Pope says happy to return to South America after trip confirmed

(ANSA) - ROME, 26 OTT - Pope Leo XIV said Monday he was happy to be able to return to the continent where he lived after his November 6-17 trip to South America was confirmed after his recent lung-cancer surgery including Peru, where he worked as a missionary for many years before becoming a bishop there and whose citizenship he holds along with his US one. "I am happy to be able to return to the continent where I experienced so many moments of my life," he said in a communiqué from the Holy See Press Office, which confirmed that the Pope's trip to South America will proceed as scheduled. "May this journey be an occasion to open our hearts to one another, to strengthen our communion as brothers and sisters, and to renew our commitment to proclaim the Gospel with joy! "The Pope," the statement reads, "is following medical recommendations with scrupulous care and attention, while remaining deeply determined to continue serving the Church. "The Holy Father looks forward to this journey with great joy and enthusiasm; it will offer an opportunity to strengthen the bonds of communion with local Churches, encourage the faithful in their mission, bring a message of faith, hope, and peace to the peoples of Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru, encounter their faith, and share the hope and peace that Christ brings to our world." Leo's apostolic journey to South America his sixth international trip. He will be in Uruguay November 6-8, visiting Montevideo, Paysandú and Florida, then travel to Argentina, where he will go to Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Luján November 8-11, and subsequently stay in Peru until November 17. The American pontiff spent large chunks of his life in Peru after first going there as a missionary in the 1980s and served as the bishop of Chiclayo between 2015 and 2023. He also acquired Peruvian citizenship. Chiclayo and the capital Lima are among the Peruvian cities he will travel to. Leo's predecessor Pope Francis never returned to his homeland of Argentina during his 12-year pontificate. Confirming the trip, the Holy See Press Office said: "Dr. Luigi Carbone confirms that the Holy Father's post-operative recovery continues to progress, and the latest medical examinations confirm his good health. "Given the current clinical picture and the results of the diagnostic tests and laboratory analyses performed, there are no contraindications that would prevent him from undertaking the upcoming apostolic journey to Latin America as planned. "Accordingly, the Holy See Press Office confirms that the Apostolic Journey of Pope Leo XIV to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru—scheduled for November 6-17, 2026—will take place according to the previously published itinerary." (ANSA).
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