Pope Leon XIV is beginning a trip to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru, his host country, to strengthen the Catholic faith in a region experiencing a rise in the evangelical movement, despite a recent operation to remove lung cancer.
The leader of the Catholic Church, aged 71, underwent surgery less than three weeks ago to remove a lung tumor. However, doctors confirmed that no further treatment is required and cleared him for an 11-day journey (from November 6 to 17), which includes 12 flights, two helicopter trips, and prayer at high altitude in the Andes.
Vatican representative Matteo Bruni announced on Tuesday that routine medical care will be provided during the trip without the need for exceptional measures.
Leon XIV acknowledged that he 'desires to return to the continent where he spent many moments of his life.' Before becoming Pope, Robert Francis Prevoet served nearly two decades in Peru, notably as the bishop of the coastal city of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023.
The leader of 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide will begin his journey in Uruguay, a country that is the most secular in South America. There he will be received by President Yamandu Orsi.
This liberal country diverges from the Catholic Church on issues of same-sex marriage, abortion, and euthanasia, which was legalized last year. Leon XIV is expected to call for the protection of life.
Next, the Pope will travel to Argentina, the homeland of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who disappointed many compatriots by not visiting the country during his 12 years as pope.
The country's authorities expect seven million pilgrims to see the Pope. He will hold pastoral meetings and deliver speeches to high-ranking officials, including Argentine President Javier Milei, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, with whom the Church has strained relations.
The Pope is likely to address serious issues of social justice in this country, which Milei may view negatively, as he classifies this topic as 'aberration,' 'theft,' and 'deep injustice.' Since taking office in December 2023, Milei has implemented a austerity program based on reducing government spending and canceling subsidies and aid to the least privileged segments of the population.
The Argentine Catholic Church has repeatedly requested assistance for the disability assistance sector, which has been severely affected by the harsh financial adjustment.
However, the culmination of his first trip to Latin America is likely to be Peru, where huge participation is expected in major events, with at least one and a half million people already registered.
The first Pope, born in the United States and holding Peruvian citizenship, will celebrate mass on a desert plain near the Pacific Ocean before heading to Cusco, the ancient Inca capital, and then to Pucallpa, a city in the Amazon rainforest.
In Lima, he will meet with Peruvian President Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of former President Alberto Fujimori, imprisoned for corruption and crimes against humanity, whose legacy she defends.
Leon XIV is expected to address issues plaguing Peru, ranging from a wave of crime fueled by contract killings and unprecedented extortion to the cocaine industry—one of the largest in the world—and its impact on indigenous peoples.
The Pope will also have to speak about political instability in Peru—Keiko Fujimori is the ninth head of state in 10 years—and the importance of protecting the dignity of migrants in a country that hosts about 1.6 million Venezuelan refugees.
This will be the fifth visit by the Pope to Latin America since Paul VI began pilgrimage tours in the region with a visit to Colombia in 1968. Since then, all his successors have visited Latin America, with the exception of John Paul I, who died in 1978, 33 days after his election.
