Pope Leo leads youth prayer vigil at Lima's National Stadium, 60,000 inside and 300,000 more outside
A youth prayer vigil led by Pope Leo XIV was held on Thursday evening (12 November) at the National Stadium in Peru's capital Lima. Young Peruvian Catholics and students gathered across the stadium to take part in the vigil.
According to the organisers, around 60,000 people were present inside the stadium. An estimated 300,000 more people had gathered outside the stadium.
The 71-year-old pope arrived at the stadium in an open-sided vehicle. He smiled and waved in response to the cheering spectators. Some people ran alongside his escort, while others held up placards, balloons and miniature figures of him.
As darkness fell, tens of thousands of people switched on their phone torches. Amid a chorus of singing and chanting, the stands turned into a sea of lights. Many in the crowd were holding candles.
The prayer vigil was held during the final leg of Pope Leo's 12-day tour of South America. Before Peru, he had visited Uruguay and Argentina.
The American-born pope has a long connection with Peru. He spent more than two decades serving the Church in the country, including as Bishop of Chiclayo.
In 2015 he became a naturalised Peruvian citizen under his birth name, Robert Prevost. He has described Peru as his "homeland". People in the country still remember him affectionately as "Padre Roberto".
The evening gathering with young people was a moment of prayer and reflection, and one of the largest events of the final leg of the pope's South America tour.
