On a sun-struck Friday, a city that once knew him as a neighboring priest greeted Pope Leo XIV as a returning son, its streets and fields filled far beyond what its own population could hold. Eight years of shared floods, shared labor, and shared hardship had made Robert Prevost one of their own, and the pope's first words from St. Peter's had named that bond. Weeks after surgery for cancer, he came back to this coastal place as part of a longer journey through South America, and the joy of the reunion sat close to grief, since a worker had died building the arch meant to welcome him. Resident
In Chiclayo, Pope Leo's 'Other Home,' Crowds Turn Out in Force to Welcome Father Robert Back
A construction worker died on Wednesday while working on an arch meant to welcome the pope; the diocese did not comment on the death.
"He's worth the wait."
Mark
Why does Chiclayo matter so much more than the other stops on this tour?
Mimi
Because he lived there for eight years as bishop. People knew him as Padre Robert, and he became a Peruvian citizen there. It was the only community he named from the balcony after his election.
Mark
The crowd numbers are huge. How solid are they?
Luke
They are authorities' estimates: about a million along the streets and another 500,000 at the Mass. That's not an independent count, and the metro area has fewer than 900,000 people, so many must have come from elsewhere.
Mimi
Which tells you something about the draw, even if the exact figure is soft.
Mark
He had surgery only a month ago. Does the reporting say how he looked or felt?
Luke
Not much. It says he was diagnosed with cancer and had a lobe of his right lung removed. It describes his face crumpling with emotion at the airport, but nothing on his health beyond that.
Mark
What were people asking of him?
Mimi
Cristian Velázquez spoke of crime, hunger and people left to fend for themselves, and worried about El Niño. His hope was for blessings, faith and peace.
Mark
And the worker who died?
Luke
A construction worker died Wednesday on an arch meant to welcome the pope. The diocese didn't respond to a request for comment, so we don't know the circumstances or the person's name.
O Pulso
- A million people crowd Chiclayo's streets to greet a pope who once lived among them as a bishop.
- The celebratory fervor, with chants, balloons, and cooling fire trucks, is tempered by the death of a construction worker building the welcome arch.
- The pope, recently treated for cancer, greets dignitaries with hugs and watches traditional dancers with visible emotion, as organizers and police work to hold back a surging crowd.
- Residents hope the visit will focus attention on crime, hunger, and El Niño threats, leaving the city hoping faith will bring relief.
On a sun-struck Friday, a city that once knew him as a neighboring priest greeted Pope Leo XIV as a returning son, its streets and fields filled far beyond what its own population could hold. Eight years of shared floods, shared labor, and shared hardship had made Robert Prevost one of their own, and the pope's first words from St. Peter's had named that bond. Weeks after surgery for cancer, he came back to this coastal place as part of a longer journey through South America, and the joy of the reunion sat close to grief, since a worker had died building the arch meant to welcome him. Residents hoped his presence would draw the world's attention to the crime, hunger, and climate threats that still weigh on their everyday lives.
On Friday, Chiclayo, Peru, seemed to empty itself onto its own streets. People lined the roadside waving signs and clutching white and yellow balloons as Pope Leo XIV's motorcade passed. Many still knew him as Padre Robert. Before his election he had been Robert Prevost, bishop of this coastal city for eight years, a man remembered for working alongside the Red Cross during devastating floods and for driving for hours into the highlands to reach his parishioners. He had become a Peruvian citizen while living here, and when he first appeared on the balcony in Rome after his election, the one place he named was his dear Chiclayo.
The visit is the emotional heart of a twelve-day tour through Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru, arriving only a month after he was diagnosed with cancer and had part of his right lung removed. At the air base, he hugged dignitaries rather than shaking hands, and watched a folk dance from northern Peru with his face faintly crumpling, as though holding back his feelings.
The welcome carried a shadow. On Wednesday a construction worker died while building the arch meant to greet him, and the diocese did not respond to questions about it. Still, the crowds were enormous: about a million people along the streets of a city with fewer than 900,000 residents, and another half million on a dirt field near a fishing village, where some had waited through the night under a hard sun.
The mood was closer to a festival than a funeral. People chanted "The Chiclayan pope!" and cheered as they might for a football hero, while vendors sold his image and fire trucks sprayed the crowd with water. Miriam Chávez camped out with her three children, saying he was worth the wait. Cristian Velázquez, a motorcycle delivery worker, hoped the visit would draw attention to the crime and hunger the city faces, and worried about the El Niño rains coming. He hoped the pope would bless everyone, because people needed faith and peace more than ever.
For a brief moment, the crowd surged when the popemobile bypassed a section of the field, and police and volunteers linked arms to hold people back. Once Mass began, a hush settled over the field, and then an Amen rolled across it, as the city welcomed its pope home.
On Friday, it was hard to believe anyone in Chiclayo, Peru, had stayed home. As Pope Leo XIV's motorcade moved through the city, an almost unbroken line of people stood along the roadside, waving, holding signs and clutching white and yellow balloons, the colors of the Vatican flag.
Many of them had last seen him as "Padre Robert," Father Robert. They now greeted him as Papa Leon. Before his election he was Robert Prevost, and he served for eight years as bishop of Chiclayo, a coastal city where he is remembered for working beside the Red Cross during devastating floods and for driving for hours to reach parishioners in the highlands. He became a Peruvian citizen while serving there. When he first appeared on the balcony in St. Peter's Square after his election last year, the one community he named was his "dear Chiclayo."
The stop is the emotional center of a 12-day tour of Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, and it comes a month after Leo was diagnosed with cancer and had a lobe of his right lung removed. He has been in South America for more than a week. His plane landed Friday morning at an air base, and he stepped onto a red carpet and greeted dignitaries with hugs rather than his usual handshakes. A brass band played and dancers performed the marinera norteña, a folk dance from northern Peru. The pope watched, his face crumpling slightly, as if he were working to hold back his emotions.
The welcome was not without loss. On Wednesday, a construction worker died while working on an arch meant to greet the pope. A spokesman for the diocese of Chiclayo did not return a request for comment about the death.
The numbers on Friday were striking. Authorities estimated that about a million people lined the streets of a metropolitan area with fewer than 900,000 residents. Another 500,000 gathered on an open dirt field near a fishing village outside the city for a morning Mass, some of them having claimed a spot the night before, all standing for hours under an intense sun.
The mood was closer to a celebration than a solemn occasion. Some in the crowd shouted "The Chiclayan pope!" Others chanted "Olé, Olé, Olé," as they might for a soccer hero. Hawkers sold keychains, calendars, T-shirts, photos and posters bearing his image, and red fire trucks rolled through the crowds spraying people with water to cool them. Two men carried a large portrait of Leo they had made from bottle caps.
Miriam Chávez, 38, of Chiclayo, camped on the field with her three children from midnight. "We didn't want to miss him," she said. "He's worth the wait." Cristian Velázquez, 28, said the visit came at a crucial moment for the city, citing "a lot of crime, hunger, and people left to fend for themselves." He joined a dozen fellow motorcycle delivery workers who had put images of the pope on their thermal backpacks. He said he worried about the damage the El Niño weather phenomenon might cause, and hoped the pope "blesses everyone, because right now, more than ever, we need faith and peace."
There was one brief moment of disorder. When Leo reached the Mass site, his popemobile moved quickly through the crowd and bypassed a large section, and people rushed onto a path leading to the stage. Police and volunteers in saffron yellow T-shirts linked arms to push them back before the Mass began. Once the service started, a hush settled over the field, and the crowd welcomed its pope home with an "Amen" that rippled across it.
Citações Notáveis
We didn't want to miss him. He's worth the wait.— Miriam Chávez, 38, of Chiclayo
Right now, more than ever, we need faith and peace.— Cristian Velázquez, 28, motorcycle delivery worker
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Leia o original em The New York Times ↗