Pope Leo XIV begins 12-day South American tour following lung surgery
The 70-year-old pontiff arrives in Uruguay for his first major overseas trip since a recent operation, planning 12 flights and visits to three nations.
By Tessa Cooper ·
Pope Leo XIV arrived in Montevideo, Uruguay, on Thursday to begin a 12-day, three-country trip that marks his first major overseas journey since undergoing lung cancer surgery. The itinerary includes 12 flights, two helicopter rides, 36 speeches, and visits to 10 cities, including Cusco, Peru, which sits more than 11,000 feet above sea level.
Vatican officials stated that Leo completed a two-week recovery period after surgery last month to remove the lower lobe of his right lung. They confirmed he requires no further treatment. Maria Montserrat Alvar, the Vatican's new communications chief, said the pontiff was eager to start the journey. "His doctors are very confident and he'll have plenty of medical care on board should something happen," Alvar said.
Uruguay serves as the first stop despite being Latin America's most secular nation. The country has a population of about 3.5 million, and only about a third of residents identify as Catholics, according to Mariana Pomiés, director of the public polling firm CIFRA. Pomiés noted that while the state maintains neutrality in religious matters, some officials misinterpret this stance. "Secularism is not anti-religion, it's the neutrality of the state in religious matters. But here the neutrality se convirtió en un absoluto… it became an absolute," Pomiés said.
When asked why include Uruguay in the tour, Alvar replied, "Why Not?" She added that the Gospel is meant to go everywhere. In the capital, few welcome banners are visible, but large posters of the pope adorn city churches. Ana Maria Saprissa, a 70-year-old retiree, expressed gratitude for the visit. "His visit gives us such joy because …he remembered us all here in this tiny country that has so many needs," Saprissa said.
The pope is scheduled to visit the Casavalle neighborhood on Saturday, a working-class area about half an hour north of Montevideo. Volunteers prepared a stage outside the Our Lady of Guadalupe Church for the event. Father Pablo Coimbra, who has served as the community's pastoral leader for six years, said the visit brings attention to people who often live on the margins. "For the first time many people live their lives always on the margins, on the margins of opportunities, of possibilities, of the future, on the margins of a loving gaze.. well, today they are in the heart, in the center," Coimbra said.
A proposed address to the Uruguayan parliament was scrapped after public and political criticism. President Yamandú Orsi will oversee a welcome ceremony outside Montevideo's main cathedral. Leo will later celebrate evening prayers with church leaders and laypeople. On Sunday, mass will be held in Florida, a town about an hour from the capital where locals commemorate the Virgin of the Thirty-five, a symbol of independence from the Brazilian empire in 1825.
Leo will travel to Argentina by Sunday, fulfilling a wish of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who died before making the trip. The visit presents an early test of Leo's relationship with right-wing populist leaders. President Javier Milei's austerity measures have pushed millions into poverty, creating potential friction with Leo, who has championed the poor. Milei has also embraced data centers and loose artificial intelligence regulation, whereas Leo's inaugural encyclical called for ethical safeguards in the age of AI.
The tour concludes in Peru, a homecoming for Leo, who spent two decades there as a missionary priest and Bishop of Chiclayo. He became a naturalized Peruvian in 2015 and said the country shaped his life more than anything else. He will meet with President Keiko Fujimori. As a priest during the rule of her father, former dictator Alberto Fujimori, Leo criticized military violence and supported efforts that led to Peru's Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
In Montevideo, Juan Martin Guerreiro walked past the stage set for the welcoming ceremony. He said he was not sure he would attend the speeches because Leo does not feel as influential as Pope Francis. However, Guerreiro said he is willing to give the new pope a chance because he is South American. When reminded that Leo was born in Chicago, Guerreiro said he would not hold that against him.
