Pope Francis’ second day in Korea started with an hour train ride to Daejeon, where he was scheduled to meet bereaved family members of the Sewol ferry disaster, celebrate his first public Mass in Korea and meet Catholic youths from Asia.
The pontiff was slated to arrive via helicopter to the city, some 160 kilometers south of Seoul, but switched to KTX, the bullet train, due, in part, to cloudy and foggy weather, said Father Hur Young-yup, the spokesman of the Committee for the Papal Visit to Korea.
The pontiff was slated to arrive via helicopter to the city, some 160 kilometers south of Seoul, but switched to KTX, the bullet train, due, in part, to cloudy and foggy weather, said Father Hur Young-yup, the spokesman of the Committee for the Papal Visit to Korea.
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| Pope Francis arrives at Daejeon Station Friday en route to the Daejeon World Cup Stadium to participate his first public Mass in Korea. (Yonhap) |
“It‘s not just because of the weather conditions. The Holy Father seems to be in touch with more people,” Hur said.
The pope arrived in Seoul on Thursday for a five-day apostolic voyage of Korea. It is his first papal visit to Asia.
The Daejeon World Cup Stadium, the venue for the Mass, was packed with nearly 50,000 faithful who shouted “Viva Papa” as the Holy Father entered the stadium.
The Mass falls on Assumption Day, a major feast day on the Catholic calendar to mark the death of Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, and her bodily assumption into Heaven.
Joining the eager believers on the venue of the Mass were bereaved family members of the victims of the April ferry disaster, and its survivors.
The pope were to meet them in person before the Mass and offer them words of consolation.
At 1:30 p.m., the pope will lunch with about 20 young Asian leaders from 16 Asian countries at the Daejeon Catholic University. He will then head for a Catholic holy ground, Solmoe, in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province, where he will meet and address participants in the 6th Asian Youth Day.
The Solmoe Holy Ground is the birthplace of Korea’s first priest Kim Tae-gon.
The 6th Asian Youth Day is the primary reason behind the 77-year-old Argentine pontiff‘s decision to travel to Korea, his first outing to Asia since becoming pope in March last year. About 2,000 young believers from across Asia are gathered for this year’s festival. No pope has attended the event before.
The pontiff will return to the Apostolic Nunciature in Seoul, his home during the Korean trip, by helicopter.
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