Pope Leo XIV condemns 'machismo' in Lima, demands equal dignity for women

Pope Leo XIV stood before tens of thousands in Lima's Plaza de Armas on Thursday and delivered one of his most direct public statements on gender: machismo, he said, is a persistent evil — visible in absent fathers, abuse, and violence against women — and it has no place in Christian life or any decent society.

I would like to renew an ardent appeal, not only to my brothers and sisters in the faith but to every man and woman of good will: let us value women! Let us protect and respect girls!— Pope Leo XIV

The speech, delivered outside Lima's Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, came on the second day of a six-day Peruvian leg of a 12-day trip that also included Uruguay and Argentina. For Leo, it marked his return to the nation where he spent two decades as a missionary and bishop before relocating to Rome — a visit that drew, according to the Vatican, three million people to the capital's streets to welcome him on Wednesday evening.

It pains us to see that violence against women — who could be our grandmothers, mothers, sisters or daughters — continues to be a reality that wounds all of humanity.— Pope Leo XIV

Leo was unsparing in naming the specific ways machismo operates. He described it as manifesting in the absence of fathers from family life, in abuse, and in violence — and he rejected any religious justification for unequal domestic arrangements.

Living the truth of our identities as male and female does not justify an unequal sharing of domestic responsibilities or the subordination of one spouse to the other.— Pope Leo XIV

Their contribution in all areas of society and the Church is indispensable. In marriage and family life, both partners must have equal rights.— Pope Leo XIV

Citing mothers who, in his words, 'often suffer and feel alone, having to face numerous difficulties in raising their children,' the pope urged both employers and governments to put in place legal protections guaranteeing a workable equilibrium between professional obligations, rest, and family life, OSV News reported.

The address ranged across the broader challenges facing Peruvian families — economic hardship, emigration, addiction, gambling, alcoholism, and domestic violence. 'God loves all families, especially those going through crises,' Leo said, before urging that just structures alone are insufficient without honest hearts committed to the common good.

Just structures are necessary, but they are not enough. We also need hearts that are honest in seeking the common good, so as to overcome corruption, violence and individualism.— Pope Leo XIV

Prior to his address in the plaza, Leo presided over midday prayer inside the Lima cathedral before an assembly that included priests, religious sisters, seminarians, bishops, and lay participants from synodal teams and parish councils. He framed his return in personal terms.

It is a great joy for me to be once again on Peruvian soil, close to this Church which is so dear to me. I come as a father and brother in the faith, as a shepherd who loves his flock.— Pope Leo XIV

He further challenged the Peruvian Church to confront its own shortcomings with honesty, saying it must be 'ready to acknowledge its own infidelities and humbly ask forgiveness, accepting responsibility for the wounds it has caused both within the community and around it.' In a separate earlier meeting with Peru's bishops, Leo had urged that a full investigation into clerical sexual abuse scandals be carried out, according to DPA.

We must respond as Jesus would: with truth, justice, forgiveness, reparation and an ever more determined commitment to a culture of prevention and protection of the most vulnerable from these crimes.— Pope Leo XIV

OSV News reported that the pope is anticipated to meet with clerical abuse victims at some point during his visit.

DPA noted that Leo did not address the debate over women's ordination during the speech. On that question, Leo's position aligns with that of every pope before him in opposing women's ordination; the Church grounds that stance in the tradition of Jesus having selected only men as apostles.

The crowd of an estimated 40,000 in the plaza responded with chants of 'León, amigo, el pueblo está contigo' — 'Leo, our friend, the people are with you.' As the gathering ended, Leo sang along to 'Contigo Perú,' described by OSV News as an unofficial national anthem. 'You make me feel at home. Thank you very much!' he told the crowd.

This visit by the Pope is truly a major event for the Catholic faith throughout Peru. Since the Pope is Peruvian — and he is Peruvian — he knows our land, our Catholic faith, and the challenges we face here in the country.— Father Elías Paredes Inga, Peruvian priest, Missionaries of the Reconciliation of the Lord of Miracles

Why it matters — A pope with two decades of personal history in Peru used the moral weight of a homecoming to put the Catholic Church on record against machismo and gender-based violence — and to demand the Church itself account for its own failures, including clerical abuse.

Reported by pbs.org, religionnews.com, dpa-international.com, osvnews.com