By Fatma Younis
Pope Leo XIV begins a 12-day trip to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru on November 6, marking the longest and farthest journey of his papacy. The visit comes just three weeks after he underwent surgery on October 13 to remove a cancerous tumor from his right lung, though doctors cleared him for travel. Latin America remains home to about 40% of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, though the Catholic share of the population has declined in recent years, notably in the three countries on the itinerary.
Uruguay: Secular nation with Catholic roots
Uruguay's deeply entrenched secular identity means Christmas is officially "Family Day" and Holy Week is "Tourism Week." While nearly 77% of the country's 3.5 million people are baptized Catholics, more than half identify as religiously unaffiliated — the highest proportion in Latin America — and only a fraction attend Mass regularly. Leo's schedule includes a stop at a parish in Casavalle, a poor Montevideo neighborhood affected by drug trafficking and gang violence, where the church collaborates with authorities on housing and addiction recovery. He will also celebrate Mass in Paysandú, 375 kilometers from the capital, chosen for its accessibility to communities north of the Río Negro and proximity to the Argentine city of Colón. The visit opens with a welcome ceremony at Montevideo's Plaza Independencia, a national symbol featuring a monument to independence hero José Gervasio Artigas. On November 8, Leo will mark the feast of the Virgin of the Thirty-Three, Uruguay's patron, whose wooden Guaraní statue accompanied 33 independence patriots when they declared independence from the Brazilian Empire in 1825. By honoring the virgin, Artigas, and Uruguay's independence, the pope aims to underscore that the nation's secular identity is intertwined with its Catholic heritage.
Argentina: Complex legacy and economic tensions
Pope Francis's decision never to return to Argentina as pope and his polarizing tenure leave a conflicted legacy for Leo's visit. The American-born pontiff will formally honor his predecessor at Buenos Aires' cathedral and symbolically at the federal prison where then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio ministered to inmates. In the capital, Leo will meet libertarian President Javier Milei, who once called Francis "the representative of evil on Earth" before apologizing. Milei's sweeping spending cuts have strained relations with Argentine church leaders, who criticize reductions in disability funding and a focus on economic orthodoxy over the poor. That tension will be visible when Leo visits the Don Orione care home in Claypole, which houses over 400 people with disabilities and reports extreme financial difficulties due to funding cuts, outdated rates, inflation, and state payment delays. Leo will also hear from business leaders, trade unions, workers, and social representatives at the Argentine Catholic University, where union leaders plan to brief him on rising unemployment, poverty, and eroding purchasing power. Official data shows poverty reached 32.3% of the population in the first half of 2026, affecting about 15 million people. Another potential flashpoint is artificial intelligence: Milei, a Trump ally, has courted AI investment with promises of limited regulation, while Leo has warned of threats to humanity and the environment and called for strict international safeguards. Leo will celebrate his first Mass in Argentina at the Monumento de los Españoles, where St. John Paul II prayed for peace during the 1982 Falklands War. John Paul II was the first and last pope to visit Argentina. While 71% of Argentines identified as Catholic when Francis was elected, that figure fell to 58% in 2024. Yet a record 2.8 million people participated in this year's annual pilgrimage to the Basilica de Nuestra Señora de Luján despite persistent rain.
Peru: Return to former diocese
The highlight of the trip will be Leo's return to Peru, where he spent two decades as a missionary priest and bishop, crediting the country with shaping his view of the church. He will celebrate Mass in his former diocese of Chiclayo, including the mountain village of Santa Cruz de Succhabamba. Because he knows Peru well, his speeches will be closely watched, especially an address from the square in front of Lima's cathedral on "the challenges and hopes for the future of the Peruvian people." Peru, with 34 million people, faces multiple crises: the climate effects of El Niño, violent crime, poverty, and inequality. In 2025, 25.7% of the population lived in monetary poverty. Conservative President Keiko Fujimori took office in July promising to restore order amid extortion and homicides. Illegal gold mining and coca cultivation disproportionately affect Indigenous peoples. Leo will meet with popular groups in Cusco, the former Inca capital and a major cultural destination near Machu Picchu, and will honor Indigenous peoples by traveling to Pucallpa in the Amazon to celebrate Mass. In Cusco's main square, where Indigenous hero Túpac Amaru II was executed in 1781 after a major rebellion against Spanish rule, Leo will celebrate Mass and pray. Huge crowds are expected despite a decline in Catholic identification from 76% in 2013-2014 to around 67% today.
