A crowd in Córdoba
On Tuesday, 10 November, Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass on the esplanade of the Argentine Aircraft Factory (FAdeA) in Córdoba, a plant the air force ran for much of the 20th century. The Vatican put attendance at 650,000 pilgrims, many of them drawn from across the country after nearly 40 years without a papal visit. Córdoba was chosen for its central location, and many worshippers travelled through the night by bus, some sleeping on the grass in improvised camps. A group of 28 altar boys from a parish in San Salvador de Jujuy, about 900 kilometres north, slept beside their mothers after raising money for months through food sales and pet shows. Two religious education teachers from Santa Cruz province said they had covered 2,000 kilometres to attend.
- Mass in Buenos Aires draws an estimated 2.5 million people, the largest of his foreign Masses to date
- Mass at the Argentine Aircraft Factory in Córdoba, attended by 650,000 according to the Vatican
- Youth vigil planned for Tuesday night, covered by the same DF Entertainment contract
A homily on holiness
In his homily the pope described Córdoba as a 'land of saints' and pointed to José Gabriel del Rosario Brochero, the gaucho priest canonized by Francis in 2016, and Mama Antula, who became Argentina's first female saint in 2024. He told the crowd that all believers are called to holiness and that the saints of the region had already completed their own missions on earth.
Yes, dear brothers and sisters, all of us are called to holiness.
He listed the everyday places where that vocation should be lived, including schools, squares, families, friendships, rural fields, cities and offices. He closed by urging people to open their hearts to God's grace.
Open your hearts and, with the grace of God, go and be saints.
Buenos Aires and the economic message
On Monday, 9 November, the pope celebrated a Mass in Buenos Aires that AP put at an estimated 2.5 million people, the largest turnout for any of his foreign Masses so far. Earlier in the trip he had spoken about people who lose out economically, and during a visit to a charity in Claypole that cares for 410 residents with severe disabilities, he said a nation's progress is measured by how it treats people with disabilities. According to DW, he said the economy should serve people and not the reverse, and he referred to workers who still struggle to meet their household needs despite working hard. Some supporters of President Javier Milei argued online that the pope had overstepped his role. Jocelyne Cesari, a professor of religion and politics at the University of Birmingham, told DW that the remarks were carefully calibrated and clearly referred to Milei's policies without naming them.
In Córdoba, Governor Martín Llaryora sat in the front row alongside Karina Milei, the secretary general of the Presidency and the president's sister. Across the visit, the pope has pressed Milei's government on economic inclusion, labour unions and funding cuts that affect poor people and people with disabilities.
The VIP tent row
A VIP zone for politicians and celebrities at the Monday Mass near the Monumento de los Españoles drew sharp criticism in Argentina. Guests watched from a section with close views of the stage, shaded tents and food paid for with public funds. Invitations were sent by the Buenos Aires city government led by Jorge Macri and went to figures including models Valeria Mazza and Carolina Pampita Ardohain and TV host Yanina Latorre. Macri admitted the food service went too far but rejected the idea of extravagance.
I think the medialunas and the sponge cakes were too much. But it was not some outlandish luxury as it is being portrayed.
The city said it had submitted a list to fill 250 places assigned to it, while the national organisers merged the names and sent access passes through the production firm DF Entertainment. The national government said its own list included authorities and representatives of institutions, not celebrities. The Chief of Cabinet of the Nation hired DF Entertainment for 8,690 million pesos, about US$5.7 million, a sum that covers the production of Monday's Mass and a youth vigil planned for Tuesday night, not only the tents and food.
The pope's health and the tour ahead
The 71-year-old pope is on a 12-day tour of Latin America and returned to public duties only about a month after surgery for cancer. In Córdoba he kept his remarks focused on the saints and on the faith of the people who had travelled to see him. The youth vigil set for Tuesday night in Argentina is the next scheduled event tied to the same contract.