This week’s featured photos are from Pope Francis’ trip to Mongolia. The pope flew to Ulaanbaatar, the country’s capital, Aug. 31, arriving Sept. 1 and staying until Sept. 4, visiting a Catholic community that numbers only about 1,450. Addressing some 10,000 people gathered in St. Peter’s Square Aug. 27 for the recitation of the Angelus, Pope Francis told them it is “a much-desired visit, which will be an opportunity to embrace a church that is small in number, but vibrant in faith and great in charity.” The visit, he said, also will be an opportunity to meet “a noble, wise people, with a strong religious tradition that I will have the honor of getting to know, especially in the context of an interreligious event.” Mongolia has a population of about 3.3 million and almost half of them are Buddhist.
Pope Francis and Cardinal Giorgio Marengo, apostolic prefect of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, pose for a photo with the city’s Catholics gathered outside Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 2, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Pope Francis meets with representatives of Christian churches and other religions during an ecumenical and interreligious meeting at Hun Theatre in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Pope Francis grasps the hands of retired Cardinal John Tong Hon of Hong Kong, left, and Cardinal-designate Stephen Chow Sau-yan of Hong Kong, right, as he introduces them to people attending his Mass in the Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Pope Francis pauses in prayer in front of a statue of Mary after celebrating Mass in Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. The statue, found in a Mongolian landfill, is now venerated in the cathedral of the capital. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Pope Francis celebrates Mass in the Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
A priest blesses a child as he distributes Communion during Pope Francis’ Mass in the Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Pope Francis is welcomed by children dressed in traditional Mongolian attire as he attends the inauguration of the House of Mercy in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the final event of his four-day trip to Mongolia before returning to Rome Sept. 4, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Children wait to see Pope Francis as he arrives at the Steppe Arena to celebrate Mass in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Author: OSV News
OSV News is a national and international wire service reporting on Catholic issues and issues that affect Catholics.
