Pope Leo celebrates first mass in Uruguay and urges crowd to be ‘bridge builders’

Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first mass in Uruguay on Saturday before tens of thousands gathered at Paris London Park in Paysandú. More than 30,000 people had registered, and the Vatican said another 10,000 attended despite rain. During his 12-day South American tour, which also includes Argentina and Peru, he urged the faithful to be bridge builders, share the joy of their faith and advance evangelisation. The 71-year-old pope, who recently underwent lung cancer surgery, appeared to be in good health and credited God, his doctors and a healthy lifestyle for his recovery.