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Pope to make historic visit

Published:Friday | December 9, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Pope Benedict XVI blesses the faithful in Rome yesterday. Italy, Europe and many other places in the world need hope in these difficult times, Pope Benedict XVI said yesterday, greeting holiday shoppers and others at the foot of the Spanish Steps. - AP
 

HAVANA (AP):

Pope Benedict XVI will visit Communist-run Cuba this spring, a senior Roman Catholic Church official disclosed yesterday. This is the first trip by a pontiff since John Paul II's historic tour in 1998.

The exact date of the trip, which coincides with the 400th anniversary of Cuba's patron saint, will be announced in Rome early next week, according to Monsignor Jose Felix Perez, executive secretary of the Cuban Bishops Conference.

"It will be a moment for energising the faith in Cuba. It will give strength and vigour to the faith in Cuba," he said. "The visit should be one of peace and reconciliation."

Cuba's church has played an increasingly important role in Cuba in recent years, helping negotiate the release of political prisoners in 2009 and 2010, and even consulting with President Raul Castro and his advisers on free-market changes he is pushing to save the island's economy from ruin.

Vatican officials have said that the pope also is considering a visit to Mexico, and the December 12 date for announcing the schedule for his trip coincides with celebrations of Mexico's patron saint, the Virgin of Guadalupe.