Pope Leo XIV opens with a special audience in the Vatican the international congress "The Splendor of the Human: Safeguarding Fertility, Caring for Infertility", scheduled from Friday 16 to Sunday 18 October 2026 at the Rome campus of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. The event celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Paul VI International Scientific Institute (2001-2026) and the 50th anniversary of the Center for Natural Fertility Regulation (1976-2026). The sessions cover anthropological and scientific themes linked to responsible procreation. The morning of the 16th opens with a Eucharistic celebration presided over by Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and president of the Italian Bishops' Conference, at the Parish-Sanctuary of Santa Maria in Traspontina; in the afternoon the congress officially opens at the Auditorium of the Università Cattolica with the keynote address by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin on "the dignity and beauty of procreation in the Magisterium of the Church".