Next June Benedict XVI Will Visit Assisi

In a letter dated 8 Dec 2006, Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino of Assisi announces the Pope Benedict XVI's intention to visit the St Francis' birthplace.Full text of the news in Czech: HERE.

Assisi (I): The Pope's visit will take place in the 'Year of Conversion,' a period from October 2006 to October 2007 commemorating the 800 years' anniversary of Francis' conversion.

In his letter, Archbishop Sorrentino writes: 'We praise the Lord and express our heartfelt thanks to the Holy Father, who thus manifests his affection for us and his special interest in the mission of Assisi in the Church and in the world…. The expectation of this event stimulates us to live our spiritual and pastoral program with enthusiasm, in harmony with the whole Italian Church committed to give witness of Christ Risen as hope of the world.'

Benedict XVI will arrive to Assisi at 8.50 am next June 17. He will be welcomed by Archbishop Sorrentino and other religious and civil authorities. He will then go to the churches of San Damiano and of St Clare to spend a brief moment in private prayer. At 10.30 am, he will celebrate Mass in the Basilica of St Francis and then lead the Angelus. At lunch he will meet the bishops of Umbria and the religious community. In the afternoon, he will hold a meeting with the clergy and religious at the Cathedral of St Rufino. The day's program will end with a private visit to the Portiuncula at 5.30 pm and a meeting with young people in the square of the basilica.

Having learned about the visit, Father José Rodríguez Carballo, minister general of the Order of Friars Minor, addressed a letter of gratitude to the Pope: 'Allow me to express my own joy and gratitude and that of the whole Order of Friars Minor for this new gift, which is transformed into a place of reference for our vocation and mission in the Church and in today's world.'