Vatican City - For thousands of Catholic pilgrims in Rome, this is the Vatican appointment that cannot be missed: at noon Sunday, the pope emanates from the windows overlooking St. Peter's Square.

New Pope Leo Xiv is scheduled to hold his first such prayer from Loggia on Sunday, when he appeared in public for the first time three days ago.

This is the history, meaning and memorable moment of the past blessings of the Gospel of Sunday.

In 1954, he announced a special year for the Virgin Mary, and Pope Pius XII began to recite traditional Catholic prayers in public places. He first came from the outskirts of the Pope's summer residence (Castel Gandolfo).

Back in the Vatican, he lifted it from the window facing St. Peter's Square in the Apostles' Palace in the 16th-century building where the Pope's apartment is located. Pope Francis lives in a Vatican hotel traditionally but still maintains the palace's Sunday prayer tradition.

This has become an ordinary loyal opportunity to see the Pope approaching relatively close. Especially since the Pope of St. John Paul II from 1978 to 2005, the Pope added a brief message on different topics today.

When the Pope misses once a week - like Francis did during his hospitalization earlier this year, that's global news.

The Vatican announced that Leo will hold his first such prayer on Sunday, Mother's Day in Italy and the United States, and other countries.

Angelus is a brief prayer of Mary that many Catholics recite every day.

Praying often before Mass, but traditionally accompanied by the bells at dawn, noon and evening, it quotes the Gospels saying that the Archangel Gabriel told Mary that she would be the mother of God, and she accepted it.

"Angelus" is Angel's Latin language, and the first verse of prayer is "The Lord's Angel proclaimed as Mary". The faithful answered, “She thought of the Holy Spirit,” followed by Hail Mary and more Scripture and prayer.

This "angel" scene is so critical in Christian dogma that it has been represented by some of the most famous painters for centuries. Some artists also portray faithfully reciting Angelus, a practice believed to have begun in the Middle Ages.

During Easter - the current liturgical season, from Easter Sunday to Pentecost 50 days - prayer is replaced by another dedication to Mary, Regina Coeli (also spelled Caeli, Latin for "Queen of Heaven"), encouraging rejoicing in the resurrection of Christ.

St. John Paul II looked weak, appeared in his last Angelus prayer at his hospital window and died less than three weeks ago. An Archbishop conveyed his message, and the trademark advised young people not to be afraid to follow Jesus.

When Pope Benedict XVI held its final Sunday prayer in 2013 until the first pope to resign in 600 years, thousands of people filled St. Peter's Square. When he was relieved that he was not a believer who gave up the church, they cheered him up, but turned to help because of his age.

Francis introduced his key theme of the Pope at the first Angelus in 2013: Mercy. He told the crowd: "Some mercy makes the world less cold and more just."

Recently, Francis used Sunday’s blessings to call for peace, especially in Ukraine and Gaza. But he will also end his blessing with the down-to-earth phrase "Lunch."

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