Did the Jubilee need a mascot? And was it needed in manga style?

But of all the artists in its millennial history, did the Catholic Church really need a Japanese cartoon-style design to make the Jubilee ’mascot’? The unsettling choice (there are even those who wonder if there was a need to have a ’mascot,’ like for the Olympic Games) was announced with pomp and circumstance in the Holy See Press Office along with the presentation of cultural events before the official opening of the Jubilee and the Holy See Pavilion at Expo Osaka 2025.

Announcing it and showing it for the first time were Monsignor Rino Fisichella, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for the Evangelization of Peoples, the director of the Vatican Museums Barbara Jatta and Davide Mambriani, curator of the Jubilee and Culture review for concerts and exhibitions(here is the full text of their speeches). After talking about the planned cultural initiatives and the website on which to find all the information, it was the turn of the puppet that towered over the desk covered by a sheet: “Light.” This is the name of the mascot of the Jubilee and the Holy See Pavilion in Japan, which is supposed to represent a pilgrim with the features of a little girl wearing a yellow hooded k-way and muddy boots. She is so reminiscent of Greta Thunberg. In her large eyes the shell-shaped reflection, symbol of the most famous of pilgrimages, the Way of St. James. Around her neck a necklace with the pilgrim’s cross with beads in rainbow colors reminiscent of the o pace and the lgbt, depending on personal sensibilities.

These are the words with which the prelate presented the puppet: “Dulcis in fundo, it gives me pleasure to present the mascot of the Jubilee and Osaka; it is Luce, created from the desire to live even within pop culture, so loved by our young people. Born from the creativity of Simone Legno, Luce is the mascot that will accompany us. As can be seen, she is a pilgrim depicted with the typical elements of the pilgrim: the yellow k-way to shelter from the weather; boots soiled with dirt from the road traveled; the missionary cross around her neck; the pilgrim’s staff; and above all, the luminous eyes, symbol of the Hope of the heart.”

The likeness of the typical protagonist of the Japanese cartoons so popular in Italy since the 1980s (one above all: Magica Emy, who has a yellow hoodie in the cartoon), the ’manga’, is not accidental: in fact, the Vatican City’s Dicastery for the Evangelization of Peoples participated in the international comics and gaming fair Lucca Comics & Games with a space dedicated to the official Jubilee mascot (Light&Friends) near thearchbishopric, with a 7-meter-high inflatable rubber copy at Europe’s most important fair dedicated to comics, games, video games, animated films, fantasy fiction, illustration and TV series. For Monsignor Rino Fisichella, it was an opportunity to introduce “the official mascot of the Jubilee, a symbol of hope and fraternity, values that align perfectly with the theme of the festival”; in short, a way to get noticed by the many young people in Lucca: “A showcase like Lucca Comics allowed us to speak to the younger generations about the theme of hope, which is as central as ever to the Gospel message.”

For those who don’t know, 400,000 came to Lucca this year to participate in the kermesse, and it was a down edition compared to the participants of other years. Among them was also a cosplayer girl dressed as Luce. On the Facebook walls of comics and anime lovers in those days jokes flourished: on the Anime.clik profile one user says “Now I expect one dressed as Don Zauker for par condicio,” and another not so much in line with Pope Francis comments “The church is not a clown: it’s the whole circus.”

No appreciation for the artistic figure. But who is the artist? Simone Legno, not even 50 years old from Rome, for his Tokidoki.

Can this image represent the result of two thousand years of sacred art? To communicate in the modernity of today’s man, should the Church turn to forms of countries of the Far East? To make use of Pop Art, must the forms of fantastic worlds be recalled? Simone Legno is a very successful artist in his field, and he evidently gave what his flair carried, they must have called him for that. His clients or collaborations include big names in design such as Marvel, Mattel, Hello Kitty, and Sephora, Canon or Karl Lagerfeld, but also collaborations with the Guggenheim Museum. He also created, again for Expo 2025 in Osaka, the mascot of the Italian Pavilion: “Italia Chan,” which was presented at Milan Design Week.

His portfolio also includes gadgets of various kinds for Gay Pride and a line of vibrators with the designs and shapes of devils or unicorns: the collaboration with Lovehoney for the production of sextoys is precisely what is causing discussion. “Is it possible,” writes the conservative website La Nuova Bussola quotidiana, "that the Vatican, in commissioning him to do the work, did not know that it was relying on a creative in the field of merchandising applied to commercial brands who in his respectable carnet also had products that could hardly be associated with the Church such as devil-shaped vibrators and rainbow unicorns?

On Instagram, the Roman artist presents this work this way: “I grew up in Rome, in a Catholic family where I learned the principles of a faith fueled by generosity and respect for others. In my work, I am fortunate because I come across many different cultures, constantly seeking a universal and contemporary language, which I strive to bring to my works. The Jubilee is undoubtedly a unique opportunity to meet and dialogue with millions of people, including young people. I hope that Pilgrim Light and her traveling friends can represent the feelings that resonate in the hearts of the younger generation.”

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