Pope Leo speaks of ‘time of trial’ on return to Peru

Pope Leo held the central event of his 12-day South ‌America tour on Friday, an outdoor Mass in northern Peru where he told a vast crowd of people who once knew him as their bishop that he thanked God he was alive to see them.

People arrived on foot ​and in lines of vehicles at an arid field outside Chiclayo to see the pope.

Leo toured in an open-air Popemobile at the Pampas de Pimentel, a desert park west of Chiclayo, where people waved white-and-yellow Vatican flags and used umbrellas to guard against an intense Pacific coast sun.

In a sermon, Leo said it was a blessing to be in his adopted home exactly one month after he underwent lung cancer surgery, an operation many feared would force cancellation of his ⁠visit and which the pope told the crowd was a “time of trial.”

He thanked people in Chiclayo for their affection and support.

“As I look at your faces, a ‌prayer ‌of ​thanksgiving to the Lord arises in my heart for the blessing you have been and continue to be in my life,” he said.

The Vatican estimated 1.5 million people gathered on the streets of Chiclayo and attended Mass to welcome Leo.

The pope, originally from Chicago, ⁠is visiting Peru on the final leg of a three-nation tour. In ​just over a week in South America, he has drawn an estimated 12 million people to ​public events.

He said on Wednesday that the country where he served as a missionary for about 20 years and as bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023 was his homeland. The pope holds ‌US and Peruvian citizenship.

He underwent surgery for lung adenocarcinoma, the most common ​form of lung cancer, on October 13th. His doctors have said the cancer was localised and had not spread, and the pope will not require further treatment.

In Chiclayo, some ⁠people camped all night in the field in advance of Friday’s Mass, while others ⁠arrived early on Friday morning. Many were forced ​to walk part of the way to avoid cars lined up for miles.

Along the road, vendors sold hats, mini pope dolls and sweet Peruvian bread.

Leo arrived in Chiclayo from Lima on Friday morning aboard a plane decorated with “#LeoXIVFliesHome” stickers. He will stay in the area until Sunday to lead eight events, including a private dinner with the priests who once reported to him as bishop.

Chiclayo, Peru’s fourth-largest city, where agriculture supports the economy, has a population of about 620,000.

Among those who camped overnight was Maria Esther Chozo Reyes (76), who took a 12-hour bus ride from Lima and arrived on Thursday ‌afternoon.

“He knows the people of Chiclayo, and ⁠he’s lived here; he’s made his mission here,” she said. “We really need his blessing.”

Crowds for the pope’s visit to Peru have been ‌the largest of his 18-month papacy, with some three million gathering in Lima on Wednesday after his arrival from Argentina. The pope also visited Uruguay on the tour.

Leo, who began the tour 24 days after his surgery, has appeared ​in good form on one of the most intense foreign tours arranged for a pope in decades.

In Peru, he has ​enthusiastically greeted crowds on rides in an open-air Popemobile, made unannounced appearances on the balcony of the Vatican embassy in Lima, where he was staying, and sung local songs at events. – Reuters