Peruvian altar boy recalls light moment with future pope

It was a scene that could have taken place in any Catholic sacristy these days. An altar boy shows up to serve Mass, and the priest notices that the shirt he’s wearing displays his loyalty to a particular sports team. The priest kiddingly tells the boy he should be supporting a rival team, the one that he supports. 

But in this case, it happened in Peru, and the priest was the bishop of the diocese – and the man who became head of the Catholic Church last week. 

The altar boy in question – Santiago – remembers it all very clearly. He’d been serving Mass for a few years at the parish of Saint Martin of Porres in Chiclayo, Peru. Occasionally, the parish was visited by the bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo, Robert F. Prevost, a native of Chicago who is now Pope Leo XIV. The Augustinian missionary was bishop of the northern Peruvian city from 2015-2023.  

“I arrived wearing a New York Knicks NBA jersey, and he came up and teased me, saying: ‘Don’t support them, support the Chicago Bulls, they’re better!’” Santiago told Aid to the Church in Need, a pontifical charity supporting many projects in Peru and throughout the world. “It was a lot of fun. He had this charisma, which made you feel part of something bigger.” 

As an altar boy, Santiago did more than serve at the altar, do the readings, and hold the bishop’s crozier. He listened intently to what “Monseñor Roberto” had to say. 

“His sermons always touched me. They were empathetic, dynamic, and the message was both clear and very close, which was a way of making one think,” he said.  

Santiago recalls meeting Bishop Prevost “at least six times,” including when Pope Francis visited Peru in January 2018. 

“I recall him as being a very joyful person, very close, always willing to talk… He had a way of connecting with everybody, from the smallest to the biggest,” he said. “He would also organize retreats for all the altar servers in the diocese, and in these, he would treat us as equals, just like a shepherd among his flock.” 

“Monseñor Roberto” now has a much larger flock, and the personal connection Santiago feels with him gives him a sense of pride and hope, he said. It has also confirmed him in the belief that what he is doing with his life now is of great importance. 

“Today, through my service as promoter of the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need – ACN Peru – I feel more committed than ever,” he said. “Being part of this mission is a great joy. To be able to speak out about the work of ACN in so many parts of Peru and of the world, helping seminarians, religious, missionaries, and communities that suffer for their faith, has given me the opportunity to live out my vocation. 

“In my work, I spread the message of the suffering Church,” Santiago continued. “I touch hearts and connect with more people for this great cause. And I do all this with the same commitment and zeal as when I served at the altar for Bishop Robert Prevost.”