“One thing is for sure, next year the Holy Father will be going on fewer trips, both abroad and in Italy.”
There will not be as many trips, but those which the Pope does go on will be more demanding. Particularly the visit to Latin America, scheduled for next spring.
Destinations for the Pope’s trip to Mexico and Cuba in 2012 are currently being considered.
The Pope’s visit to Latin America, follows the one to Brazil in 2007 and precedes the journey he will make to Brazil in 2013 for the World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro.
The core reason for Benedict XVI’s trip to Mexico and Cuba is his symbolic meeting with the entire Catholic Spanish American world.
John Paul II visited Mexico during his first international trip in 1979 and returned there on many occasions.
Mexico has the added problem of altitude, which has made a visit to Mexico City a no-no.
Mexico City is home to the world’s most visited Marian shrine, a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patron saint of Latin America and of the mestizos – the mixed race populations that grew as a result of Spanish colonization.
Mexican bishops have suggested to the Vatican that the Pope visit León, Silao and Guanajuato, in the state of Guanajuato, the only state John Paul II did not visit during his various trips to the country.
A high percentage of the Catholic population lives here. Guanajuato was an important centre for the Cristero revolt which took place in the ‘20s.
These areas are situated 1800 metres above sea level, a much lower altitude compared to Mexico’s, which reaches 2200 metres, but still high.
A detailed itinerary for the Pope’s visit will be published in the next few weeks.
A stop over in the capital and at the Our Lady of Guadalupe shrine has not been completely excluded.
The Cuban leg of the Pope’s journey, which will include a stay in Havana, will be of particular significance.
Following the historic visit of John Paul II to the island, where Fidel Castro welcomed him in 1998, tensions have been gradually easing between the Castro regime and the Catholic Church.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone visited Cuba twice in three years – in 2005, as Archbishop of Genoa and in 2008, as Secretary of State. During the last of these, he was asked to persuade the Pope to make a stop in the Caribbean island on one of his next visits.
Next 12 December, Benedict XVI has decided to celebrate the bicentennial anniversary of Latin American independence, with a special mass he will preside in St. Peter’s. Many Latin American cardinals and archbishops will also be present at the mass.
With this celebration and next spring’s visit, the Pope will focus all attention on what was once called the “Continent of hope”, and today is home to most of the world’s Catholics.
The other international trip scheduled for 2012, is the Pope’s visit to Lebanon, in September. Following the visit to the Holy Land in 2009 and the Synod on the Middle East, held in Rome, in October 2010, the Pope will have the opportunity to speak from the heart of Middle Eastern Countries, during what is a very delicate time for the region’s stability, following the, as yet, uncertain outcomes of the “Arab Spring”.
Finally, the possibility of a brief visit to Ireland has not been discarded either, to attend the Eucharistic Congress in Dublin, in June 2012. Recent diplomatic tensions and the difficulties the Irish Catholic Church is currently facing, make this a remote possibility.
Tensions climaxed with the Irish PM’s attack on the Holy See last July, in the light of the paedophilia scandal, and with the decision to close the Vatican embassy in Ireland. But the last word has not been spoken yet.
A two day visit to the Italian city of Milan has been scheduled between 2 and 3 June 2012, where the Pope will attend the World Meeting of Families.
Other Italian destinations include Campobasso and Arezzo, which will only involve one day visits.
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