Archbishop Jorge García Cuerva led a charged te deum service at Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral for the anniversary of the May Revolution on Sunday. As President Javier Milei watched, he lamented online hate and disinformation and demanded “dignified pensions.” 

“Fraternity is dying, tolerance is dying, and respect is dying, and if those values die, the future dies a little,” García Cuerva said.

The Catholic Church traditionally gives a te deum service every May 25 in commemoration of the May Revolution that took place that day in 1810 in Buenos Aires. The president, his cabinet and top members of the armed forces are expected to participate. Archbishops usually use it as an opportunity to give a political message directly to top public officials.

President Milei attended the service accompanied by his cabinet. When he arrived at the cathedral, Buenos Aires City Mayor Jorge Macri and Vice President Victoria Villarruel were waiting inside to greet him. However, Milei hugged libertarian deputy José Luis Espert and ignored Macri, who pulled out his hand for a handshake, and Villarruel, walking past them.

The tense encounter happened a week after Milei’s party La Libertad Avanza beat PRO, the ruling party in BA City, in the local elections. Milei and Villarruel also have a longstanding rift and had last been seen together in public on March 1 during an event for the start of the legislative year in Congress.

A harsh homily

“How many more generations and for how long will they have to keep demanding dignified pensions?” Archbishop García Cuerva said during his homily, adding that while this has been a demand for years and “many are responsible for this sad situation,” it is time to “solve it today.”

Retirees have been protesting outside Congress for better pensions for over a year. The demonstrations have been consistently met with police brutality, often resulting in dozens of injuries and arrests.

Last Wednesday, at least 82 people were injured and four were arrested, including a photojournalist. The press has been targeted during these protests. Photographer Pablo Grillo was shot in the head with a tear gas cannister and critically injured at a retiree protest which was joined by football fans on March 12. He remains hospitalized and underwent another operation this week.

The Archbishop referred to Milei’s constant attacks against the press and online abuse from his followers in his homily, questioning those who “hate and justify their disdain” on social media. 

“We have surpassed all limits: smears, mistreatment and defamation seem to be common occurrences,” García Cuerva said, and mentioned Pope Leo XIV’s recent words in front of journalists: “We must say no to the war of words and images.”

García Cuerva also spoke of the recent Buenos Aires City elections, in which voter participation was just 53%. “Years of unmet promises, electoral years that made us lose the will to participate […] because we think it will be the same thing again, and nothing will change,” he said.

The Archbishop called for dialogue and to “stop hatred” in Argentina. “Let’s give each other another chance. We can’t build a nation based on a war between us. The one standing beside me is a brother, not an enemy or a despicable being I must defeat.”

“It’s with everyone, looking at each other’s faces, because our decisions and public policies have to be based on concrete faces, real stories that must move us.”