Pope Leo’s Latin America trip: What to know about Uruguay, Argentina and Peru

A demanding three-country journey

Leo is expected to reach Montevideo after a 13-and-a-half-hour flight from Rome. His three days in Uruguay include a visit to a neighborhood affected by gang violence, a Mass in Paysandú, about 375 kilometers from the capital, and a service in Florida, roughly 100 kilometers away.

The 71-year-old pope is continuing to recover from lung cancer surgery on Oct. 13. Vatican communications chief Maria Montserrat Alvar said he had completed the 14-day recovery period required by doctors and was keen to travel. She described his stamina as strong and said medical care would be available during the trip.

A secular country with Catholic roots

Uruguay has not hosted a papal visit since 1988. The country has 3.5 million people and is regarded as the most secular in Latin America, despite a Catholic heritage linked to Spanish colonial rule. Only a fraction of people identifying as Catholic regularly attend Mass.

The country has legalized recreational marijuana, decriminalized abortion and legalized same-sex marriage. It also approved assisted dying legislation, the first country in the region to do so, despite opposition from the Catholic Church. Uruguay’s separation of church and state bars any mention of God in oaths of office.

Leo is expected to present Catholic faith as a response to current problems and to argue for human dignity throughout life. That message is likely to include the church’s opposition to abortion and euthanasia.

Meetings, Masses and public interest

After arriving, Leo is scheduled to meet President Yamandú Orsi, whose center-left alliance took power in March 2025. He will then address government officials and diplomats before attending a vespers service at Montevideo’s cathedral.

The itinerary includes Masses in Paysandú and Florida, as well as a prayer vigil at Montevideo’s Centenario Stadium. Church officials have reported that tickets for the vigil were taken within two days. Guzmán Carriquiry, a Uruguayan who formerly led the Vatican’s pontifical commission for Latin America, said the visit appeared to be renewing attention to the country’s Catholic tradition.