Pope Tells Catholics in Secular Uruguay: ‘Christ Did Not Call Us to Mediocrity’
The Holy Father presided at an evening prayer vigil on his last night in the country.
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay — Pope Leo XIV on Saturday encouraged practicing Catholics in a secular society, and especially young people, to keep their faith strong and to live in virtuous ways that can attract people to the Church.
The Pope made his remarks at an evening prayer vigil in a stadium in Uruguay’s capital, with about 70,000 people in attendance. Local authorities estimated that another 30,000 people were following the event nearby.
Uruguay is one of Latin Americaʼs most secular societies, where a majority of people have no affiliation with organized religion and the official state calendar has renamed Catholic holidays with secular terms, such as substituting Tourism Week for Holy Week.
Leo said the experience of faithful Uruguayan Catholics “can help brothers and sisters in other parts of the world who are beginning to discover, in different ways, what it means to be a minority.”
The Pope consoled Uruguayan Catholics for their small numbers, noting that Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, was proverbially small and that, in the Eucharist, “the Lord of the universe is present under the humble appearances of bread and wine.”
Yet he said that Christians can draw others into their ranks by behaving in exemplary ways.
“Perhaps there are people who would never open a Bible on their own, who have not set foot in a church in years, or who cannot even say whether they believe in God. But when they see you, the desire for God may be awakened in them; they may even discover that it is worth risking their lives to find him,” the Pope said.
“Christ did not call us to mediocrity,” Leo said. He urged his listeners to pursue excellence in the pursuit of holiness.
“When being just and honest comes at a price, pay it. When forgiving seems like a defeat, forgive. When everyone tells you to think of yourselves first, do not be afraid to put yourselves in the last place,” he said.
“Be willing to give up time, money, comfort and plans to serve others. May those who see you find themselves asking: ‘Why do they live in this way? Where do they get this freedom? Why do they love one another so much?’”
The vigil ended with a spectacular fireworks display.
Earlier, the Pope spoke at the Catholic University of Uruguay, where he shared thoughts on the intellectual formation of young people in the Church.
“Our Catholic education cannot be confined to a closed circle. Rather, it must learn to listen to families, civil society, political and administrative authorities, as well as representatives of the various economic sectors and professional groups,” Leo concluded.
But he warned that “generations are changing far more rapidly than in the past and that keeping pace with the times — without abandoning sound tradition — is a real challenge.”
The Pope was scheduled to leave Uruguay on Sunday for Argentina, where he will spend three days before moving on to his former home of Peru, where he will spend five days before returning to Rome.
