Pope Francis is to pay a rare visit to Luxembourg before heading to Brussels, a trip to “the heart of Europe” that he will use to discuss the continent’s role in the world.
Recovering from a mild flu after a grueling Asia-Pacific trip, the 87-year-old pontiff took off from Rome aboard the papal plane and was due to land at Luxembourg Airport at around 10:00 AM (08:00 GMT).
He will be welcomed by Grand Duke Henri, his wife, Grand Duchess Maria-Teresa, Prime Minister Luc Frieden, and Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, a close friend of Francis.
Together, Luxembourg and Belgium host multiple major European institutions, making them a part of the world that others look to, said Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See press office.
Bringing his message “to the heart of Europe” against a backdrop of soaring international tensions, Francis will evoke the role the continent “wants to play in the world in the near future” for peace and solidarity, Bruni told a press conference.
The head of the Catholic Church will address Luxembourg authorities on Thursday morning and meet a few hundred faithful at Notre-Dame Cathedral in the afternoon, during an eight-hour stay in the wealthy financial services hub.
Francis will also greet members of the public in the streets of the capital during a popemobile tour under tight security.
It will be the first papal visit to the country in almost 40 years.
‘New Impetus’
The Luxembourg stop begins a tour that will take Francis to Belgium on Thursday evening for a three-day stay partly devoted to meeting victims of clerical sex abuse and culminating with an open-air mass on Sunday.
On Wednesday, during his weekly general audience, Francis said he hoped his visit to the two countries could be “the opportunity for a new impetus of faith” there.
Since his election in 2013, Francis has made a point of preferring to travel to what he calls the “peripheries” of the Church — previously overlooked countries in Asia, Africa, or the southern hemisphere — rather than big, wealthy, historically Catholic European nations.
The Argentine pope, who has relied on a wheelchair since 2022 because of knee pain and sciatica, has suffered increasing health problems in recent years.
Nevertheless, he completed this month his longest trip in duration and distance since he became head of the world’s nearly 1.4 billion Roman Catholics, visiting four countries over 12 days in Southeast Asia and Oceania.
By Clement MELKI with Pierre SORLUT with AFP
