More than 40,000 gather as Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass in Uruguay

The Vatican and local authorities in western Uruguay say an estimated 40,000 people turned out on Saturday morning to participate in the first Mass of Pope Leo XIV's 12-day, three-nation tour of South America.

The Vatican said 30,000 people from Uruguay as well as neighboring Argentina and Brazil had registered for the event, adding that another 10,000 had braved the rain to attend the religious service, which took place in Paysandu — a city on the Uruguay River, some 375 kilometers (230 miles) west of the capital Montevideo.

Leo, who underwent surgery for lung cancer on October 13, was greeted by throngs of cheering fans as he made his way from the local airport to Paysandu's sprawling Paris London Park.

"He's the representative of Christ but he's human," said Soledad Sanchez, who told France's AFP news agency that she had traveled far to be in Paysandu.

"We weren't sure if he could make it but he pushed through for us," said Sanchez as tears welled up in her eyes, "He made it here to give us a message of peace because he knows our world needs it right now."

The 71-year-old US-born pontiff, who holds US, Peruvian and Vatican citizenship, is seeking to raise interest in the Catholic Church in Uruguay, South America's most secular country, as a remedy for helping the nation and its citizens cope with the troubles of the modern world.

Saturday morning's Mass was dedicated to the Blessed Jacinto Vera, who was appointed Uruguay's first bishop by Pope Leo XIII in 1878.

On Friday, the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics spoke of Bishop Vera, noting that he had walked the countryside and helped the poor, adding that those whom he encountered "found something of Christ's goodness" in him.

Leo will underscore the need for that kind of outreach on Saturday afternoon when he visits a Montevideo neighborhood beset by drug violence and in which the Church has invested in public housing and rehabilitation projects for addicts.

At Pope Leo's final event in the country — a prayer vigil in Montevideo's Centenary Stadium that is expected to draw some 60,000 young faithful — the pontiff will call on young people to reject religious indifference and turn to Christ's teachings.

Leo's emphasis on charity and brotherly love has struck a deep chord with young people in Uruguay and elsewhere.

One 18-year-old attendee at Saturday morning's Mass told AFP: "I wouldn't call myself religious, but I like this pope. He has a really good message for humanity. Even for non-believers, there is something to take from his ideas."