Vatican
City ( AsiaNews) - In January 2015, Pope Francis will travel to Sri Lanka and
the Philippines, in a two-led Apostolic journey. The Pope himself confirmed the
trip during a press conference held yesterday evening with journalists aboard
the papal flight,
returning from the Holy Land. "There are two trips planned to Asia
- said Francis - South Korea [in
August, ed] and in January next a two-day trip to Sri Lanka and then the
Philippines, to the area where there was the tsunami".
In early May, the Bishop of Mannar, Msgr. Rayappu Joseph, had
already confirmed Pope Francis' intention to go to Sri Lanka to
AsiaNews, and described a visit - immediately afterwards- to the
Philippines as probable.
Before Pope Francis' announcement yesterday, Card. Luis Antonio Tagle, the Archbishop
of Manila, had said that "there are plans for a visit by Pope Francis to
Sri Lanka and the Philippines, in a single trip to the region". The
cardinal added that " the Vatican has not yet announced specific dates or
an itinerary , but I am confident that [the visit] will take place early next
year".