Carriquiry: Pope’s visit will reconnect Uruguay with its Catholic roots

By Sebastián Sansón Ferrari

The peoples of Latin America have always welcomed the successors of Peter “with open arms, affection, and devotion,” according to Dr. Guzmán Carriquiry.

The former Secretary of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and former Ambassador of Uruguay to the Holy See said Pope Leo XIV’s first Apostolic Journey to Latin America will be much more than a visit to three countries: Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.

From November 6 to 17, the Pope will encounter a Church and peoples called to renew their hope, rekindle their faith, and address the social challenges facing the continent.

Ahead of this pilgrimage, Mr. Carriquiry, who has extensive knowledge of Latin America and the Holy See, shared his thoughts on the significance of a journey whose stop in Uruguay will have particular resonance.

He believes the choice of the country is no coincidence: the Pope will begin his journey in a land whose Catholic tradition is rooted in the very origins of the nation.

Our Lady of the Thirty-Three: At the heart of the nation

On November 8, Pope Leo XIV will preside at a Eucharistic celebration in Florida, beside the Shrine of Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, patroness of Uruguay. The small image of Mary, which belongs to the Guaraní tradition, holds a unique place in the spiritual and national memory of Uruguayans. Its history is linked to the country’s struggle for independence.

As Mr. Carriquiry recalled, the image accompanied the leaders of that struggle and was present during the events of 1825, when the Thirty-Three Orientals began their campaign and independence was proclaimed. Since then, the Blessed Virgin Mary has been a cherished presence for generations of Uruguayans.

“Since then, Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, a beautiful title of Mary, has accompanied the history of the Uruguayan people,” he said.

For Mr. Carriquiry, the Pope’s decision to begin his Latin American visit before this image of Our Lady offers an extraordinary opportunity to rediscover a memory that forms part of the country’s spiritual heritage.

Rather than looking back at the past, it means allowing history to speak anew to the present and raise new questions about faith.

Uruguay: Challenge facing the Church

The papal visit will also highlight a distinctive reality within Latin America. Uruguay is one of the region’s most secularized countries, following a historical process marked, from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, by strong secularization and a growing separation between public life and religious tradition.

Mr. Carriquiry believes this process not only weakened the Church’s institutional presence but also gradually stifled religious questions and concerns across broad sections of society, particularly among the working classes.

In this context, he recalled Cardinal Daniel Sturla’s description of the Church in Montevideo: “My Church in Montevideo is a poor, free, small Church, very small, very small.”

The description conveys the fragility of a community that must proclaim the Gospel in a society where religious practice has declined. Yet it also points to a mission that, for Mr. Carriquiry, remains essential: helping Uruguayans reconnect with the Christian roots of their history and discover their significance for life today.

“The Church is the midwife of the nation,” he said, referring to the contribution of Catholic tradition to Uruguay’s historical development, from the first Franciscans to José Gervasio Artigas and the leaders of the independence movement.

The celebration in Florida could therefore become a particularly important moment for rediscovering that heritage and restoring it to the people’s consciousness.

Mr. Carriquiry hopes the Pope’s presence will help the Catholic tradition “touch hearts, stir consciences, awaken religious questions, and kindle faith among Uruguayans.”

Rekindling faith and addressing social wounds

What can be expected from Pope Leo XIV’s words during his encounters with Latin American communities?

Mr. Carriquiry identified two major challenges: placing Jesus Christ once again at the center of people’s lives and addressing the deep social wounds affecting the continent.

The first is to renew the encounter with Jesus Christ, “Savior, Lord of History.” Along this path, popular piety is a source of richness that the Church is called to accompany and evangelize, particularly in countries such as Peru, where expressions of faith are part of daily life in many communities.

The issue, he explained, is not simply to preserve a tradition, but to help faith become a source of new life and of personal, family, and community commitment.

Even in countries where a large proportion of the population is baptized, the decline in the number of people who identify as Catholic raises questions about the transmission of faith and the ability of Christian communities to inspire a living encounter with the Lord.

Alongside this spiritual challenge, the Pope will encounter a social reality marked by inequality, poverty, and insecure employment.

Mr. Carriquiry noted that nearly half of Latin American workers are employed in the informal economy, often in conditions that barely allow them to survive.

Concern for these situations is inseparable from the proclamation of the Gospel. The Church is called to accompany those who suffer, defend human dignity, and promote a more just society. For Mr. Carriquiry, however, the foundation of this mission lies in proclaiming Christ: “First the Kingdom of Heaven, and everything else will be given as well.”

A joy that embraces Latin America

From Uruguay to Argentina and Peru, Pope Leo XIV’s first journey to Latin America offers an opportunity to renew hope and strengthen the bonds between faith and people’s daily lives. Each country faces its own challenges, but all share the need to proclaim the Gospel in societies undergoing change.

In Uruguay, the visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of the Thirty-Three will evoke a history in which faith and the building of the nation were deeply intertwined. It will also be an invitation to look ahead and ask how that heritage can speak once again to the hearts of new generations.

At the end of the interview, Mr. Carriquiry summed up his bond with the continent and his confidence in the Church’s mission: “We never lose our enthusiasm when we speak about Latin America.”