Mother Frances Cabrini, patron saint of migrants, is known for caring for Italian immigrants in the US at the turn of the last century
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenAssociated PressPublished: 1:29am, 22 Jun 2026Pope Leo on Saturday exalted the first American saint, Mother Frances Cabrini, as a model for Christians today to care for migrants in need, as he visited her birthplace during a day trip to northern Italy.
Leo, who has clashed with the Trump administration over its migrant crackdown, urged young people in particular to learn about Cabrini’s life and service, once again confirming history’s first US pope as the heir to Pope Francis in prioritising the plight of migrants.
After she died in 1917, as a naturalised US citizen in Leo’s native Chicago, Cabrini was beatified and then canonised in 1946 as the first American saint.
In praising Cabrini on Saturday, Leo said she was inspired by her faith to help those migrants who had left everything behind to try to find a better life.
