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UAE to host first Mass by Pope Francis in February

January 3, 2019 at 11:03 am

Pope Francis greets the crowd during his arrival at Apostolic Nunciature in Lima, Peru on January 18, 2018. ( Sebastian Castañeda – Anadolu Agency )

The Vatican’s Pope Francis in scheduled to hold a Catholic Mass at Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Sports City Stadium on 5 February, local media reported.

The National newspaper said the Mass will be attended by nearly 120,000 people.

The paper quoted the Catholic Bishop for Southern Arabia, Paul Hinder, as saying that invitations will be distributed to Catholic Churches in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Yemen, with a smaller number of invitations being sent to Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar.

The Pope is scheduled to visit the UAE on 3-5 February.

“The visit comes at the invitation of Mohammed Bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, and the Catholic Church in the UAE,” the Vatican said, adding that during the visit, Pope Francis will participate in an interfaith meeting.

READ: Francis to become first pope to visit Arabian peninsula