A parish in Uruguay struggling with violence prepares for Pope Leo XIV’s visit
The parish says the visit will spotlight a neighborhood where more than 46% of Montevideo’s homicides occurred this year, officials said.
- On November 7, Pope Leo XIV will visit Montevideo's impoverished Casavalle neighborhood, marking the start of his tour through Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.
- Rampant drug trafficking and violent gang clashes plague Casavalle, where 14.8 percent of inhabitants live below the poverty line, creating conditions that prompted the community's hope for papal recognition.
- Father Pablo Coimbra leads the Guadalupe Parish, spearheading social housing projects and supporting addicts in recovery while sheltering those wounded by gunfire from territorial gang disputes.
- Local Catholics and Christians, led by pastor Javier Roque, share hope for increased visibility. "We're going to be seen and heard thanks to the pope's visit," resident Janet told AFP.
- Leo's visit highlights challenges in Latin America's most secular country, where 35 percent of residents identify as Catholic, reminding the marginalized they remain acknowledged despite systemic neglect.
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'Seen and heard': Uruguay neighborhood places hopes in pope
On November 7, Pope Leo XIV will head to Montevideo, the capital of Latin America's most secular country and the launchpad for his tour of the region. The Casavalle neighborhood is plagued with rampant drug use and violent clashes between rival trafficking gangs. Local Catholics say they are eagerly awaiting the pope's arrival. "We're going to be seen and heard thanks to the pope's visit," Janet De Leon told AFP after attending mass at the Our L…
Pope Leo XIV will visit Casavalle, Montevideo, on 7 November. Catholics and evangelicals hope that their arrival will make the poverty and violence of the neighborhood visible.
Leon XIV will arrive in one of the most vulnerable neighborhoods of Montevideo, where different religious communities see his visit as an opportunity to promote social change.
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