For the first time in 500 years, head of Anglican Church prays with Pope

An ecumenical prayer officiated by Pope Leo was held at the Sistine Chapel. Photo: Vatican Media

For the first time in the last five centuries, the head of the Anglican Church held a ecumenical prayer service with the Pope – an event that the RCC called historic. In the Sistine Chapel, King Charles III and Queen Camilla prayed together with Pope Leo XIV as part of the British monarch's official visit to the Vatican, reports the Vatican News website.

After a private meeting in the Apostolic Palace, the Pope, the King, and the Queen went to the midday prayer, joined by the Most Reverend Stephen Cottrell, the second-most senior bishop in the Church of England.

The prayer was attended by hierarchs of both denominations – Archbishop of Westminster and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, and the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, Leo Cushley, representing the Scottish episcopate.

The joint prayer was the first such event since the 16th century when, after the church schism between England and Rome, the paths of the two churches diverged. Now, the meeting in the Vatican is seen as an attempt to strengthen interfaith dialogue.

The main themes of the visit were Christian unity and environmental care – a direction to which King Charles attaches special importance. The ecumenical service was conducted in two languages, Latin and English, symbolizing the desire for dialogue between Catholics and Anglicans. It also fulfilled a wish of King Charles, who, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, has long been committed to interfaith engagement.

During the prayer, hymns and psalms were performed by the Sistine Chapel Choir, the choristers of St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, and the children's choir of the Royal Chapel of St. James's Palace. The chants united representatives of the two Christian traditions.

When the prayer concluded, Pope Leo XIV and King Charles III exited the Sistine Chapel sideoby-side. This visit marked a historic moment in Anglican-Catholic relations – one that has not occurred in 500 years.

As reported, for the first time in history, a woman, Sarah Mullally, became the Archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Anglican Church.

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