Christian World | On his last day in Uruguay, Pope Leo XIV said Mass at the national shrine in Florida and renewed the country's consecration to the Virgin Mary

ACW | November 8, 2026 — Pope Leo XIV renewed Uruguay's consecration to the Virgin Mary on Sunday, the last day of his visit to the country, at the national shrine in the city of Florida, Vatican News reported.

The Mass, held on the feast of Uruguay's patroness, took place at the Cathedral Basilica of Florida, part of the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, Vatican News said. Thousands of people poured into the city's main square, some walking several kilometers, the Associated Press reported.

In his homily, the pope recalled that independence fighters prayed before the shrine's image in 1825 and entrusted the nation's future to Mary. "From the earliest days of the nation's founding, Uruguay has been intimately linked to a Mother," he said.

Leo honored mothers and grandmothers, telling them: "Never tire of passing on the faith." He urged fathers and grandfathers to imitate Saint Joseph and told the crowd: "People of Uruguay: you must set out on the journey!"

At the end of the Mass, the pope renewed the consecration and asked God to preserve Uruguay "from whatever might lead it away from Christ," according to Vatican News. He also offered a Golden Rose as a sign of veneration.

Background: The pope is on a 12-day trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. ACW covered his first Mass of the trip: Pope Leo celebrates first South American Mass in Uruguay. From Florida he heads to Argentina, where President Javier Milei is due to greet him at the Buenos Aires airport, the AP said.

Why it matters: The consecration was renewed at the shrine where, according to Vatican News, Uruguay's independence fighters entrusted the country to Mary in 1825; at the same Mass the pope asked families to hand on the faith to the next generation.

ACW will continue to follow this story.

Sources: Vatican News — Pope re-consecrates Uruguay to Mary on its patroness' feast day; Associated Press (via Crux) — Pope wraps up Uruguay visit and heads to Argentina

Photo: Vatican Media — Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Florida, Uruguay