The Catholic Church is preparing to celebrate what it refers to as a “Jubilee” year in 2025. And as a part of its preparations, the Vatican has rolled out a brand new anime-inspired mascot: Luce.
Luce (pictured in the yellow jacket above) and her friends are designed by tokidoki, a Japanese-inspired lifestyle brand created and led by Italian artist Simone Legno, who personally designed Luce and friends himself. Per an announcement from the Vatican, Luce is a “pilgrim” wearing traditional pilgrim garb such as a windbreaker to protect from the elements, muddy boots, a staff, a missionary cross, and “above all, shining eyes, symbol of the hope of the heart.”
The statement says that Luce was “created from the desire to enter also into the world of pop culture, so loved by our young people.” Her creation comes as a part of the Catholic Church’s Jubilee year, a once-every-25-years special year traditionally marked by celebration, prayer, reconciliation, and an intent to strengthen the faith of those who participate. Luce’s appearance as a pilgrim is especially thematically appropriate given a recent message to youth that Pope Francis gave ahead of World Youth Day , during which he instructed them to be “pilgrims” rather than “tourists” in their faith.
According to Catholic News Agency, Luce will officially debut at the Lucca Comics and Games convention in Italy in the first time the Vatican has ever participated in a comic convention.
Luce and her friends are emblematic of what seems to be greater efforts from the Catholic Church to reach the youth via gaming and general pop culture. Earlier this year, the Church canonized the first-ever known “gamer” saint, Carlo Acutis. In addition to being the first-ever saint to play video games (including Halo, Mario, and Pokemon), he’s also the first millenial saint and was said to be adept with technology, creating a website to document alleged miracles. Acutis will likely be canonized during the upcoming Jubilee year.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
