The last time a Pope washed the feet of 12 priests at Holy Thursday Mass was in 2012.
Pope Leo XIV will celebrate his first Holy Thursday Mass as pope in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, washing the feet of twelve Roman priests—a marked contrast with Pope Francis, who during his pontificate performed the ritual with prisoners, migrants, and women, including Muslims and other non-Catholics.
The news came today in a press release from the Vicariate of Rome announcing the identities of the twelve priests. Eleven were ordained last year by Pope Leo XIV, while the twelfth, Don Renzo Chiesa, serves as spiritual director of the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary. The full list includes Don Andrea Alessi, Don Gabriele Di Menno Di Bucchianico, Don Renzo Chiesa, Don Francesco Melone, Don Clody Merfalen, Don Federico Pelosio, Don Marco Petrolo, Don Pietro Hieu Nguyen Huai, Don Matteo Renzi, Don Giuseppe Terranova, Don Simone Troilo, and Don Enrico Maria Trusiani.
The last time a pope washed the feet of priests at Holy Thursday Mass was on April 5, 2012, when Pope Benedict XVI performed the traditional rite with twelve priests of the Diocese of Rome at the Basilica of St. John Lateran.
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