Pope recognizes unsung heroes who keep Vatican City running

During this unusual audience granted to these behind-the-scenes workers who are rarely in the spotlight, the Pope expressed his gratitude for their “discreet and valuable service to the Pope's apostolic mission,” which is part of the “complex activity of the Governorate and the Directorate of Infrastructure and Services.”

“The gratitude I express to you from the bottom of my heart becomes an encouragement for future projects, which concern both the constant updating of technical and logistical services and the careful maintenance of the Vatican's spaces, especially those dedicated to prayer and meetings with the Pope,” said Leo XIV before these managers and technical agents gathered in the Clementine Hall.

He emphasized the importance of caring for sacred places, especially St. Peter's Basilica, a space “that must above all be preserved as a temple of contemplation, recollection, and spiritual wonder.” The American pontiff also noted that St. Peter's Square, “embracing the world with its splendid colonnade, is the ‘calling card,’ as they say, of our welcome to all.”

These technical staff are grouped into two organizations: the “Floreria,” responsible in particular for floral decoration and the aesthetic design of liturgical spaces, and the “Edilizia” office, which ensures the maintenance and upkeep of buildings. Leo XIV referenced these tasks and their transcendence, explaining that “the beauty of the areas and the safety of the structures find their highest meaning in the support they give to the devotion of the faithful and the pastoral work of the Church.” 

Their work, often discreet and inconspicuous, is actually essential to the liturgical, institutional, and daily life of Vatican City.