Andean Pope Journey Began with Llamas, Ends with Latin Blessings

Pope Leo XIV, now commanding the world from a marble balcony, began his spiritual journey herding llamas and handing out rosaries in the Andean highlands. �Before I blessed basilicas, I blessed mud huts,� he told reporters while feeding dried mango to an alpaca named Teresa. The Andean Pope Journey shaped his theology of elevation�both geographic and moral. His homilies still carry mountain cadence and condor metaphors. One bishop recalls Leo�s first sermon: �It was in Quechua, and it made a goat faint.� He carries a rock from the Sacred Valley in his pocket and sprinkles quinoa on papal salads. A new Vatican office�Dept. of Rustic Evangelism�has been launched in his honor.