ROME (OSV News): Pope Leo XIV will visit South America from November 6-17, covering 10 cities across Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru, the Holy See Press Office announced on August 5.
The journey begins in Uruguay, one of Latin America’s least religious countries, continues to Argentina—homeland of the late Pope Francis—and ends in Peru, where Pope Leo was a missionary and bishop. This marks his first return to the continent since his election as pope.
The pope will visit Montevideo, Paysandú and Florida in Uruguay; Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Luján in Argentina; and Lima, Chiclayo, Cusco and Pucallpa in Peru.
The visit starts in Uruguay from November 6-8, where Christians comprise just 44 per cent of the population—the lowest in Latin America.
Montevideo features the National Shrine of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the historic Metropolitan Cathedral.
Paysandú, a cultural and economic hub on Uruguay’s western border with Argentina, was founded in 1772 by a priest, Father Policarpo Sandú, and Christianised Indigenous families. The city is home to the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, known for its large pipe organ.
Florida is home to the National Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, Uruguay’s patroness, site of an annual pilgrimage and an 18th-century Guaraní Virgin Mary image.
St. John Paul II consecrated the shrine in 1988, the last papal visit to Uruguay. Daniel Cardinal Sturla of Montevideo expressed great anticipation for Pope Leo’s arrival.
The second leg of the trip will be Argentina from November 8-11, the homeland of Pope Francis, who was archbishop of Buenos Aires before becoming pope, but never returned during his pontificate. About 58 per cent of adults in Argentina identify as Catholic, according to Pew.
In Buenos Aires, Pope Leo is expected to meet the president, Javier Milei, who called the visit a moment of “enormous spiritual and institutional significance.”
The city is also home to the Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy, burial place of Argentina’s first female saint, Mama Antula.
Córdoba features the UNESCO-listed Jesuit Block and one of South America’s oldest universities.
Luján’s Shrine of Our Lady of Luján is Argentina’s main pilgrimage site, visited by Pope Francis and Pope St. John Paul II.
The final and longest portion of the trip will bring Pope Leo back to Peru from November 11-17, where he first arrived as an Augustinian missionary in 1985. He was appointed apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo in 2014 before becoming its bishop. He obtained Peruvian citizenship in 2015 before being transferred to the Vatican in 2023.
Lima, the capital, contains the Basilica and Convent of Our Lady of the Rosary, the burial site of St. Rose and St. Martin de Porres. President-elect Keiko Fujimori is expected to welcome the pope.
Chiclayo is a key stop due to Pope Leo’s time as bishop there from 2015 to 2023.
He will also visit Cusco, the former Inca capital and a major Andean cultural centre.
The final stop is Pucallpa, a hub for Catholic missionary outreach in Peru’s Amazon rainforest.
The Diocese of Chiclayo announced the visit will bring “faith, hope, and closeness to millions of Peruvians.”
The diocese called it “a historic visit that will unite us as a people and as a Church.”
It added, “With joy and hope, we prepare to welcome the Successor of Peter.”
