Peruvian Archbishop on Pope’s visit: For Latin Americans he is 'one of them'
By Tiziana Campisi
From the coastline overlooking the Pacific Ocean to the Amazon rainforest, from colonial cities to the Andes, Peru is awaiting Pope Leo XIV.
The country is the third stop on his Apostolic Journey to Latin America, after Uruguay and Argentina, which will take place from November 6 to 17.
The people are joyfully awaiting the “Peruvian” Pope, an Augustinian who served as a missionary in the Piura region and in Trujillo during the 1980s and 1990s. In 2015, Pope Francis appointed him Bishop of Chiclayo, and five years later also named him Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Callao.
Peru is a multi-ethnic nation that has remained close to the heart of “Father Roberto,” and he has never forgotten his “querida diócesis” (beloved diocese) of Chiclayo, not even after his election to the papacy.
A festive atmosphere is spreading throughout the country in these days as it prepares to welcome the Pope. However, Peru has also been saddened by the death, on October 30, of the Archbishop of Cusco, Richard Daniel Alarcón Urrutia.
Archbishop Lizardo Estrada Herrera, appointed by the Pope as Coadjutor Archbishop of Cusco on August 29 and Secretary General of the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council (CELAM), spoke to the Vatican’s media outlets about his predecessor.
An Augustinian religious originally from Apurímac, Archbishop Estrada Herrera described he considerable social commitment of his predecessor, his concern for the poorest and most vulnerable, the formation of the clergy, attention to young people, and his extensive collaboration with the Peruvian Episcopal Conference, particularly in promoting the synodal process.
Archbishop Estrada Herrera also discussed the social reality of his country, recalling the years when Father Robert Prevost was his formator, and expressed his heartfelt anticipation of the arrival of the Successor of Peter.
No comments:
Post a Comment