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Below is the text of the announcement from His Excellency Bishop Paul Hinder, the Apostolic Administrator of Northern Arabia, on the visit of His Holiness Pope Francis to the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Dear friends in Christ,
Today, at 12 noon in Rome, joyful news was announced: His Holiness Pope Francis will visit the Kingdom of Bahrain from 3-6 November 2022. The visit takes place in response to the invitation of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King of Bahrain, and the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia.
During his stay in the country, the Holy Father will address the Bahrain Forum for Dialogue, a conference that will focus on the theme “East and West for Human Coexistence”.
Accordingly, the theme of the Apostolic Journey to the Kingdom of Bahrain has been chosen as “Peace on earth to people of goodwill”, a verse taken from the second chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke. This theme is very timely, as many people all over the world are struggling under various forms of conflict, hostility, and wars, and are turning to Heaven with an earnest cry for peace.
Besides his participation in this Conference, I am also happy to inform you that the Holy Father Pope Francis will celebrate a public Mass at the Bahrain National Stadium. The date and time of the celebration will be on Saturday, 5 November 2022, at 8.00 in the morning. The Catholics in Bahrain and from the other countries of the Vicariate of Northern Arabia are warmly invited to attend this extraordinary event. Taking into account the limited spaces available, a system of registration for the Holy Mass is being worked out together with the Government, whom I wish to thank sincerely for this opportunity and for their efforts in making it possible. The details will be published, as they become available, on the official Vicariate website of the papal visit www.bahrainpapalvisit.org.
From now on, let us entrust the Apostolic Journey to Bahrain to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title “Our Lady of Arabia”. We pray that this visit of His Holiness Pope Francis, besides strengthening our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, may contribute to the increase of peace and understanding all over the world. Gathered together as a “people of goodwill”, may we all work in unison to build a brighter future for our common home and for the coming generations.
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