After his emotional return, Pope denounces ‘machismo’ in Peru and demands women be protected

Detailed summary

After his emotional homecoming Wednesday, the Peruvian pope got down to business and turned to the challenges facing a church and country he knows well.

LIMA, Peru — Pope Leo XIV on Thursday denounced widespread “machismo” and violence against women in Peru, demanding that women be protected and respected as he set out marching orders for his beloved Peruvian church and people.

After his emotional homecoming Wednesday, the Peruvian pope got down to business and turned to the challenges facing a church and country he knows well.

He called on the influential Catholic hierarchy to be models of unity and communion and instructed Peruvian bishops to accompany their flocks and respond to victims of clergy sexual abuse with truth and justice.

But the 71-year-old pope also showed himself to be positively overjoyed to be home and as relaxed as he has been in public since his 2025 election.

Leo sang along enthusiastically as 40,000 people in Lima’s Plaza Mayor serenaded him with “Contigo Perú,” a famous song from Peru’s Pacific coast that celebrates national unity. He drew huge applause when he recited the lyrics of another famous Creole hymn, “Mi Perú.”

“It’s a blessing not only for us Chiclayans but for all of Peru,” said Ángel Esquives, a craftsman originally from Leo’s former diocese in Chiclayo who now lives in Lima. He said he left his home at 3 a.m. to go to the historic center and stand in line to get as close as possible to the pope.

As he showed in the first two legs of his South American trip, Leo was in fine form despite having undergone lung cancer surgery last month. He bounded up a steep flight of stairs Thursday morning without any apparent problems and joked with the bishops that some “doubting Thomases” had predicted he wouldn’t be able to come.

“But God is great and his grace is bigger than all of us and I’m very happy to be here with you,” he said to applause.

In a speech to Peruvians in the plaza, Leo denounced the culture of “machismo” and violence against women that is prevalent in Peru, saying it went against the Christian teaching that proclaims men and women share equal dignity.

Opening of the article, excerpted from The Boston Globe. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.