León XIV Defends the Popemobile as an "Instrument of Encounter"

From official vehicle to a tool for bringing the Pope closer to the faithful. Leo XIV this Wednesday praised the role the popemobile has acquired over the last century during an audience with the executives of Mercedes-Benz, the company linked to papal travel since Pius XI received his first car of the brand in 1930.

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The meeting was held on the occasion of the exhibition "A Century of the Popemobile," which traces nearly a hundred years of collaboration between the German company and the Holy See. In his greeting, the Pope expressly thanked the successive generations of designers, engineers, and workers who have made this relationship possible.

More than a means of transport

Leo XIV used the exhibition to reflect on the evolution of the popemobile itself. In his original address in English, the Pope stated that the popemobile has gone from being a means of transport to becoming an "instrument of encounter" that allows the Pontiff to draw close to the faithful during his pastoral journeys and public celebrations.

According to Leo XIV, the work carried out by Mercedes-Benz has thus helped facilitate the Church's mission of going out to meet people and bringing to the world a message of faith, hope, and charity.

Furthermore, the open design and the progressive adaptation of popemobiles to large celebrations have allowed the vehicle to cease being solely a way of transporting the Pope and to become also a means of reducing the physical distance between the Pontiff and those who take part in his journeys and public events.

Innovation and human dignity

Leo XIV particularly highlighted one of the most recent steps in this evolution: the first fully electric popemobile, presented by Mercedes-Benz to Pope Francis with a view to the Jubilee of Hope in 2025.

The Pontiff linked this vehicle to his predecessor's concern for sustainable mobility, just as Francis had called on the automotive sector to work to make mobility "truly sustainable and accessible."

Finally, the Pontiff encouraged the executives of Mercedes-Benz to continue placing "technological innovation at the service of human dignity, the care of creation, and the common good."