Vatican Official Joins Pachamama Ritual Ahead of Pope Leo's Peru Visit

A senior Vatican official, Monsignor Jordi Bertomeu of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, was filmed placing coca leaves on an altar during an Andean "Pachamama" earth-worship ritual at a Church-promoted conference in Cusco, Peru, alongside two Catholic bishops who also joined the offering. The ceremony, with no recorded Christian prayer, preceded Pope Leo XIV's planned Peru visit and was framed by Vatican News as preparation for that trip, though officials omitted any mention of the ritual. The episode reflects a documented pattern of senior clergy blending pagan indigenous worship with official Church activity.