"On the occasion of the next World Youth Day, and accepting the invitation of the civil and ecclesial authorities of Portugal, His Holiness Pope Francis will travel to Lisbon from 2 to 6 August this year, making a visit to the Shrine of Fatima on 5 August." This is what was declared by the director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni.
Pope Francis, therefore, anticipates by one day his trip to Portugal on the occasion of World Youth Day. His arrival was scheduled for August 3, but both the Holy See and the Presidency of the Portuguese Republic announced today that the Pope will arrive in Lisbon on the morning of August 2.
The website of Rádio Renascença, radio station of the Portuguese Bishops' Conference, says that "peripheries and culture" are the reasons for this change in the agenda of the Pope, who has received several invitations to visit difficult social realities and to meet with personalities from the world of culture, so he has decided to extend his stay in the country, which will be five days and which will see several moments of meeting alongside the protocol events.
The 38th edition of WYD will take place in Lisbon during the first week of August and will end with the solemn Mass that Pope Francis will celebrate on August 6 in a park on the outskirts of the Portuguese capital.