Pope Leo in Africa

Pope Leo’s apostolic journey to Africa begins today, 13 April: four stops for the Pontiff who, between now and 23 April, will be in Algeria, Cameroon, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea. The arrival in Algiers is scheduled for today. Here, the Pope, after paying homage to the monument of the martyrs Maqam Echahid, will meet with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and the diplomatic corps. In the afternoon, he will visit the Great Mosque of Algiers and the reception and friendship center of the Augustinian missionary sisters in Bab el Oued. The last commitment of the day: the meeting with the Algerian community in the Basilica of Our Lady of Africa.
On Tuesday, 14 June, the Pope will leave for Annaba, where he will visit the archaeological site of Hippo and the Home for the Elderly of the Little Sisters of the Poor. This will be followed by a private meeting with the members of the Augustinian Order – to which the Pontiff belongs – at the House of the Augustinian Community. After Holy Mass in the Basilica of St. Augustine, Leo will return to Algiers, from where he will leave for Cameroon the next day. In Yaoundé, institutional meetings and meetings with the clergy are scheduled for the afternoon, along with a visit to the Ngul Zamba orphanage. On Thursday, June 16, the Pope will travel to Bamenda to participate in a peace meeting at St. Joseph’s Cathedral. In the afternoon, the Holy Mass at the International Airport, from where he will leave for Yaoundé. On Friday, 17, a stop in Douala for the celebration of Mass at the “Japoma Stadium” and for a private visit to the Saint Paul Catholic Hospital.
On Saturday, 18, the Holy Father will leave for Luanda, the capital of Angola. In the afternoon, institutional visits with the diplomatic corps and the bishops of Angola. On Sunday 19, Leone will go to Muxima, where in the afternoon he will pray the Rosary in the esplanade in front of the Sanctuary of “Mama Muxima”; the following day, he will be in Saurimo “Deolinda Rodrigues” where he will visit the home for the elderly and celebrate mass in the esplanade of Saurimo. Back in Luanda, he will meet clergy and religious in the Parish of Our Lady of Fatima.On Tuesday, 21, Leo will leave Angola for the fourth and last stage of his journey: Equatorial Guinea. In Malabo, the Pontiff will meet with institutions and the diplomatic corps, and, in the afternoon, with the world of culture at the León XIV University Campus of the National University. The day will end with a private meeting with the bishops of Guinea. On Wednesday, 22, the Pope will travel to Mongomo, where he will celebrate Mass in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception and visit the “Pope Francis Technological School”. From Mongomo, Leone will fly to Bata where in the afternoon he will preside over a moment of prayer at the memorial to the victims of the explosion of 7 March 2021 and then meet young people and families in the Bata Stadium. Thursday 23, last day in Malabo: here the Pope will celebrate Mass at the stadium before leaving for Rome, where he is expected in the evening. (aise)