Crowds gathered in the northern Peruvian city of Chiclayo early on Friday for the return of Pope Leo XIV to the place he once called home, as the pontiff prepared to lead an open-air Mass for the people he served as bishop for eight years.

The Mass, held on a vast open field at the Pampas de Pimentel just outside the city, is the centrepiece of the Pope's 12-day tour of South America. Church organisers have said as many as a million people could attend, and some pilgrims camped overnight at the site to secure a place.

Among them was Maria Esther Chozo Reyes, 76, who travelled 12 hours by bus from Lima and arrived on Thursday afternoon. Others began arriving before dawn, carrying flags, images of the Pope and banners welcoming him back to the city where he is still known simply as "Padre" or "Amigo".

A bishop returns to his former diocese

Leo, born Robert Prevost in Chicago, spent about two decades in Peru as a missionary and church leader before his election as leader of the Catholic Church last year. He was bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023, and obtained Peruvian citizenship shortly before taking up the post.

On Wednesday, after arriving in Lima from Argentina, he told crowds that the country where he had served for so long was his homeland. About three million people gathered in the capital to greet him, according to Reuters, the largest crowds of his 18-month papacy so far.

"We want to see him in person," said Noemi Chuman Pasco, 55, a Chiclayo resident who knew Leo when he was bishop. "May he give us his blessing." Magdalena Sequel, 78, said she was overjoyed at his return and remembered attending Masses he celebrated at a local shrine. "He was always very kind and affectionate with everyone," she said. "He was a humble person, and that humility showed."

Eight events in three days

The Pope was due to fly from Lima to Chiclayo at around 9am local time and remain in the area until Sunday, leading eight events. After the Mass, his schedule includes a meeting with the priests and seminarians of Chiclayo and an address to the Catholic university where he once served as chancellor, according to the Associated Press.

Chiclayo, Peru's fourth-largest city and the commercial hub of the northern Pacific coast, has embraced the visit with murals, flags and souvenirs bearing the Pope's image. A sign marking his favourite table at a cafe near the cathedral reads "mesa bendita", or blessed table.

The Peru leg is the final part of a tour that has already taken Leo through Uruguay and Argentina. He is due to celebrate further Masses in the Andes town of Santa Cruz de Succhabamba on Saturday, in the Amazon city of Pucallpa on Sunday, and at Las Palmas air base near Lima on Monday, before returning to Rome on 17 November.

The trip comes less than a month after Leo underwent surgery for lung cancer, in which the lower lobe of his right lung was removed. His doctors cleared him to travel without changes to the programme, and he has appeared in good form, greeting crowds from an open-air popemobile and singing local songs at events in Peru.

For many in Chiclayo, however, the visit is personal rather than ceremonial. Leo gave the city a mention in Spanish from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica on the night of his election, 8 May 2025, and residents have waited ever since for the day he would come back. On Friday, that wait came to an end.