Silao , Mexico ( CNN ) -- Pope Benedict XVI led an open-air Mass Sunday before throngs of faithful Catholics in central Mexico . Cheering onlookers waved balloons , flags and banners as the pope arrived at Bicentennial Park in Mexico 's Guanajuato state . Many said they had spent the night camped out , awaiting the pope 's arrival . More than 400,000 people attended the Mass , according to Mexico 's state-run Notimex news agency . The pope urged Mexican Catholics to remain true to their faith , and called on the Virgin Mary to `` continue accompanying and protecting her beloved Mexican and Latin American children , so that Christ reigns in their lives and helps them to boldly promote peace , harmony , justice and solidarity . '' The pope 's visit to Mexico comes as church leaders there grapple with brutal drug-related violence . More than 47,000 people have died since President Felipe Calderon began a crackdown on cartels in December 2006 . The Archbishop of Leon asked the pope to deliver a message of hope to crowds gathered Sunday , noting that Mexico faces `` events of violence and death that have created a painful sensation of fear , impotence and pain . '' `` We know that this dramatic reality has perverse roots that feed it , poverty , the absence of opportunity , corruption , impunity , the inefficient administration of justice , '' Archbishop of Leon Jose Guadalupe Martin Rabago said . The pope arrived in Mexico on Friday on his first trip to Spanish-speaking Latin America . He visited Portuguese-speaking Brazil in 2007 and the United States a year later . He is scheduled to arrive in Cuba Monday . Guanajuato state , which is hosting the pontiff , boasts the highest percentage of Catholics in Mexico -- well over 90 percent . Nationally , the number of Catholics is 83 percent , according to Mexico 's National Institute of Statistics and Geography . CNN 's Rafael Romo and CNNMexico.com contributed to this report .
NEW : State media : More than 400,000 people attend the Mass . NEW : The pope urges Mexican Catholics to remain true to their faith . Cheering onlookers wave balloons , flags and banners as the pope arrives . The pope travels to Cuba Monday .