VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI personally announced Tuesday that he will travel to Mexico and Cuba in March.
"It's my intention to undertake an apostolic journey before next Easter to Mexico and Cuba to proclaim the Word of Christ there," the Pope said during a bicentennial Mass marking the independence of Latin American countries and the celebration of Mexico's patron saint,
the Vírgen de Guadalupe.
On hand were numerous Latin American cardinals, diplomats from each country as well as thousands of faithful who turned out for the Mass at St. Peter's Basilica. They burst into applause when the Pope announced his plans.
Pope Benedict XVI, 84, commended his trip to "the loving embrace of Santa María de Guadalupe, our Lady of Heaven," as well as the countries that he will visit and "the road they are traveling toward a better tomorrow."
The Vatican did not immediately issue a statement as to when the trip would be, or what locations he would visit, but sources said that the Pope would travel in March, between 23rd and 28th. Holy Week begins on April 1.
This will be the Pope's second trip to Latin America, following a visit to Brazil in 2007.
In 2009, the Pope had wanted to visit Mexico City for the Sixth World Conference for Families but his doctors advised against it, given the location's altitude and concerns about his health.
Mexicans were disappointed but now will look forward to Pope Benedict's visit to Mexico, a land that his predecessor, Pope John Paul II, visited five times.
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