Pope Leo XIV Visits Devoto Prison Before Leaving Argentina for Peru
On the last day of his trip to Argentina, Pope Leo XIV visits the Devoto prison in Buenos Aires and the national shrine in Luján before continuing on to Peru.
Pope Leo XIV ends his tour of Argentina on Wednesday with two stops: a visit to the Devoto prison in Buenos Aires and a Mass at the national pilgrimage site of Luján. He then flies on to Peru. The return to his homeland, where he worked for two decades as a missionary priest and later as a bishop, is likely to be the more emotional highlight of the trip.
Leo, whom Peruvians know as "Padre Robert," served for many years in communities living in poverty. This background shapes expectations for his visit to Peru, where many regard him as one of their own. His departure from Argentina thus falls in a phase in which his ministry is reflected across the two countries. The trip is also the place where the pope brings together two life paths that are closely interwoven for him.
The visit to the Devoto prison continues a tradition that Pope Francis practiced. As Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he had celebrated Masses there, visited the cell blocks housing AIDS patients, and washed the feet of prisoners. The facility opened in 1927 and is now being closed; more than 1,000 inmates are being transferred. Leo's visit thus marks the end of an institution that existed for nearly a century.
The prison has a troubled history. During the military dictatorship from 1976 to 1983, it served as a secret detention center and a site where torture took place. In 2012 it was designated as a memorial site. Human rights lawyers now seek a court order to prevent the sale of the grounds and facilities. They argue that the buildings must be preserved as evidence of the crimes.
In 1978, 65 ordinary prisoners were killed in the massacre in the Seventh Pavilion. The courts classified it as state violence that the dictatorship had covered up. In December 2025, former directors of the facility were each sentenced to 25 years in prison. The convicted men were over 90 years old; they were charged with the torture of 153 prisoners. The verdict marked a late step in coming to terms with a chapter that long remained in the dark.
The second stop is the Basilica of Our Lady of Luján, Argentina's most important pilgrimage site and the sanctuary of the country's patron saint. The basilica lies about 72 kilometers northwest of Buenos Aires. Authorities had asked pilgrims to arrive several days early and announced extensive security measures. Pope Francis had a special bond with the Virgin of Luján; at the pilgrimage in October, more than 2.8 million people attended despite rain, a record.
The prison visits continue a practice Francis followed on foreign trips. The last such visit, in Equatorial Guinea, drew criticism because prisoners there were made to appear at forced events in the rain. Against this backdrop, close attention is being paid to the form Leo's encounters with inmates at Devoto will take.
Source: the-journal.com
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