MONACO (RNS) — In a tiny European country where 1 in 3 residents are millionaires, Pope Leo XIV called for the responsible use of wealth and condemned the “idolatry of power and money,” delivering a moral appeal from one of the world’s richest enclaves.

“Every talent, every opportunity and every good placed in our hands has a universal destination; it bears an intrinsic need not to be held back, but to be shared, so that everyone’s life may be better,” the pope said in his first speech in Monaco on Saturday (March 28).

Leo’s words echoed through the square in front of the prince’s palace, overlooking skyscrapers and the Monaco Grand Prix racetrack. A small but enthusiastic crowd, waving the yellow and white Vatican colors, watched his remarks.  

The pope’s emphasis on poverty and humility was also exemplified in the gifts he brought to Prince Albert II of Monaco and the local archdiocese: sacred images representing the medieval St. Francis of Assisi, known for renouncing his wealth to follow his faith.

Monaco only extends 0.81 square miles and counts 38,000 residents. But the city-state, the second smallest after Vatican City, exercises an outsized influence in the world. It’s a major financial hub, and the country employs over 70,000 people from 150 nations.

“The gift of smallness and a living spiritual heritage invite you to put your prosperity at the service of law and justice, especially at a historical moment when the display of power and the logic of oppression are harming the world and jeopardizing peace,” Leo said. “As you know, in the Bible it is the little ones who make history.”

The pope said faith rattles power structures “that create chasms between the poor and the rich, between the privileged and the discarded, between friends and enemies.” He quoted the 1891 encyclical “Rerum Novarum” (On New Things) by his namesake Pope Leo XIII, addressing the condition of the working class, inequality and laying the groundwork for Catholic social teaching.

Among the crowd gathered to hear the pope’s words was Katherine Hoyos, a Monaco resident who said she hopes the pope “will change the world or make the world a little better.” She welcomed Leo’s remarks on Monegasques’ responsibility to employ their wealth for the betterment of society.

“I really think that Monaco residents could do more in sharing. Because, you know, if you see what’s happening right now in the world, it’s really terrible, and we live in a little bubble here, and I think we should be more conscious and more active in sharing,” she said.

Magnus Frohmann, who works and lives in Monaco, said the pope should avoid “lecturing” the residents of the small city-state “because that never gets through to people,” and suggested that Leo should speak to their spirituality instead.

Like many Monaco residents, Hoyos and Frohmann were born and raised Catholic but are not practicing. Catholicism is the state religion in the principality, but only 6% to 8% attend Mass regularly. Pope Leo visited the local Catholic community at the Our Lady of the Immaculate Cathedral, where he emboldened them to foster communion and evangelize their faith.

Inside the cathedral, the pope described Christ as “an advocate” in defense of the poor and outcasts.

In a recent interview with EWTN, Abbé Christian Venard, the episcopal vicar for communications of the Monaco Archdiocese, said that it’s not uncommon for a billionaire and a housemaid to be sitting in the same pew in Monaco.

“In the church, such variety should never become the occasion of division into social classes,” Leo said in his remarks. “On the contrary, everyone is welcomed as persons and children of God.”

The pope called Catholics to be advocates as well and defend life from conception to death, stemming the tide of secularism but also challenging society’s financial and power structures.

“Is the current economic and social model truly just and marked by solidarity? Does it possess an ethic of responsibility, which assists and goes beyond the mere logic of the exchange of equivalents, of profit as an end in itself, so as to build a more equitable society?” he asked, citing his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI.

The pope’s final stop of his nine-hour tour through Monaco was the Louis II Stadium, where he celebrated Mass in front of a large crowd. During his homily, he framed the contrast between “the revelation of God” and “the hidden schemes of powerful authorities who are eager to kill without scruples.”

Against the “plots” and “excuses” devised to eliminate the innocent, Leo juxtaposed the “mercy that saves the world.” He condemned the “idolatry of power and money” and made an appeal for peace amid rising conflict in Europe and the Middle East.

“Let us not grow accustomed to the clamor of weapons and images of war. Peace is not merely a balance of power; it is the work of purified hearts, of those who see others as brothers and sisters to be protected, not enemies to be defeated,” he said.

Leo concluded his homily with an offhand reference to the gambling reputation of Monaco, home of the famed Monte-Carlo Casino. “Dear friends, bring happiness to others through your faith, by manifesting authentic joy, which is not won through a wager, but shared through charity,” he said.