What are the words most used by Pope Leo XIV so far?

This analysis includes all of the official speeches delivered by Pope Leo XIV between May 8 and June 2, 2025. It includes his four addresses at the Sunday Marian prayers, his first two general audiences, 17 speeches, seven homilies, and five messages that he read or addressed during this period.

For greater relevance, the analysis excludes overly common words and focuses on significant nouns, verbs, and adjectives.

The word that appears most frequently in the papal speeches is “God,” used 162 times since the beginning of the pontificate. The Pope has also written or spoken the name “Jesus” 80 times, and “Christ” and “Lord” 54 times each.

The Pontiff's speeches are naturally marked by the context of the beginning of his pontificate, which leads him to speak about his “mission” (34 occurrences) in relation to the “world” (98) and the “Church” (138), as “pope” (54), bishop of “Rome” (35), and successor to “Francis” (37). As the pope generally addresses his guests or audience as “brothers and sisters,” words referring to fraternity appear very regularly (115). The pontiff also took care to say “thank you” (82) to his interlocutors.

In his speeches and homilies, the Pope has quoted numerous “saints” (116 occurrences), foremost among them “St. Peter” (30), whose successor he is, but also “St. Augustine” (14), the inspiration for his order. He declared himself a “son” of the Bishop of Hippo in his first speech. The recurring presence of the word “grace (38), which is very important in Augustinian thought, is another reflection of this spiritual kinship. The “Holy Spirit,” the third person of the Trinity, is also mentioned frequently.

“Peace be with you all!” were the first words of Leo XIV in the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica on May 8. He then spoke of “the peace of the risen Christ,” which is “a peace that is unarmed and disarming, humble and persevering.” “Peace” (82), he recalled in several of his speeches, is not “a pause between two conflicts,” but a “gift of God” that is built “in the heart and from the heart, by uprooting pride and demands.”

In continuity with the previous pontificate, Leo XIV has made several appeals for peace, notably in Gaza and Ukraine.

Another recurring theme in Leo XIV's writings is that of “life” (128 occurrences), first and foremost as a gift from God. “We received life even before we wanted it,” he said, encouraging everyone to live “credible lives.” However, he emphasized how this Christian model of life, focused on others, is betrayed “every time we invoke freedom not to give life, but to take it away.”

“Faith” (64) is another key word in the early speeches of the American pope, who repeatedly called for “supporting the faith of others” by transmitting the “joy of faith.” “It is our faith that gives us strength,” he explained, warning Christians against a “privatization” of faith that compromises its transmission.

Finally, the word “love” (97) is one of the most frequently used by Leo XIV. This love, in the pope's speeches, comes from God and must be desired by Christians as the “source and driving force of the proclamation of the Gospel.” “This is the hour for love!” he proclaimed during the inaugural Mass of his pontificate, later warning against “the confusion of languages without love.”