Pope Leo XIV has returned to Peru, the country he served for two decades as a missionary and bishop, to one of the largest welcomes of his papacy.
The Vatican estimated that 3 million people lined the streets of Lima when he arrived on Wednesday, November 11, for the third and final leg of a 12-day South American journey that began in Uruguay and continued in Argentina. Posters across the capital carried the message “The Pope is coming home.”
A Peruvian pope
Leo, who was born in Chicago, holds Peruvian citizenship and led the Diocese of Chiclayo in northern Peru from 2015 to 2023. Many Peruvians still call him “Padre Roberto.” On arrival he called Peru his homeland, and in his first address, to political leaders and diplomats at Lima’s Gran Teatro Nacional, he called for national unity and stronger democratic institutions. President Keiko Fujimori welcomed him at the presidential palace.
On Thursday the mayor of Lima presented him with the keys to the city. He met Peru’s bishops, prayed at Lima’s cathedral, met fellow members of his Augustinian order and led a prayer vigil with young people at the National Stadium, where he was visibly moved.
Back to Chiclayo
On Friday he flew to Chiclayo, his former diocese. The rest of the six-day Peru visit, the longest stop of the tour, includes the Cajamarca highlands, Cusco in the Andes and Pucallpa in the Amazon, where he is due to meet Indigenous communities and missionaries. He is scheduled to return to Rome after a final Mass in Lima on Monday, November 16.
The trip comes weeks after the pope underwent lung surgery, according to Al Jazeera.
Sources: Angelus News; UPI, 12 November 2026; America Magazine, 12 November 2026; NBC News; Al Jazeera, 12 November 2026.
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