ROME —Pope Leo XIV heads to South America on Friday, just three weeks after undergoing lung cancer surgery, for an emotionally charged reunion with the continent that includes…
ROME —Pope Leo XIV heads to South America on Friday, just three weeks after undergoing lung cancer surgery, for an emotionally charged reunion with the continent that includes a much-anticipated "homecoming" to Peru, where he was a priest for many years. The head of the Catholic Church will visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru in one of the most intense papal foreign trips in decades, meeting political leaders, prisoners, the poor, as well as old friends during his 12-day trip.
The Vatican says no extraordinary measures are being taken in relation to the Pope's health, describing him as a "71-year-old who has undergone an operation" not someone with a "permanent medical condition".It was Leo himself who revealed last month that doctors had discovered a tumor during a routine scan. The growth was removed along with the lower lobe of his right lung and his medical team then confirmed the cancer had not spread.
At a briefing in Rome ahead of the trip, which takes him to Uruguay and Argentina as well as Peru, a spokeswoman stressed that Pope Leo had "fantastic stamina" and was "extremely enthusiastic" about the schedule, which he had "personally confirmed...
with no changes"."The Vatican's message with this trip is, 'that was a short episode and now we're back on track'," Professor Massimo Faggioli of Villanova University told the BBC, pointing out that the Pope has had a busy return to work since his surgery."We have seen him in these last few days making speeches, audiences and so on. He seems in great shape. That was important."The 12-day tour would be demanding for anyone, though.
It incorporates multiple long-haul and local flights and covers thousands of miles from the Amazon to the Andes. The starting point will be Uruguay, where the number of Catholics has fallen away steeply in recent years and which is getting its first Papal visit in four decades.
This is a source-linked briefing. Read the original report from Saudi Gazette .