World Day of the Poor – Mass and Lunch with the Pope

A day born in Rome for the entire Church

The World Day of the Poor was established by Pope Francis in November 2016, at the conclusion of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, with the apostolic letter Misericordia et misera. Since then, it has been celebrated annually on the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, the penultimate Sunday of the liturgical year, with its epicenter in the heart of Rome, the capital of Italy and seat of the Holy See. It is not a festival or a cultural event in the strict sense: it is an occasion that, every November, transforms the city's most visited space into a shared table for a few days.

The dual heart of the event: the Basilica and the Hall

The Roman day is structured around two symbolic locations. In the morning, at St. Peter's Basilica, the Pontiff presides over the Eucharistic Celebration in the presence of thousands of people living in poverty or vulnerability, who have arrived from all over Italy and numerous European countries with their caregivers, charitable associations, and diocesan Caritas organizations. At noon, the focus shifts to the Paul VI Hall, the grand auditorium designed by Pier Luigi Nervi next to Bernini's colonnade: the seats are replaced by long, set tables, and the Pope dines side-by-side with his guests.

Who participates

The profile of the guests tells the social geography of the capital and the Lazio region better than any statistic:

• Homeless people supported by Roman soup kitchens and shelters
• Migrants and asylum seekers, often in irregular situations
• Families in absolute poverty and the long-term unemployed
• People with mental health issues and those in reintegration programs
• Transgender individuals and other marginalized groups, welcomed without distinction
• Volunteers from the Vincentian Family, parishes, and charitable associations

Service and concrete gestures

An impressive solidarity machine is organized around the lunch. Dozens of volunteers serve a simple menu at the tables—a first course, a main course, and dessert—while backpacks containing food and personal hygiene products are distributed upon departure. In the days leading up to Sunday, under the colonnade of St. Peter's Square, the Polyclinic set up by the Office of Papal Charities offers general and specialist medical examinations, dental care, vaccinations, blood tests, and the free provision of glasses, hearing aids, and medication.

Rome, the city and its outcasts

The choice of Rome is not accidental. The capital concentrates the largest reception network in Italy—soup kitchens, day centers, street units, and the diocesan Caritas itself—while also housing some of the most visible urban poverty in the country, often just a few hundred meters from the basilicas and monuments of the historic center. The World Day of the Poor connects these two worlds that coexist in the same urban fabric, from the Borgo district to the outskirts of the Grande Raccordo Anulare.

How to experience it as a visitor

Mass in St. Peter's is open to the faithful until capacity is reached, while lunch in the Paul VI Hall is reserved for guests invited through associations and dioceses. Those wishing to participate actively can volunteer through the diocesan Caritas of Rome or the organizations collaborating on the event. In parishes throughout Italy, the same Sunday is accompanied by local initiatives—community lunches, food drives, and listening sessions—that replicate the Vatican gesture on a local scale.

An ongoing commitment

The papal message for the Day is published every year well in advance, in June, and sets the theme around which communities prepare the celebration. The gesture of the lunch, however, remains unchanged in its simplicity: sitting at the same table, without hierarchies, for a few hours.