As he starts his second papal year, Pope Francis has a full schedule that contains many highlights and important events for the Catholic Church. Already proven to be a diligent and attentive Holy Father, Pope Francis will continue to build on his success in reaching people, expanding the Church’s presence and connecting the world with Catholicism. These upcoming highlights from the 2014 papal year are considered to be key appearances by The Pope.
Holy Week
In April, Pope Francis will be involved with Holy Week activities in Saint Peter’s Square and at The Vatican Basilica. These include a Palm Sunday Mass, Chrism Mass on Holy Thursday, Celebration of The Lord’s Passion and Stations of the Cross on Good Friday and an Easter Vigil and the Papal Mass on Easter Sunday.
Canonization of the Blesseds
The Pope will declare both John XXIII and John Paul II Saints during the Holy Mass on Divine Mercy Sunday (April 27th). Francis’ predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, beatified John Paul II in 2011, and John Paul II beatified John XXIII in 2000. Pope Francis also announced that John Paul II should receive his canonization even without the usually required second miracle.
Pilgrimage to the Holy Land
Pope Francis will complete a pilgrimage to the Holy Land May 24 – 26 where he will meet with the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I at the site of the Holy Sepulchre. When he announced the visit in January, Pope Francis said the meeting is “to commemorate the historic meeting between Pope Paul VI and the Patriarch Athenagoras I” which occurred in 1964.
Visit To South Korea
A planned visit to South Korea is scheduled for August 14 – 18. The Pope will officially be visiting the area to celebrate Asian Youth Day where young Catholics will be present from 29 different Asian countries. In addition, Pope Francis will beatify 124 Korean martyrs who were killed between 1791 and 1888.
Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops
On October 5 – 19, Pope Francis will be involved with the Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that will take place at the Vatican which he announced in 2013. The announced theme for the General Assembly is “The pastoral challenges for the family in the context of evangelism” and the focus will be on marriage, family, reproduction and other related matters.
Global Leader Meetings
The Pope is planning to meet several different global leaders throughout 2014 and many of these meeting have already been announced. The Queen Elizabeth II of England and Duke of Edinburgh are scheduled to meet the Pope at the Vatican in April which will be the first time that the Queen has met with a pope since 2010. President Obama will meet Pope Francis for the first time on March 27th at the Vatican.