Pope Francis announces May pilgrimage to Holy Land
By Batsheva Sobelman
January 5, 2014, 3:59 p.m.
JERUSALEM--Pope Francis will visit the Middle East in May, he announced Sunday to believers gathered at St. Peter’s Square in Rome.
"In the climate of joy typical of this Christmas period, I would like to announce that from May 24 to 26, God willing, I will carry out a pilgrimage to the Holy Land," the pope said.
Francis' visit -- his only foreign travel planned for 2014 to date -- is to last three days and include Amman, Jordan; Bethlehem and Jerusalem. "I ask you to pray for this pilgrimage, which will be one of prayer," the pontiff said.
Since Francis' election last March, Israeli and Palestinian leaders have extended invitations for him to visit the region.
Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas each met with him in the months following his election, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Francis at the Vatican early last month.
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http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-pope-pilgrimage-holy-land-20140105,0,6750199.story
