Francis will follow in the footsteps of his three predecessors and visit the Marian shrine on Saturday (Aug. 5), where he is also expected to meet with people seeking healing there.
In 2017, Francis visited the shrine on the centenary of the apparitions and canonized Francisco and Jacinta Marto, two of the three shepherd children who saw an apparition of Mary.
The pope’s trip to Portugal will be the first since his hernia operation in June. The 86-year-old pontiff has recently picked up the pace of his reform efforts in what Vatican observers believe to be an attempt to secure his legacy.
He recently selected a new group of cardinals who will be eligible to elect the next pope. Among them is Bishop Americo Aguiar, who is overseeing the World Youth Day celebrations and, at 49, will become the second-youngest cardinal in the church.
World Youth Day is an opportunity for Francis to sow the seeds of his vision for the church at a time when Portugal is facing growing secularism and diminishing church attendance. A February report by an independent commission found that almost 5,000 children were sexually abused in Portugal since 1950, for the most part by Catholic clergy. Many of the perpetrators are dead or no longer in ministry, but the commission accused the church’s leadership of hiding the abuse.
Francis has taken steps to ensure the protection of minors in the Vatican and beyond. In 2019, he issued a law requiring Catholic clergy to report abuse cases to the local authorities. Portuguese bishops said last month that the pope will meet with a group of victims privately during his visit.
His predecessor, Paul VI, was able to win the hearts of the country’s conservative Catholic majority that viewed the Second Vatican Council with skepticism. When Pope Francis touches down in Portugal, the church will be no less divided. He may yet hope for another hurrah.
This article originally appeared here.
