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The Apostolic Journeys of Francis

13

JULY

Community

Day

Official Papal Visits

Brazil

World Youth Day
- Date(s) visited: July 22-29
- Cities visited: Rio De Janeiro
- Events attended: World Youth Day
- Reasons for visiting: Pope’s visit to World Youth Day, originally scheduled for Benedict XVI before he resigned
- Plane quotes: “Women in the church are more important than bishops and priests.”

MAY

2014

South Korea

Date(s) visited: August 14-18
- Cities visited: Seoul
- Events attended: Asian Youth Day, spoke at Presidential Office, held public mass at Daejeon World Cup Stadium,
- Reasons for visiting: Asking for peace and reconciliation of the Korean Peninsula, met with families of the MV Sewol Ferry disaster
- Plane quotes: “Human suffering is powerful, and if at these sad times we draw closer, we help one another greatly.”

JULY

2013

Middle East

Israel, Jordan, Palestine
- Date(s) visited: May 24-26
- Cities visited: Amman (Jordan), Bethlehem, Jerusalem
- Events attended: Celebrated mass at Amman International Stadium, prayed at West Bank barrier
- Reasons for visiting: Met King Abdullah II of Jordan, visited Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, met Patriarch Bartholomew I for interfaith dialogue with Orthodox Church

AUG

2014

Date(s) visited: September 21
- Cities visited: Tirana
- Events attended: Said mass in Mother Theresa square in Tirana
- Reasons for visiting: Met Albanian president and other religious leaders, wanted to confirm the church of Albania in the Catholic faith, wanted to draw attention to Albania’s harmonious interfaith relations

SEPT

2014

Albania

France

Date(s) visited: November 25
- Cities visited: Strasbourg
- Events attended: None
- Reasons for visiting: Addressed the European Parliament and Council of Europe and demanded better treatment of illegal immigrants and better working conditions for the workforce.

NOV

2014

Date(s) visited: November 28-30
- Cities visited: Ankara, Istanbul
- Events attended: Gave liturgy alongside Bartholomew I at Orthodox mass in Istanbul
- Reasons for visiting: Met Turkish president & dignitaries, advocated a push for peace in the Middle East, urged reunification of the Catholic and Orthodox churches

Turkey

NOV

2014

Sri Lanka & Philippines

Date(s) visited: January 13-19
- Cities visited: Madhu, Ragama, Metro Manila, Tacloban
- Events attended: Canonization of Joseph Vaz, Mass in Manila the largest gathering in human history
- Reasons for visiting: Met with the President of Sri Lanka, President of Philippines, religious leaders of Philippines, canonization, visited Pope Francis Center for the Poor
- Plane quotes:

“We have the obligation to speak openly, to enjoy this freedom, but without offending others. It is true one cannot respond violently, but if my good friend Dr Gasbarri here insults my mother, he’ll get punched for it!”

“The example I mentioned just now, about the woman who was expecting her eighth child and already had seven caesarean births: this is a form of irresponsibility. [Some might say:] “No, I trust in God”. “But, look, God gives you the means, be responsible”. Some people believe that — pardon my language — in order to be good Catholics, we should be like rabbits. No. Responsible parenthood.”

JAN

2015

JUNE

2015

Date visited: June 6
- Cities visited: Sarajevo
- Events attended: Said mass at Kosevo Stadium
- Reasons for visiting: Place importance on ecumenial dialogue

Bosnia & Herzegovina

South America

Northwestern South America (Bolivia, Paraguay, and Ecuador)
- Date(s) visited: July 5-13
- Cities visited: Quito, Guayaquil, La Paz, Santa Cruz La Sierra, Asunción
- Events attended: Masses in each city except for La Paz
- Reasons for visiting: Met with political and religious leaders of each country, prayed at the location where Luis Espinal Camps, a Jesuit priest, was murdered for speaking out against violence and corruption

JULY

2015

SEPT

2015

Africa

Kenya, Uganda, and the Central African Republic
- Date(s) visited: November 25-30
- Cities visited: Nairobi, Entebbe, Namugongo, Kampala, Bangui
- Events attended: Mass at University of Nairobi, became first Pope to enter an “active war zone”
- Reasons for visiting: Met with Kenyan diplomats, visited a slum in Nairobi, condemned recent terrorist attacks in the area, visited President of Uganda
Plane quotes: “If mankind does not change we will continue to have more miseries, tragedies, wars, children who die of hunger, of injustice. What does one think of those who have 80 percent of the world’s wealth in their hands? And this is not communism. This is the truth. But the truth is not easy to see.”

FEB

2016

Greece

Date(s) visited: April 16
- Cities visited: Island of Lesbos
- Events attended: Luncheon with Greek religious leaders and refugees, meeting with citizens and Catholic community
- Reasons for visiting: Support of refugees who were waiting there for asylum, met with Greek Prime Minister

Cuba & USA

Date(s) visited: September 19-27
- Cities visited: Havana, Holguín, Santiago de Cuba, Washington D.C., New York City, Philadelphia
- Events attended: Masses in each city, including Plaza de la Revolucion in Havana and Madison Square Garden in New York, prayed at Ground Zero
- Reasons for visiting: Met with dignitaries in each country including the Presidents of Cuba and the United States, participated at the Eighth World meeting of families in Philadelphia
Plane quotes: “The challenge of the Church… now I understand: the Church’s challenge is staying close to the people. Close to the United States… not being a Church which is detached from the people but close to them, close, close and this is something that the Church in America has understood, and understood well.”

NOV

2015

Cuba & Mexico

Date(s) visited: February 12-18
- Cities visited: Mexico City, Ecatepec, Tuxtla Gutiérrez, San Cristobal de las Casas, Morelia and Ciudad Juárez
- Events attended: Masses at Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico City), Ecatepec, Chiapas, Morelia, Ciudad Juarez
- Reasons for visiting: Met leader of Russian Orthodox Church in Cuba, met with President of Mexico & Mexican bishops, validated work of controversial bishop Samuel Ruiz
Plane quotes: [Responding to a question regarding Donald Trump] “At least I am a human person. As to whether I am a pawn, well, maybe, I don't know. I'll leave that up to your judgment and that of the people. And then, a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.”

APR

2016

JUNE

2016

Armenia

Date(s) visited: June 24-26
- Cities visited: Yerevan, Gyumri
- Events attended: Mass in square in Gyumri
- Reasons for visiting: Met with Armenian Catholic bishops
Plane quotes: “All of us are saints, because all of us have the Holy Spirit. But we are all sinners, me first of all!”

Poland

World Youth Day
- Date(s) visited: July 26-31
- Cities visited: Krakow, Czestochowa, Auschwitz
- Events attended/Reason for visiting: World Youth Day
Plane quotes: “I like to speak with the youth, and I like to hear the youth. They always put me in difficulty. They tell me things that I haven’t thought of, or that I’ve partly thought of. The restless youth, the creative youth, I like them! And thence I take that language.”

SEPT

2016

Sweden

Date(s) visited: October 31-November 1
- Cities visited: Malmo
- Events attended: Ecumenial ceremony, mass in Svedbank Arena
- Reasons for visiting: Ecumenial ceremony marking the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, met with Swedish Prime Minister

JULY

2016

Georgia & Azerbaijan

Date(s) visited: September 30-October 2
- Cities visited: Tbilisi, Baku
- Events attended: Mass in stadium in Tbilisi, Mass at church in Baku, visited Presidential Palace of Azerbaijan
- Reasons for visiting: Met with head of Georgian Orthodox church, place importance of interfaith dialogue
Plane quotes: “Reality is understood better and is seen better from the peripheries than from the center.”