Montevideo (AsiaNews) – Pope Leo XIV’s journey in Uruguay continued today to Florida, the final stop before his departure for Argentina this afternoon. The Cathedral Basilica of Florida has served as the seat of the diocese since 1956 and is the National Shrine of the Virgen de los Treinta y Tres (Virgin of the Thirty-Three), the country’s patroness.
Inside, it houses a small wooden image linked to the history of Uruguayan independence, an object in which the "Thirty-Three Easterners”, a renowned group of revolutionary patriots, placed their trust.
On 19 April 1825, they landed on the beach of Agraciada to liberate the Eastern Province from the occupation of the Brazilian Empire. Inspired by the motto "Liberty or Death" (Libertad o Muerte), they launched the insurrection that led to the birth of the modern-day state.
Mass at the Sanctuary of the Virgen de los Treinta y Tres
In this place, so deeply significant to the nation of Uruguay and its people, Leo celebrated Holy Mass today from the steps of the shrine, in the presence of approximately 50,000 people. This marked the pope final engagement before flying to Buenos Aires.
In his homily, the pope expressed his "great enthusiasm" at being present in a place that radiates the faith and affection with which the Uruguayan people “have looked at the Mother of God for generations.”
He cited “a decisive moment in Uruguay’s history”: 1825. Since then, it “has been intimately linked to a Mother,” he said. The “history of peoples, too, cannot be fully understood without reference to God.”
Many generations followed, and life has been plentiful.
“While Mary accompanied the history of this people, at the same time in so many homes other women preserved the faith and passed it on to their children,” the pope said.
It was precisely about these “other women” that he spoke today, individuals who, as mothers, “placed the first words of prayer on their children’s lips,” and who, as grandmothers, “kept an altar at home, who prayed for the living and the deceased and who made God present in the ordinary events of life.”
“This land also has women’s names inscribed in its history of faith,” he said. “Among them is Saint María Francisca Rubatto, who chose to remain among you and serve those most in need here. There are also the Blessed Martyrs Dolores and Consuelo Aguiar-Mella, two sisters born in Montevideo. Their lives were very different, but in all three we find supreme examples of faithfulness.”
The events cited are often stories from life that were “quietly passed down from generation to generation,” he added. “When we wonder and ask where our faith comes from, the name of a specific woman often comes to mind: a mother, a grandmother, a godmother, a religious sister or a catechist.”
“Thank you for having believed and for having kept open a path to God in so many families,” the pope said addressing the women.
Mothers and grandmothers: never tire of passing on the faith!
“Mothers and grandmothers: never tire of passing on the faith! Preach with your lives as well as with your words. Insist on prayer, love, and hope; insist on them in season and out of season,” Leo said.
“Do so with patience, without harshness or discouragement. Even if your loved ones seem far from God, continue to place them before him. Do not stop blessing them, accompanying them, and simply reminding them of what they once received. There are doors that you cannot open, but God can.”
The pontiff also addressed men, fathers and grandfathers, urging them to take Saint Joseph as their example.
“Children learn a great deal by seeing that their father can kneel before God without feeling that he is any less of a man for doing it,” he said.
“Scripture called on God’s people to keep the words they have received from him in their hearts and to teach them to their children”.
Leo noted that bishops, priests and consecrated persons are also “called to support families in this task, generously exercising their spiritual fatherhood”.
“People of Uruguay: you must set out on the journey!” the pontiff finally exclaimed from Florida, in his homily.
“You must enter people’s homes once more, draw near to them, listen to their questions and bring them to Christ! Each of you knows a person toward whom you need to take that step: perhaps a child, a friend, a neighbor, someone who stopped believing long ago or who has never had anyone close to them to speak to them about God.”
“Build bridges, strengthen bonds"
Yesterday, the pontiff travelled from Montevideo, the first stop on his Latin American tour, to Paysandú, one of the country’s most populous cities, founded by the Spanish in 1772 as an outpost along the Uruguay River.
At the Parque París Londres, he celebrated the first Mass of his 12-day journey, welcomed by an assembly of approximately 40,000 the faithful.
In his homily, Leo spoke of three symbols characteristic of the region – bridges, palm trees, and mate – as a way to “reflect on the treasure of faith we have received and the mission now entrusted to us”.
“That is why it is so important to be builders of bridges! This is the vocation to which we are all called: to build bridges, strengthen bonds, unite, communicate and share the joy of faith,” he said.
“[P]alm trees in this region do not stand alone, but form groves; there are many of them, yet they are neither alone nor far apart. Likewise, the Church is a community of brothers and sisters that sinks its roots and draws from a common spring”.
And furthermore, Leo XIV noted that, “Mate is a sign of familiarity, friendship and encounter. It teaches us to share and to be together, strengthening the bonds that unite us as brothers and sisters.”
Pope tells young people to be “saints”
Upon returning to Montevideo, the capital, the pope met with the educational community at the Catholic University of Uruguay, which is entrusted to the Society of Jesus.
Here he warned against an ongoing “process of dehumanization,” which “poses a challenge to our schools and universities.”
“[W]hile ‘intelligence’ is attributed to computational systems, we struggle to recognize the inalienable dignity of human persons, whose lives are judged according to the criterion of efficiency”.
Instead, “We need to proclaim anew that human life must be respected at every stage and in every condition. No one is to be rejected,” the pope said.
Yesterday evening, at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, the second day of the visit to Uruguay ended in the presence of approximately 100,000 people, 70,000 inside the stadium.
The prayer vigil featured numerous testimonies from young people, interspersed with musical interludes.
Addressing young people, Leo XIV told them to be “Saints!”, urging them to dare, even when it comes to choosing marriage, without fearing the “forever” and without listening to those who claim that having a son or a daughter is “a burden.”
"When everyone tells you to think of yourselves first, do not be afraid to put yourselves in the last place. Be willing to give up time, money, comfort and plans to serve others,” he said.
