POPE LEO XIV
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In Rome, even a postage stamp can carry theological weight. On April 28, the Vatican’s postal service released a new series of stamps commemorating the Sede Vacante — the period between the end of one pontificate and the election of a new pope.
This 2025 issue, announced by the Vatican’s Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Systems, honors the unique moment when the Chair of Peter stands empty, and the Church pauses in expectancy. The release includes four denominations—€1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20—each stamp featuring the emblematic pavilion of the Apostolic See held by angels, with the crossed keys of Saint Peter beneath it.
Inscribed on each is “Sede Vacante MMXXV,” alongside “Città del Vaticano” and the stamp’s value. More than postal tools, these images are quiet meditations on continuity, humility, and trust in the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Sede Vacante is not merely a vacancy but a sacred interlude—one the Church has weathered for over two millennia with solemn hope.
Available now at the Vatican Post Office in St. Peter’s Square and at postal counters throughout Vatican City, the stamps can be used for regular correspondence. For collectors and those who cherish symbolic moments of Church life, a special folder is available. It contains all four stamps, first-day covers, and a commemorative postmark designed specifically for this occasion.
The use of angels in the stamp design recalls the heavenly guardianship over the Church, while the crossed keys—one gold, one silver—represent both spiritual authority and temporal service, bound together in the mission of Peter’s successors.
This philatelic series is a reminder that, even in administrative gestures like mailing a letter, the Church offers signs of its deep spiritual rhythms. It’s a lesson in seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary. As the Catechism notes, “The Church... will receive her perfection only in the glory of heaven” (CCC 769)—but even on Earth, in times of waiting, she speaks through signs and symbols.
For travelers to Rome or those seeking a tangible link to this moment in Church history, the stamps offer a small but meaningful keepsake. They embody not only the elegance of Vatican design but also the enduring stability of the Church through every season—even one without a pope.
