For the first time in nearly 500 years, a reigning English monarch, King Charles III, stood alongside Pope Leo XIV in the sacred Sistine Chapel on Thursday for a joint ecumenical prayer service. This remarkable event took place centuries after King Henry VIII famously severed ties with the Roman Catholic Church over his own marital disputes.
The historic service unfolded within the very walls where Pope Leo XIV had recently been elected to lead the Roman Catholic Church. This marked the first instance in centuries where a Pontiff and the British monarch—who also serves as the titular head of the Church of England—shared a public moment of prayer.
This unprecedented gathering underscored a significant thaw in relations between the Anglican and Catholic faiths. It also highlighted King Charles III’s clear desire to be recognized as a leader promoting interfaith dialogue. Notably, his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, despite meeting multiple popes, never engaged in public prayer with any of them during her lengthy reign.
Prayers, led by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV and the Most Rev. Stephen Cottrell, the Archbishop of York, resonated through the chapel in both English and Latin. Their voices were beautifully accompanied by a combined choir of Anglican and Catholic singers, while King Charles and Queen Camilla observed from ornate gold chairs.
The royal couple’s participation was part of a broader state visit to the Vatican, strategically timed to coincide with the Jubilee, a significant year of spiritual renewal, penance, and forgiveness observed by the Catholic Church every twenty-five years.
This visit, however, wasn’t without its challenges for King Charles. The royal family is currently grappling with fresh revelations concerning his brother, Prince Andrew, and his connections to the infamous sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The King’s decisive action led to Prince Andrew relinquishing his title, the Duke of York.
Beyond diplomatic relations, this trip served as a powerful platform for one of King Charles’s most deeply held beliefs: fostering religious tolerance. Early in his reign, he demonstrated this commitment by visiting a Jewish community center in London, even joining in a Hanukkah hora dance. His 2023 coronation further showcased this inclusive approach, as he welcomed leaders from various non-Christian faiths, including Judaism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.
Yet, his inclusive stance hasn’t always been met with universal approval. As far back as 1994, long before his ascension to the throne, Charles sparked debate by suggesting his future role would be as a defender of all faiths, acknowledging Britain’s increasing diversity. He later refined this, stating that while he would remain Defender of the Faith (Anglican), he would also act as a ‘protector of faiths.’
During a solemn second ecumenical service held on Thursday at Rome’s Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls, King Charles was bestowed with the honorary title of Royal Confrater, a recognition of the enduring historical ties between the British monarchy and the Catholic Church. The Vatican further solidified this bond by commissioning a special chair for the King and his successors, adorned with the royal coat of arms and inscribed with the Latin phrase ‘Ut unum sint’ (‘That they may be one’), symbolizing their shared Christian heritage.
Cardinal James Harvey, the archpriest of the basilica, emphasized during the service that the King’s visit held immeasurable importance. He described it as ‘a soul-stirring new chapter in the long history of relations’ between the two influential Christian churches.
Earlier that day, the King and Queen also held a private audience with Pope Leo XIV.
King Charles further engaged with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State. A Vatican statement confirmed that their discussions focused on ‘matters of common interest,’ such as environmental protection and global poverty alleviation.
Reverend Martin Browne, from the Vatican department dedicated to promoting Christian unity in Rome, explained prior to the visit that these services were meticulously planned to ‘signal our closeness and willingness to recognize each other as brothers and sisters, despite our differences.’ He added, ‘This is undeniably an important message for the world, extending beyond just the ecumenical project to humanity as a whole.’
Typically, the Archbishop of Canterbury, as the head of the Church of England, would have joined the King for such a significant visit to Rome. However, the Most Rev. Justin Welby stepped down last November following a damning report that accused him of failing to adequately investigate widespread clerical abuse claims involving boys and young men. In a historic development this month, the Right Rev. Sarah Mullally was appointed as the first woman to hold this prestigious position, though her official installation isn’t anticipated until early next year.
The ordination of women remains a key theological difference separating the Anglican and Catholic churches. While the Anglican Church has embraced female priests since the 1970s, the Vatican strictly reserves ordination for men and has consistently deferred conversations regarding the ordination of women, even for the lower rank of deacons.
Archbishop Flavio Pace, secretary of the Vatican department dedicated to Christian unity, openly admitted in a recent press briefing that the ordination of Anglican women presents a ‘potential problem’ for relations between the two churches. However, he emphasized that ‘it is more urgent that we remain united, engage in dialogue, and continue to progress together.’
Archbishop-designate Mullally is expected to meet Pope Leo once she formally assumes her position. The Right Rev. Anthony Ball, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the Holy See, clarified, ‘The Catholic Church acknowledges the presence of female clergy and bishops in the Church of England as an internal matter for their denomination.’
Theoretically, there’s no inherent barrier to the Pope conducting future prayer services with a female Archbishop of Canterbury, according to Anna Rowlands, a political theologian at Durham University in England. Professor Rowlands explained that, once installed, the Archbishop would be recognized as the head of a fellow Christian community with whom the Catholic Church maintains relations.
Theological experts note that Pope Leo’s shared prayer with King Charles does not signify a complete alignment on other contentious issues that continue to divide their respective churches.
Significant differences persist: Anglican priests are permitted to marry, and some Anglican churches welcome openly gay clergy, whereas the Catholic Church mandates celibacy for its clerics and forbids openly gay individuals from serving. Furthermore, divorced Catholics whose marriages have not been annulled cannot remarry in a church ceremony, a practice that is permitted for divorced Anglicans.
As the Very Rev. Andrew McGowan, a professor of Anglican studies at the Yale Divinity School, aptly put it: ‘We don’t have to change each other.’
Theological experts believe it was improbable for either the Pope or the King to introduce contentious topics. Rev. Thomas J. Reese, a veteran Vatican analyst and senior analyst at Religion News Service, humorously compared it to ‘Thanksgiving dinner’ – implying that both leaders understand each other’s positions and prioritize finding common ground for cooperation.
Originally, the King’s visit was intended to align with the 10th anniversary of Laudato Si’, Pope Francis’s landmark encyclical on environmental protection. Both leaders share a fervent commitment to this cause: Pope Leo XIV has passionately advocated for global action to shield the poor from the harshest impacts of climate change, while King Charles has consistently sounded the alarm on the existential threat posed by escalating carbon emissions.