Pope Leo XIV arrived in Lima on Wednesday evening. He is returning to Peru, of which he was naturalized a citizen in 2015, after having served there as a missionary and then as a bishop for some twenty years before leaving for Rome.
About three million people packed the streets of the capital for his passage, according to local authorities. The turnout measures the anticipation aroused by this return to the country where a long part of his ministry unfolded.
A bishop, he left for Rome; he returns as pope. His status has changed between departure and arrival: the man Lima knew in the episcopal office returns at the head of the Catholic Church.
Time nevertheless raced like the white vehicle. Each instant represented an eternity for the person the pope's gaze had met, over the course of a passage in which the crowd sought to catch a glimpse of him.
Naturalized as a Peruvian in 2015, Leo XIV does not approach the city as a mere visitor. A missionary, then a bishop, he served there for some twenty years before going to Rome, and it is this path that his return on Wednesday evening brings back to the forefront.