Vatican Report | Thursday evening, 29 October 2026

No public celebrations for Pope Leo XIV today, but a full morning in the Apostolic Palace: six audiences, including the President of Costa Rica, and condolences for the train crash at Urda, Spain. The Press Office Bulletin stopped at B0850. No appointments. Here is the recap. 🇪🇸 Condolences for Urda In a telegram signed by Pietro Parolin to the Archbishop of Toledo, Francisco Cerro Chaves (B0848), the Pope says he is "deeply saddened" by the "tragic railway accident" at Urda, in the province of Toledo, on 28 October, which caused "numerous victims and injured" (our translation from the Spanish). He offers prayers for the dead, condolences to their families and wishes for a swift recovery to the injured; he encourages rescuers "to persevere in the rescue and assistance work" and imparts the apostolic blessing to all "as a sign of hope in the Risen Lord". 🇨🇷 Costa Rica This morning the Pope received the President of the Republic of Costa Rica, Laura Fernández Delgado, with her husband and entourage. She then met Pietro Parolin, accompanied by Paul Richard Gallagher. According to the Press Office communiqué (B0850), the "cordial talks" in the Secretariat of State expressed "satisfaction with the good relations between the Holy See and Costa Rica, as well as between the State and the local Church". The conversation then turned to "current socio-political issues in the country and the region, with particular reference to security and migration" (our translation). 🏛️ Other audiences The Bulletin of audiences (B0849) also lists Víctor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith; Mieczysław Mokrzycki, Archbishop of Lviv of the Latins (Ukraine); José Horacio Gómez, Archbishop of Los Angeles; Ward Fitzgerald, President of the Papal Foundation, with his entourage; and Giordano Piccinotti, President of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA). 🚗 Popemobile From today "A Century of the Popemobile" is open to the public in the Square Garden of the Vatican Museums: eight historic Mercedes-Benz cars, starting with the Nürburg 460 delivered to Pius XI in 1930, alongside the 1886 Benz Patent-Motorwagen and a modern S-Class. Entry is free with a Museums ticket. 🙏 Joseph Tobin The Archbishop of Newark had surgery today for a kidney mass, as the Archdiocese announced on 28 October. As of 8 p.m. Rome time, the Archdiocese had issued no official update. We are awaiting news. 📌 To watch • Sunday 1 November, noon: Angelus • Monday 2 November, 4 p.m.: Mass for the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed at Verano Cemetery • Wednesday 4 November, 10 a.m.: General Audience. That morning, according to EFE, an audience with Chilean President José Antonio Kast • Thursday 5 November, 9 a.m.: Mass in suffrage of the cardinals and bishops who died during the year, in St Peter's • 6–17 November: Apostolic Journey to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, per the Press Office's official programme • Archdiocese of Newark updates on Tobin