luce mascot vatican
Image via CatholicTV

The Vatican Unveils Luce, Its Anime Mascot For 2025

The Vatican has the power of anime and God on its side, as it has unveiled Luce, its tokidoki designed mascot for the Holy Year 2025. According to Archbishop Fisichella, this is the Churchā€™s attempt to ā€œlive even within the pop culture so beloved by our youth.ā€ [Thanks, CatholicTV!]

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At first glance, little Catholic mascot Luce resembles quintessential Japanese pop culture figure Hatsune Miku, but wearing a rosary and a yellow raincoat while also holding onto a shepherdā€™s staff. However, there is actually a lot of religious imagery and importance in Luceā€™s design. The light of God shines in Luceā€™s eyes, the raincoat symbolizes the divine protection pilgrims had as they journeyed to salvation, and the dirty green boots symbolize both hope and humility.Ā 

Japanese-inspired lifestyle brand tokidoki teamed up with the Catholic Church in order to design this character. It also unveiled some other characters who are Luceā€™s pilgrim friends. Theyā€™re all wearing raincoats and muddy boots, as well as holding staffs. And yes, they’re walking around with Godā€™s light shining through their big ol’ anime eyes. There are also non-human mascots: a dove, an angel, and a dog.

Luce will also appear at the Holy Seeā€™s pavilion at Expo 2025, along with ā€œThe Entombment of Christā€ by Caravaggio. This is a very famous oil painting that Caravaggio painted between 1603 and 1604 for the Santa Maria in Vallicella, with plenty of dupes and copies throughout history. As Luce is the mascot for 2025, this implies that the Vatican plans on releasing more in the future in order to reach the youth through the power of anime. Itā€™s unknown if it will collaborate once again with tokidoki for Luceā€™s future and hypothetical successor.

Time will tell if this endeavor to live among the youth through pop culture works out for the Vatican.


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Stephanie Liu
Stephanie is a senior writer who has been writing for games journalism and translating since 2020. After graduating with a BA in English and a Certificate in Creative Writing, she spent a few years teaching English and history before fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming a writer. In terms of games, she loves RPGs, action-adventure, and visual novels. Aside from writing for Siliconera and Crunchyroll, she translates light novels, manga, and video games.