Pope Leo XIV stopped for a moment of quiet prayer at the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary and St. Benedict of Palermo in Paysandu, Uruguay, on Saturday, November 7.

As he left the Basilica, the Pope unveiled a plaque commemorating his visit and greeted the faithful gathered in the square.

Pope Leo thanked residents for their welcome and encouraged them to build bridges that bring people together.

Referring to the bridge that connects countries and his homily at Mass just before, the Pope said that faith in one God can unite people in the work of peace.

“These bridges unite us in faith because we believe in one God,” he said. “We believe that peace is possible, and we want to build it.”

The palm groves, he explained, express a desire to come together and build communities of faith.

The custom of sharing mate offered another image of closeness. Friends and family members can share their joys and difficulties, often without saying a word.

“These symbols help us carry on through pain, difficulties, and challenges,” he said. “They help us seek God’s presence among us and receive from the Lord the strength and courage to live and proclaim our faith in Jesus Christ, who has given us life.”

The Pope then returned by car to Tydeo Larre Borges International Airport for his return flight to Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay.

Construction of the present Cathedral began in 1860. Pope Pius XII raised it to the rank of Minor Basilica in 1949.

Pope at Mass in Uruguay: ‘Carry forward evangelizing mission with enthusiasm’

“Today, the Liturgy of the Word invites us to recall the presence of so many people of faith who came to the Río de la Plata region,” Pope Leo XIV said on Saturday, November7, during Mass in the Paysandu, Uruguay.

In a homily dedicated to the theme of mission, the Holy Father said, “From the earliest days of evangelization on this continent, they arrived in the name of the Lord to proclaim the great joy they themselves had experienced in encountering Christ.”

He remembered in particular the first Bishop of Montevideo, Blessed Jacinto Vera, “who bore faithful witness to the faith through generous charity and total dedication to the apostolic mission.”

After recalling Blessed Jacinto’s missionary labours, Pope Leo said, “Today it is our turn to continue the legacy left to us by these sowers of the Gospel,” with “justice, honesty, and faithfulness, recognizing that the message we proclaim does not belong to us. It is a treasure we have received from the Lord, and we carry it in earthen vessels.”

The Pope offered three symbols from the region to reflect “on the treasure of faith we have received and the mission now entrusted to us”: the nearby General Artigas International Bridge, the palm groves of the area, and the mate drink.

The bridge demonstrates the values of openness, communication, and exchange, highlighting “the vocation to which we are called: to build bridges, strengthen bonds, unite, communicate, and share the joy of faith.”

Palm trees are “a beautiful image of our origin and the destiny to which we are called," he said.

At the same time, they do not stand alone but form groves; “likewise, the Church is a community of brothers and sisters that sinks its roots and draws from a common spring: the word of God, the sacraments, prayer, and charitable works.”

Finally, mate, the characteristic South American drink, is a sign of “familiarity, friendship and encounter” that “teaches us to share and to be together, strengthening the bonds that unite us as brothers and sisters.”

Pope Leo noted that “the symbols we share… speak to us of our origins and point us to the future.”

Faith, too, he said, “has been a part of the life of the Uruguayan people since their earliest days, and it must be passed on to future generations with creative courage.”

Pope Leo XIV encouraged the faithful “to carry forward the mission of evangelization with enthusiasm,” encouraging them to be bridges so that others may encounter Jesus; a fraternal community “that shares life, projects, dreams, and hopes, especially those in need”; and “a community of prayer that maintains an ongoing dialogue with the Lord.”

Christ, he said, “is counting on all of you! Christ is counting on you!”

The Holy Father concluded his homily with a prayer that Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, the patroness of Uruguay, might “protect you on their journey through life, and always guide you to an encounter with her Son, Jesus.”