Father Robert Prevost first arrived in Peru in 1985 during a time of crisis, the aftermath of devastating El Niño rains that had left thousands of people homeless.

The late pope’s attention to geographic detail led to what was described as the most diverse conclave in the history of the church.

Pope Leo XIV is a dual citizen of the United States and Peru, where he first served as a missionary and then as an archbishop. That made him the first pope from each country.

“We depend on the press to know who the candidates are, because names are not something we really talk about in there—perhaps only in small groups. This is not a parliament.”

Few, if any, Latin Americans show up on the speculative lists of who might be elected as the supreme pontiff, or “papabile.” But that doesn’t mean the cardinals will not once again look to the New World.

Mario Vargas Llosa's long literary life established him as a monumental figure in Spanish-language literature and Latin American history.