Prevost, from the south side of Chicago, who has taken the name of Leo XIV, will receive a new Fisherman’s Ring, made especially for him.
He will wear it until his death…
***
The design typically features St. Peter the Apostle, the first Pope, with fishing nets or with the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven.
The name of the reigning Pope is also inscribed on the ring.
***
Historically, the ring served as a seal for the Pope’s private correspondence.
Its use as a seal was discontinued in 1842, but the ring remains a symbol of the Pope’s authority as the successor of St. Peter and the leader of the Church.
Significance of Fisherman’s Ring
The ring’s name, “Fisherman’s Ring,” directly references St. Peter, who was a fisherman by trade.
The bestowal of the ring upon a new Pope signifies the responsibility entrusted to him as Peter’s successor and the shepherd of the Catholic faithful.
Traditionally worn on the ring finger of the Pope’s right hand, the ring symbolizes the Pope’s spiritual betrothal to the Church.
Note: In 2013, when Pope Benedict XVI resigned from the papacy, instead of being destroyed, his Fisherman’s Ring was marked with a deep cross by the Cardinal Camerlengo, in the presence of all the cardinals.
***
Tomorrow, as Pope Leo XIV prepares to receive the Fisherman’s Ring, the choir will chant the nearly 500-year-old hymn set to music by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-1594), perhaps the greatest of all Roman composers of sacred music.
Here are the Latin words, with an English translation:
Tu es Petrus
(You are Peter)
et super hanc petram aedificabo ecclesiam meam
(and upon this rock I will build my Church)
et portae inferi non praevalebunt adversus eam.
(and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.)
Et tibi dabo claves regni caelorum.
(And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.)
Quodcumque ligaveris super terram, erit ligatum et in caelis,
(Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven.)
et quodcumque solveris super terram, erit solutum et in caelis.
(and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.)
Here is the full officials Vatican text explaining tomorrow’s Mass and its symbolism:
OFFICE OF LITURGICAL CELEBRATIONS
OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF
RITUAL FOR THE BEGINNING OF THE PETRINE MINISTRY
OF THE BISHOP OF ROME LEO XIV
ST. PETER’S SQUARE, 18 MAY 2025
Eucharistic Celebration
for the Beginning of the Ministry of the Bishop of Rome
The Eucharistic Celebration, with which the elected Pope officially begins his ministry, emphasizes in particular the “Petrine” dimension of Pastor of the Catholic Church.
The specific value assumed by the usual episcopal insignia: the Pallium and the Ring, is therefore emphasized. In addition to their reference to Christ and the Church, for the Successor of Peter they are evocative of the task entrusted to him by the Risen Lord (Jn 21:15-17).
The connection with the Apostle Peter and his martyrdom, which fertilized the nascent Church of Rome, are further emphasized by the places where the celebrations take place, first of all the Confession of Saint Peter in the Vatican Basilica.
In the solemn Eucharistic liturgy, in which the two “Petrine” episcopal insignia are imposed, the texts and signs make explicit their reference to Christ, the cornerstone of the Church (cf. Eph 2:20), and to Peter, called by him to be its “stony foundation”, the rock on which Christ the Lord builds the Church (cf. Mt 16:18).
The rite takes place in Saint Peter’s Basilica and in the square in front.
The stop at the Apostolic Confession of the Basilica underlines the close bond of the Bishop of Rome to the Apostle Peter and his martyrdom, gathering the people of God, on such a solemn day, in the same place where he confessed his faith with his blood together with many other Christians who gave the same testimony with him.
From the central gate of the Vatican Basilica hangs the tapestry of the miraculous catch of fish (John 21:1-8), which depicts the dialogue between Jesus and Peter, to which the rite makes explicit reference, in the liturgy of the Word and in the euchological texts.
It is the reproduction of a tapestry of Flemish manufacture, made for the Sistine Chapel based on a cartoon by Raffaello Sanzio and preserved in the Vatican Museums.
Near the Altar is placed the effigy of the Madonna del Buon Consiglio from the Marian Sanctuary of Genazzano.
Introductory Rites
The new Roman Pontiff descends, with the Patriarchs of the Eastern Churches, to the Sepulchre of Saint Peter and pauses there in prayer.
He then incenses the Apostolic Trophaeum.
In the meantime, two deacons take the Pastoral Pallium, the Fisherman’s Ring and the Book of the Gospels and carry them together in procession to place them on the Altar of the celebration.
The initial procession, after the pause at the Confession of Saint Peter, sets out towards the Altar, while the Laudes Regiæ [“Royal Praises” or “Royal Acclamations”] are sung, with the invocation of the intercession of the holy Pontiffs, martyrs and saints of the Roman Church.
The rite for the blessing and sprinkling of holy water follows, since it is a Sunday in the Easter season, the singing of the Gloria and the collect prayer which, recalling the Father’s plan to build his Church on Peter and inspired by Lumen gentium, asks that the Bishop, appointed Successor of the Prince of the Apostles, show the Christian people Peter as the “visible principle and foundation of unity in faith and of communion” in the Church.
Inheriting his service, the Pope also participates in it (cf. LG 18, 23 and note 30; Vatican Council I, Const. Pastor Æternus, 1).
Liturgy of the Word
During Easter time, the page from the book of the Acts of the Apostles (4, 8-12) is proposed in which Peter announces that Christ is “the stone rejected by the builders”.
The assembly takes up the theme of the “stone” in the responsorial psalm (Ps 117 [118]), with the text: “The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone”.
Peter’s vocation as the foundation of the Church (cf. Mt 16:18), is rooted in the rock that is the Lord (cf. Dt 32:4; Ps 117 [118], 22-23) and in the chosen, precious and solid stone that is Christ (cf. Is 28:16; Rm 9:33; 10:11).
He, “the stone that the builders rejected… a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense” (cf. 1 Pt 2:6), has become the cornerstone (cf. Eph 2:20).
The second reading (1 Pt 5:1-5. 10-11) further emphasizes the bond between Peter, the Church of Rome and the ministry of his Successor.
The exhortations that the Apostle, as an “elder” addresses to the “elders”, to shepherd the flock that God has entrusted to them and to be its model, also apply to him.
Equally important is the founding reference to the one and only supreme Shepherd who will dispense the reward on the day of his coming.
The Gospel chant (Jn 21:3. 6) introduces the proclamation of Jn 21:15-19.
The Apostle fisherman goes to cast his nets and six apostles accompany him, but that night they catch nothing.
Only at the Lord’s command will the net overflow with fish.
The Gospel of John (21:15-19) is one of the texts that, together with Mt 16:13-19 and Lk 22:31-34, traditionally establish the special and personal task given to Peter in the group of the Twelve.
He receives it, like the other Apostles, from the risen Christ.
Jesus’ triple question and triple answer are accompanied in crescendo by the invitation to feed “his lambs” and “his sheep”.
The triple question and triple answer recall and repair the triple betrayal.
Despite his fragility, or rather precisely starting from it, Peter “repented” and can “confirm in the faith” his brothers (cf. Lk 22:31-32).
Imposition of the Pallium and delivery of the Ring
After the proclamation of the Gospel, in Latin and Greek, three Cardinals of the three Orders (Deacons, Presbyters and Bishops) and from different continents approach the Holy Father, to impose the Pallium and give him the Fisherman’s Ring.
The meaning of the Pallium, an ancient episcopal insignia made with lambs’ wool, is illustrated by various testimonies of the Fathers.
Symeon of Thessalonica in De sacris ordinationibus writes: “The Pallium indicates the Savior who, meeting us as the lost sheep, takes it on his shoulders, and assuming our human nature in the Incarnation, has divinized it, with his death on the cross he has offered us to the Father and with the resurrection he has exalted us”.
The Pallium therefore recalls the Good Shepherd (cf. Jn 10:11), who places the lost sheep on his shoulders (cf. Lk 15:4-7), and also the threefold loving response to the request made by the risen Jesus to Peter to feed his lambs and his sheep (cf. Jn 21:15-17).
The pallium, in its present form, is a narrow band, woven in white wool, which rests on the shoulders over the chasuble, with two black flaps hanging in front and behind, so that the vestment resembles the letter “Y”.
It is decorated with six black silk crosses, one on each end that descends to the chest and back and four on the ring that rests on the shoulders, and is decorated, in front and behind, with three pins (acicula) that represent the three nails of the cross of Christ.
The Pallium is imposed by a Cardinal of the Order of Deacons, who in the formula used refers to Christ, “the great shepherd of the sheep”, whom God raised from the dead (Heb 13:20), and now He himself transmits it to the Pope.
He recalls that it was taken from the Confession of Peter, to signify the connection with the Apostle who received from Christ himself the special task of guiding his flock.
The new Pontiff succeeds Peter in the Church of Rome, generated by him to the faith together with the Apostle Paul (cf. Leo the Great, Sermo82, 3. 6).
After the litany invocation of the Laudes Regiæ, this is the first remembrance of Paul, as co-founder of the Church of Rome.
The Spirit of truth is also invoked so that he may sustain with his grace the ministry of the new Pontiff in confirming the brothers in the unity of faith.
After the Cardinal has imposed the Pallium, a Cardinal of the Order of Presbyters invokes with a special prayer the presence and assistance of the Lord on the Chosen One.
He implores from God the blessing – which is his own Son – and the greatest gift, the Holy Spirit, so that the Pope may exercise his ministry in a way that corresponds to the charism received.
The delivery of the Fisherman’s Ring follows.
Since the first millennium, the ring has also been the proper insignia of the Bishop.
The Ring that the new Pope receives, however, has the specific value of the seal ring that radically authenticates the faith, a task entrusted to Peter to confirm his brothers (cf. Lk 22:32).
It is called the “Fisherman’s” ring because Peter is the Apostle (cf. Mt 4:18-19; Mk 1:16-17) who, having had faith in the word of Jesus (cf. Lk 5:5), hauled the nets of the miraculous catch of fish from the boat ashore (cf. Jn 21:3-14).
The delivery of the Ring is made by a Cardinal of the Order of Bishops.
He invokes Christ, “shepherd and bishop of our souls” (1 Pt 2:25), who built the Church on the rock of Peter, and who was recognized by Peter himself as “Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16; Tomus Leonis 3), so that he may be the one to give the new Pontiff the Fisherman’s Seal Ring.
The text highlights the undisappointed hope experienced by Peter in putting out to sea and lowering the nets, and recalls that Christ gave him the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
It is emphasized that the new Pontiff succeeds him in the pastoral leadership of the Church of Rome, which “presides over the union of charity”, Paul’s exhortation is reiterated, which indicates in charity the “fulfillment of the law” (Rm 13, 8-10).
The explicit reference to the Letter to the Romans (5, 5) intends to recall the teaching that the Apostle addressed to the Church of Rome; the very famous expression with which St. Ignatius the martyr addressed the Church of Rome is also reported (Ad Rom., Præf.; cf. LG 13).
The delivery of the Ring ends by invoking the Holy Spirit to enrich the new Pontiff with strength and gentleness in preserving the disciples of Christ in the unity of communion.
After the rite of delivery, the Holy Father blesses the assembly with the Book of the Gospels, while acclaiming in Greek: “Ad multos annos!”
After the symbolic rite of “obedience” given to the Pope by twelve representatives of all categories of the people of God, coming from various parts of the earth, the celebration continues with the homily of the Holy Father and the profession of faith.
In the universal prayer, we pray to the Lord for the Church, spread throughout the earth, for the Roman Pontiff, who begins his ministry, for those who hold the responsibilities of government, for those who find themselves in suffering and hardship, for the assembly itself.
Eucharistic Liturgy
The prayer over the offerings implores that through the missionary ministry of the Church, the fruits of redemption may extend throughout the world.
The preface, proper to the euchology of the feast of the Chair of the Apostle Peter, making use of New Testament texts, recalls the salient and characteristic features of his ministry.
It is followed by the Roman Canon, which is the Eucharistic Prayer proper to the Church of Rome.
In the prayer after communion, the new Pontiff asks God to confirm the Church in unity and charity and for himself to be saved and protected together with the flock that has been entrusted to him.
Concluding rites
The blessing returns again to the biblical image of the vine and the vineyard, applied to the Church (cf. LG 6), invoking that the Lord “guard” and “protect” the vine and the vine he has planted (cf. Ps 79 [80], 15-16), and asks that his face of salvation “shine” on all.
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