Pope urges faithful in Uruguay to embrace faith and unity at first Mass in South America

Résumé détaillé

Pope Leo XIV urged an estimated 40,000 people in Uruguay on Saturday to build bridges of fraternity and faith, as he used his first Mass in South America to deliver an ode to the…

Pope Leo XIV urged an estimated 40,000 people in Uruguay on Saturday to build bridges of fraternity and faith, as he used his first Mass in South America to deliver an ode to the region’s beloved mate tea and raise the profile of the Catholic Church in its most secular country.

The crowd erupted in a chant of “ole, ole, ole, ole, Pope, Pope!” when Leo’s plane landed in Paysandu, in western Uruguay on the border with Argentina.

They cheered again, blew horns and waved yellow handkerchiefs when he arrived in his open-sided popemobile at the Mass site in the Parque Paris Londres, a sprawling green space on the southern edge of Paysandu.

More than 30,000 people – many from Uruguay but also from neighbouring Argentina and Brazil – had registered in advance to attend the service, around 370km from the capital, Montevideo.

The Vatican said on Saturday another 10,000 had shown up beyond that, despite the morning rain and blustery, grey skies.

It was the first Mass of Leo’s three-nation South American tour that had been in doubt after the 71-year-old American pope underwent lung cancer surgery on October 13.

Crowds of faithful in rain ponchos, many in the Vatican’s yellow, began streaming into the site when the gates opened at 5.30am as a band played popular Spanish hymns. Some in the crowd said they were deeply moved that Leo pressed on with his ambitious 12-day tour despite his recent cancer diagnosis.

“He’s the representative of Christ but he’s human. And we weren’t sure if he could make it, but he pushed through for us,” said Soledad Sanchez (73), who had driven to Paysandu from northern Uruguay, her eyes filling with tears. “He made it here to give us a message of peace because he knows our world needs it right now.”

Leo, who arrived in Uruguay on Friday and had an intense afternoon and evening of events, is seeking to urge the people in South America’s most secular country, with a population of 3.5 million, to turn to the Catholic faith for strength in confronting today’s…

Début de l'article, extrait de The Irish Times. Pour lire la suite, ouvrez l'article chez le média.