Pope Francis is slowing down his liturgical schedule a bit this summer as he prepares to head out on the longest international trip of his pontificate in September.
The 87-year-old pope does not have any public Masses on his schedule for eight weeks in July and August, according to the master of papal liturgical ceremonies’ official schedule published this week.
The pope’s current calendar has him taking a break from public liturgies from July 8 to Sept. 1. Prior to that, he is expected to preside over at least three events on his liturgical schedule.
Throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis has opted for a busier summer schedule than his predecessors, making international trips, creating new cardinals, establishing new Church celebrations, and famously forgoing the traditional summer retreat to the papal residence in Castel Gandolfo.
Yet Francis has continued the tradition of taking the month of July off from his public audiences (with the exception of the Sunday Angelus), something that in recent years has given him the chance to recover from medical surgeries in June 2023 and July 2021.
Pope Francis has yet to make any international trips so far in 2024, but he has two on his schedule in the fall — including an ambitious two-week tour of Southeast Asia and Oceania with stops in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and Singapore.
Pope Francis’ summer schedule
Pope Francis will preside over Mass for the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, the co-patrons of the city of Rome, in St. Peter’s Basilica on June 29 during which he will bless the traditional pallia, or woolen stoles, given to new metropolitan archbishops installed in the past year.
On July 1, the pope will convene a consistory of cardinals concerning the upcoming canonization of new saints. According to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, the canonizations to be discussed include that of Carlo Acutis, Giuseppe Allamano, Marie-Léonie Paradis, and Elena Guerra as well as the “Martyrs of Damascus” killed in hatred of the faith in 1860.
The Vatican has revealed that the pope will also make another pastoral visit within Italy before taking a bit of a break from travel. This time the pope will travel to the northern Italian city of Trieste for a day trip on July 7.
The pope is also expected to participate in the G7 Summit in June to speak about the ethics of artificial intelligence, though the Vatican has not released any details as to the nature of the pope’s participation in the event, which is set to take place in the southern Italian region of Puglia from June 13–15.
Pope Francis will not hold his usual Wednesday audiences in St. Peter’s Square throughout the month of July, but visitors to Rome hoping to catch a glimpse of the pope will still be able to spot him each Sunday at noon as he appears in the window of the Apostolic Palace for the Angelus prayer.
This article was originally published on Catholic News Agency.
