Pope Leo XIV today sent his greetings to all those who will celebrate the Lunar New Year, which starts on Feb.17. He prayed that it may “strengthen family ties” and “bring peace to homes and society.”

As he greeted thousands of pilgrims from around the world gathered in St. Peter’s Square, from the study window of the third floor of the Apostolic Palace on Sunday, Feb. 15, he recalled that “In the coming days, millions of people in East Asia and other parts of the world will celebrate the Lunar New Year.”

The celebrations begin on the first day of the new moon of the Lunar Year and usually extend for about two weeks.

Speaking in Italian, Pope Leo prayed that “this joyful celebration may strengthen family ties and friendships, bring peace to homes and society and provide an opportunity to look to the future together and to build peace and prosperity for all.” 

He concluded by extending his “best wishes for the New Year” to all of them and said, “I express to everyone my affection and invoke the Lord’s blessing upon each one of you.”

Like Francis, his Argentine predecessor, Pope Leo did not mention any country or people by name, but his greeting is intended for all those in China, including those living in Hong Kong and Macau, as well as the populations of Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, Mongolia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines and countries across the world with large immigrant communities from these countries, including the United States and Italy. 

Many of them celebrate the Lunar New Year (some refer to it as the Chinese New Year) in a colorful, public way with parades, but it is above all a celebration for the family. In accordance with their tradition, those celebrating often travel great distances and make great efforts to be with their families for this spring festival.

In the Chinese zodiac calendar, which has a 12 year cycle in which each year is represented by an animal, this new year is called “The Year of the Horse.” This year also marks “The Year of the Fire Horse,” which only occurs every 60 years. But Leo, who is the only pope to have visited China, where there are today some 12 million Catholics (he went once there as head of the Augustinian order), made no reference to that. 

Gerard O’Connell is America’s senior Vatican correspondent and author of The Election of Pope Francis: An Inside Story of the Conclave That Changed History. He has been covering the Vatican since 1985.