Vatican City, Jun 30, 2015 / 04:21 pm (CNA).- Pope Francis might chew coca leaves – or maybe sip coca tea – during his visit to Bolivia next week, the Vatican has said. He’ll travel to Holguin and pray before the Virgin of Charity of Cobre, the patron of Cuba, and meet with Cuban families in the eastern city of Santiago.
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Francis’ visit, which is tied to the September 22-27 World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, will also include a White House meeting with President Barack Obama, addresses before the United Nations General Assembly and a joint session of Congress, and visits to East Harlem’s Our Lady Queen of Angels School and the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia.
We Little Sisters of the Poor are looking forward to participating in this great event, the culmination of which will be a Mass celebrated by Pope Francis.
He also will canonize an 18th-century Franciscan missionary, Father Junipero Serra, who established a series of Catholic missions along the Pacific coast of what is now the US state of California.
On September 25, Francis will speak on sustainable development at the United Nations, where he’ll have another opportunity to voice his concerns about the environment.
Pope Francis may or may not chew on coca leaves – the raw ingredient that is used to make cocaine – during an upcoming trip to Bolivia. The top Republican in the House of Representatives, speaker John Boehner, and the top Democrat, Nancy Pelosi, are both Catholic.
Pope Francis will attend a multi-religious service at the 9/11 memorial and museum at the World Trade Center before holding a mass at Madison Square Garden.
An hour after arriving from New York on September 26, Pope Francis is scheduled to celebrate Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul for about 1,600 local parishioners and clergy.
The Argentine pope will also meet with the Hispanic community and other immigrants on Independence Mall on Saturday afternoon.
The bishops’ latest rallying cry has come in the wake of the Supreme Court decision declaring that same-sex marriage is legal nationwide.
– Meets with homeless at St. Patrick’s parish and Catholic Charities.
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The pope goes back to Benjamin Franklin Parkway to celebrate Mass, and then greets organizers of the World Meeting of Families before heading to the airport to return to Rome. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.
