Pope Leo XIV honored Spain's centuries-old tradition of religious devotion as a 'school of faith' on Sunday, celebrating Mass for an estimated 1.2 million people in Madrid and leading a procession over carpets of flower petals.

The head of the Catholic Church arrived in Spain on Saturday and urged the nation to end polarization and work for unity, in his first papal visit to the country in 15 years.

Local organizers reported that the Plaza de Cibeles and surrounding streets were packed with 1.2 million faithful, with many more attempting to gain entry. The crowd cheered as the pontiff circled the square in his popemobile.

The open-air Mass was held on the Catholic feast of Corpus Domini, which traditionally features processions led by a priest carrying the Eucharist. In Spain, these processions often include elaborate floral carpets arranged along the route.

According to Spanish organizers, 16 floral carpets decorated the half-kilometer procession route off Plaza de Cibeles, prepared by a florists' association from Galicia. Florists used more than 30,000 flowers, predominantly in the yellow and white colors of the Holy See flag.

At the end of the Mass, Pope Leo carried a gilded monstrance holding the Eucharistic host and walked over the floral carpets, as children dropped additional petals before him and the crowd tossed petals from behind barricades.

Source: www.aljazeera.com