As Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru prepare to welcome the successor of Peter, his recovery invites us to reflect on the meaning of waiting and the care of the individual. Because Christian hope does not depend on a calendar.

On Sunday, October 11, Leo XIV announced after the Angelus that he would undergo surgery. On Tuesday the 13th, he was admitted to the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, where the operation was successful.

The news about his recovery is encouraging. However, health doesn’t always follow the expected timeline.

Meanwhile, thousands of kilometers away, the people of Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru continue preparing to receive him, amidst excitement and anguish, hope and fear of a possible postponement.

An apostolic visit begins long before the plane lands. It begins when communities organize themselves, volunteers offer their time, young people become enthusiastic, and thousands of hearts begin to burn at the prospect of meeting the successor of Peter.

There are meetings, projects, organized trips, shared tasks, and dreams that begin to take shape. There are people working quietly so that others can experience that connection.

And there are also those who simply hope to see him pass by, receive his blessing, or hear a word that renews their hope.

That’s why uncertainty can bring sadness, fear, and disappointment.

Not because there is a lack of faith, but because there is a deep desire.

And perhaps that’s where the real challenge begins: learning to navigate hope.

Waiting is not the same as having certainty.

We are accustomed to immediate answers, to schedules and projects that must be completed. We find it difficult to accept that there are situations beyond our control.

Silence, when we’re waiting for an answer, can become uncomfortable. It leads us to imagine scenarios, anticipate decisions, and seek certainties that no one can yet offer.

But Christian hope is not the assurance that what we desire will happen. It is the confidence that God continues to walk with us, even when things don’t turn out as we imagine.

There is a difference between the excitement of receiving the Pope and the hope that sustains our faith.

The first is linked to an event. The second has much deeper roots.

Illusions can be dashed. Hope, on the other hand, is meant to sustain us even in the midst of that frustration.

This doesn’t mean we should hide our sadness or pretend nothing affects us. Faith doesn’t make us insensitive. We can also feel disappointment, wonder why certain things happen, and need time to accept them.

Hope does not eliminate disappointment: it helps us get through it without getting trapped in it.

And perhaps this time will confront us with an even deeper question:

Are we capable of loving the Pope even when that love requires us to renounce, for a time, the joy of receiving him?

When the person matters more than the calendar

For months we awaited confirmation of Leo XIV’s visit, imagining his meetings, the places he would visit, and the messages we might hear. Finally, the announcement arrived.

But today reality reminds us of something essential: before an agenda, before a historical event, there is a person.

A man who, like any of us, can get sick, needs care and has the right to recover without the expectations of millions of people becoming a burden.

We cannot preach the care of life, mercy and the dignity of every human being if, when the time comes, our desires end up being more important than the health of the one we are waiting for.

And this takes on special significance in a pontificate that once again emphasizes the centrality of the human person.

Perhaps the first message we should receive from Leo XIV does not come from a crowded stage, but from this unexpected situation that invites us to put into practice what we have heard so many times.

Perhaps at this moment God is also speaking to us through the successor of Peter, reminding us that caring for the person is more important than fulfilling our plans.

Generosity and mercy cannot remain merely words. They must also be expressed in our capacity to understand, accompany, and accept.

A wait that can also bear fruit

Preparations continue, although the trip will depend on the Pope’s recovery and medical advice.

And perhaps they should continue, because hope also needs to be expressed in actions.

Are we building community? Are we learning to work together? Are we discovering that the Church is not just a crowd gathered around the Pope, but a people walking together in faith?

Every volunteer who offers their time, every community that organizes itself, and every person who prepares for the meeting is already doing something valuable.

None of that loses its meaning if the dates change.

Because the mission of the Church does not begin when the Pope arrives, nor does it end if his visit has to be postponed.

The mission is already underway.

Perhaps this time of uncertainty can even help us discover that the most important preparation is not that of the stages, the routes or the celebrations, but that of a Church willing to listen, serve and go out to meet others.

To journey through hope

Today our prayer should focus, above all, on the recovery of Leo XIV, on his strength and on the wisdom of those who must accompany him in the decisions to come.

And also within ourselves, so that we may know how to live this time without turning hope into demands, silence into distrust, or uncertainty into despair.

If we are finally able to receive him on the scheduled dates, the joy will be immense. And if we have to wait a little longer, we will have the opportunity to demonstrate that our affection for Peter’s successor is not dependent on a calendar.

Because Christian hope is not a promise that our plans will unfold exactly as we imagine them. It is the certainty that God remains present even when we must change course.

Perhaps, after all, this time is also a lesson.

Hope is not the certainty that the Pope will come. It is the confidence that, whether he comes on the scheduled dates or not, the faith that unites us will remain alive.

Sometimes, loving means finding each other.

Other times, loving means knowing how to wait.

And that too is what it means to live with hope.