Montevideo (AFP) – Leo
Published on: 07/11/2026 - 11:22
Three weeks after his lung operation, the sovereign pontiff was acclaimed on Friday, upon his arrival in the most secular country in the region, by thousands of people as he passed in a popemobile along the seafront promenade in Montevideo, towards Independence Square where the left-wing president, Yamandu Orsi, was waiting for him.
“I don't care about the pope, but I believe in God, because he saved me when I was in intensive care for a long time,” Angelo Olivera, who came to sell scarves bearing the image of the pope in the square, told AFP.
Disagreements
During his journey from the Vatican, the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics told journalists traveling on his plane that he felt in "pretty good shape" after the procedure.
“Ensuring that health care is accessible to everyone, regardless of their resources, is a responsibility that challenges every society,” then declared the 71-year-old head of the Catholic Church.
He is also scheduled to visit Argentina and Peru on a 12-day trip, one of the most intense papal tours in decades.
The first American-born pope spent nearly two decades in Peru as a missionary, where he formed a deep connection to the region and obtained Peruvian citizenship. He called the country "one of my many homes" and said he looked forward to seeing "old things, new things and, above all, people."
In Uruguay on Saturday, Leo XIV will celebrate a mass in a park in Paysandu, a town in the northwest where 30,000 pilgrims are expected.
He will then return to Montevideo and visit the Casavalle district, which has the highest homicide rate in the capital, as well as the Catholic University and the Centenario stadium, where he will preside over a prayer vigil for 60,000 people.
Cardinal Daniel Sturla, archbishop of Montevideo, however, assured AFP that there was "widespread interest in the pope's visit, which goes far beyond the limits of the Catholic Church", with places for masses in Paysandu and Florida having quickly sold out.
Old life
Uruguay has the highest suicide rate in Latin America and the pope addressed the subject in his first speech Friday.
“Loneliness, anxiety and loss of hope can become so deep that a person stops finding reasons to continue living,” he stressed. “Faced with the painful reality of suicide,” public health, the family and the community are essential, he added.
He also praised Uruguay's energy mix, "which today relies almost entirely on renewable sources."
The pope will visit Argentina on Sunday, the birthplace of his predecessor, Francis, who disappointed many Argentines for not visiting there during his pontificate.
Peru, the highlight of the tour starting on Wednesday, is gripped by papal fever.
In Lima, everything is sold, t-shirts and rosaries bearing the image of Leo XIV, and even bread bearing his name in bakeries.
Leo
© 2026 AFP
The content you are trying to access does not exist or is no longer available.
