By Lucila Sigal
BUENOS AIRES, Nov 8 (Reuters) – Pope Leo’s arrival in Argentina on Sunday, the second stop on his South American tour, marks a papal visit many Catholics hoped his predecessor, Francis, would make.
Francis, born Jorge Bergoglio in Buenos Aires in 1936, was the first pope from the Americas.
“Leo is going to make the visit that Francis never did,” said the Rev. Lorenzo “Toto” de Vedia, who works with poor communities in the 21-24 neighborhood in Buenos Aires.
Bergoglio often visited the area as archbishop of Buenos Aires. Residents said they regret that he never returned as pope, but remember fondly his reforms and focus on marginalized groups.
“There’s no cure for the sorrow over Francis,” said Ramón Piedrabuena, a 68-year-old retiree who still works as a garbage collector in the neighborhood. He said locals would welcome Leo, though not with the same affection they felt for Francis, who died in 2025.
TWO POPES
Leo, 71, the first US-born pope, will remain in Argentina until Wednesday before traveling to Peru, where he spent years serving as a bishop. He is the first pontiff to visit Argentina in nearly four decades, since John Paul II’s trip in 1987.
“Leo, with his message rooted in the Church’s social doctrine, connects with Francis’ legacy,” de Vedia said. “It’s a different style, his own way of doing things, but he clearly shares Francis’ social outlook.”
In 2004, the two men took part in Mass together at the San Agustin Parish in Buenos Aires. The moment was captured in a photograph now displayed in the church.
Leo, known then as Robert Prevost, had arrived in Buenos Aires in 2004 for the Augustinian Congress of Theology. The image, taken by an unknown photographer, was stored away for decades until Leo’s inauguration last year.
Francis knew a return by him to Argentina could be politically charged and risked deepening the country’s divisions, analysts have said.
Leo will arrive at a time of tension between the government of libertarian President Javier Milei and Argentina’s Catholic Church, which has highlighted the impact of his austerity measures on the poor. Milei has defended his austerity as necessary to bring inflation under control.
Julia Franco Núñez, 75, who used to accompany Bergoglio during his visits to the 21-24 neighborhood, said she hoped Leo would see conditions there for himself.
“We’re really squeezed financially,” she said.
Leo will meet Milei, visit a prison and celebrate Mass in Buenos Aires, Luján and Córdoba province.
“Without a doubt, it gives us great joy that this pope is visiting us,” said Jorge Silanes, religious director at the Pequeño Cottolengo Don Orione, a home for people with disabilities that will welcome Leo on Monday.
(Reporting by Lucila Sigal; additional reporting by Leila Miller and Reuters TV. Writing by Lucinda Elliott. Editing by Rod Nickel)
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