Christian World | At a prayer vigil in Montevideo, Pope Leo XIV urged Uruguay's Catholics not to settle for a habitual faith and to keep Christ at the center of their lives

ACW | November 8, 2026 — Pope Leo XIV told Catholics at a prayer vigil in Montevideo on Saturday night not to settle for "a habitual faith," Vatican News reported.

"Do not settle for a merely decent life or for a habitual faith, content with doing only the essential," the pope said on the second day of his visit to Uruguay. "Christ did not call us to mediocrity," he added.

He spoke of growing secularization and widespread religious indifference in Christian communities, Vatican News said. He praised parents who pray with their children and priests who travel long distances to bring the sacraments.

The pope urged the faithful to keep Christ at the center through prayer, Mass, Confession and reading the Gospel. He told young people not to fear marriage and family: "Do not be afraid of 'forever'!"

"Good News needs witnesses," he said, inviting people to seek Christ "in every tabernacle" through Eucharistic adoration. He closed by entrusting the faithful to Our Lady of the Thirty-Three.

Background: Pope Leo began a 12-day trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru on Nov. 6. Earlier on Saturday he addressed educators at the Catholic University of Uruguay.

Why it matters: The pope named growing secularization and religious indifference as a challenge for Uruguay's Christian communities and asked believers to answer it with their own witness, according to Vatican News.

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Source: Vatican News — Pope in Uruguay: Never settle for mediocrity, find joy and fulfillment in Christ

Photo: Vatican Media