Pope Francis said Wednesday he hopes to visit Japan next year, a trip that would enable him to draw attention to both the legacy of Christian martyrs centuries ago and survivors of the atomic bombs in 1945. Francis made the announcement while meeting with members of a visiting Japanese cultural…
Pope Francis said Wednesday he hopes to visit Japan next year, a trip that would enable him to draw attention to both the legacy of Christian martyrs centuries ago and survivors of the atomic bombs in 1945.
Francis made the announcement while meeting with members of a visiting Japanese cultural association.
“Taking advantage of this visit, I want to announce my hope to visit Japan next year. We hope to do it,” Francis said, speaking off-the-cuff.
Francis has long expressed his admiration for Japanese culture and history, and famously had hoped to become a missionary in Japan after he was ordained a priest. His superiors dashed his hopes, however, citing his frail health at the time.
But during his five-year papacy he has repeatedly spoken in admiration of the missionary work of his Jesuit order to bring Christianity to Japan in the 16th century, and of the witness of the martyrs who suffered from the anti-Christian persecution that ensued.
