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Pope Leo XIV to Visit Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru Despite Recent Surgery
· Confirmed
In Short: Pope Leo XIV will travel to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from November 6 to 17, 2026, despite undergoing lung surgery earlier this month.
Pope Leo XIV announced on Monday that he will travel to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from November 6 to 17, 2026, despite undergoing lung surgery earlier this month. The Vatican's press office released a statement expressing the pope's joy and enthusiasm for the trip.
The pope will stay in Uruguay until November 8, then travel to Argentina, where he will lead large-scale masses in Buenos Aires City, Luján, and Córdoba. From November 11 to 17, he will visit Peru, a country where he lived for many years and served as Bishop of Chiclayo between 2015 and 2023.
Pope Leo has gradually resumed his activities while adjusting his daily schedule in consultation with his doctors to prioritize his recovery while fulfilling his ministry responsibilities. Dr. Stefano Margaritora, the surgeon who operated on the pope, said there were 'no clinical reasons' why he wouldn't be able to travel and estimated his recovery within 10 days after the operation.
The Vatican's statement said the pope's journey will 'offer opportunities to strengthen the bonds of communion' with the local churches and 'bring a message of faith, hope, and peace to the peoples of Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.'
Preparations continued normally in the three countries that will welcome him in the upcoming weeks, as the pope reappeared in public to lead religious services at St. Peter's Basilica. The Holy See Press Office has confirmed the apostolic trip after his latest medical examinations found no contraindications to travel.
The pope's flight from Rome to Montevideo, capital of Uruguay, is expected to last close to 13 hours. He will be welcomed by left-wing President Yamandu Orsi in Uruguay, the most secular country in Latin America.
The Vatican has published the schedule for Pope Leo XIV's apostolic journey to Latin America, where he will visit Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from Nov. 6–17. At 6:15 p.m., the Pope will pay a courtesy visit to the president of Uruguay, Yamandú Orsi, at his residence at the Edificio José Artigas.
Father Walter Corsini, Vicar General of the Missionary Servants of the Poor, shares his testimony with Vatican News, speaking ahead of the journey that is scheduled to unfold from 11 to 16 November, taking him from Uruguay to Argentina, to Peru.
What this adds
The Vatican's statement also noted that the pope's journey will provide an opportunity for him to strengthen ties with local churches, encourage the faithful, and promote a message of faith, hope, and peace in Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.
Background
Pope Leo XIV announced on Monday that he will travel to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from November 6 to 17, 2026, despite undergoing lung surgery earlier this month.
Pope Leo XIV announced on Monday that he will travel to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from November 6 to 17, 2026, despite undergoing lung surgery earlier this month.
What's confirmed
- From November 11-17 he will visit Peru, a country where he lived for many years and even served as Bishop of Chiclayo between 2015 and 2023.
- Pope Leo has gradually resumed his activities while adjusting his daily schedule in consultation with his doctors “to prioritize his recovery while continuing to fulfill the responsibilities of his ministry,” also taking time to rest.
- Last week, Stefano Margaritora, the surgeon who operated on the pope, said there were “no clinical reasons” why he wouldn’t be able to travel, and estimated him to recover within 10 days after the operation.
- During his stay in Argentina, he will lead large-scale masses in Buenos Aires City, Luján and Córdoba.
- Pope Leo XIV will arrive in Montevideo, Uruguay, on November 6.
- The Holy See Press Office has confirmed an apostolic trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from November 6 to 17, after his latest medical examinations found no contraindications to travel.
- The Vatican said the visit will provide an opportunity for the pope to strengthen ties with local churches, encourage the faithful and promote a message of faith, hope and peace in Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.
- From there, he will travel to Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay.
- Argentina (OSV News) — Bishops’ conferences across Latin America urged prayers for the health of Pope Leo XIV, whose visit to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru remains uncertain after he underwent surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung.
- “May she shelter him beneath her mantle, strengthen him during this time of trial, and grant him serenity and solace.” Pope Leo is still scheduled to arrive in Uruguay on Nov.
- The Vatican has published the schedule for Pope Leo XIV’s apostolic journey to Latin America, where he will visit Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from Nov. 6–17.
- At 6:15 p.m., the Pope will pay a courtesy visit to the president of Uruguay, Yamandú Orsi, at his residence at the Edificio José Artigas.
What's still developing
- “It fills me with joy to return to the continent where I have lived so many moments of my life,” wrote the pontiff, who was born in Chicago and spent almost two decades as a missionary in Peru.
- Pope Francis, in a message in 2013 for the priest’s beatification — a ceremony scheduled before the Argentine pope was elected — said Father Brochero “did not stay in the sacristy combing the sheep,” but went out in search of the lost.
- According to the Holy See Press Office, the Pope wants not only to stand alongside survivors but also to help develop accessible paths toward healing and ensure that the Church becomes a safe and spiritually healthy environment in which the Gospel can be lived and proclaimed.
- Credit: Getty On Wednesday, ahead of Leo XIV’s trip to South America next week, the head of Argentina’s episcopal conference offered a surprising analysis of the three-country apostolic visit: “He comes as a pastor and as Peter’s successor, not as a political actor.” Such a statement should be self-evident for a papal trips.