Saturday, March 10, 2012

Martin has plan for Pope visit

THE Archbishop of Dublin has put in place two plans for the Eucharistic Congress -- one if the Pope is attending and another if he chooses not to.

But Dr Diarmuid Martin was not shedding any light yesterday on whether Pope Benedict would visit Ireland in June.

The archbishop said there had been "no further developments as yet" as to whether a papal visit was on the cards.

Dr Martin issued an invitation to Pope Benedict last year, but church sources believe that it is increasingly unlikely that the Pontiff will attend.

He recently said he had no indication from the Vatican about whether or not the Pope would travel.

It is anticipated that tens of thousands of Catholics from home and abroad will attend the Congress, held from June 10 to 17.

Pope Benedict has personally told Dr Martin that he was open to coming for the Eucharistic Congress and would give it "serious consideration". 

However, Archbishop Martin has himself questioned whether the timing of a papal visit at this time would work due to tensions between the church and the State.