CNA Newsroom, 23 November, 2024 / 7:00 pm (ACI Africa).
The Holy See on Saturday confirmed the rumors that Pope Francis will undertake a one-day apostolic journey to Corsica next month — marking the first-ever papal visit to the island most famous for being Napoleon Bonaparte’s birthplace.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni confirmed that the pope had accepted an invitation from French civil and Church authorities to visit Ajaccio, the island’s capital, on December 15.
The visit will be Pope Francis’ 47th apostolic journey abroad and his third visit to French territory, following trips to Strasbourg in 2014 and Marseille in 2023.
On both occasions, the pontiff spoke about migration. This visit continues Pope Francis’ engagement with the Mediterranean region, following earlier trips to Lampedusa, Lesbos, and Malta, where he emphasized the Church’s call to solidarity with migrants and coastal communities.
Pope Francis will be welcomed in Corsica’s capital, Ajaccio, by Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo, who was made a cardinal by Francis last year and leads a diocese where more than 80% of the island’s 340,000 inhabitants identify as Catholic.
