MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Leo XIV to 52,000 young people in Lima: “Be passionate about everything worthwhile”

Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi

Pope Leo XIV met some 52,000 young people at Lima’s National Stadium on Thursday, according to El País, in the last event of his stay in the Peruvian capital before travelling to Chiclayo, the diocese he led as bishop. “Someone told me that Peru needs hope. You are the sign of hope,” he told them, to applause.

The young people came from the coast, the highlands and the jungle, many with parish groups and others on their own, and alongside Peruvian flags there were also Venezuelan and Chilean ones. The Pope entered the stadium track in the popemobile at around six in the evening, as the stands displayed signs asking for his blessing. The vigil included testimonies, a theatrical performance in which Peruvian saints came to the rescue of young people in crisis, music and scissor dancers, an Andean ritual.

At around half past seven, Leo XIV spoke with a message of comfort and encouragement. “Dear young people, when you suffer, turn to Jesus. Do not be afraid to speak to him sincerely. He knows our tears,” he said. “Be passionate about everything worthwhile. Cultivate your talents. Discover the richness of your culture. Do not settle for living according to what others expect of you.” He ended with an invitation to those who believe they are beyond redemption: “It is not too late to begin again.”

The Archbishop of Lima, Cardinal Carlos Castillo, recalled during the event Inti Sotelo and Bryan Pintado, the two young men of around twenty who were shot dead during the November 2020 protests. “In the recent history we have lived through in our country, young people often took to the streets to protest and in some cases several were shot. There are two martyrs: Inti and Bryan,” he said. Castillo said that after the crackdown many young people found in dance a form of expression that eventually reached the parishes. The testimonies included that of a young woman who lost a dozen relatives and of a nun who suffered abuse by a member of the Church.

Leo XIV, 71, who is recovering from lung cancer surgery, celebrates Mass on Friday at the Pampas de Pimentel, near Chiclayo, where nearly a million faithful are expected. On Saturday he will visit Cajamarca and Zaña, and on Sunday Cusco and Pucallpa, before returning to Rome on Monday, November 16.