Pope Francis scheduled to visit Abu Dhabi in February to hold a Holy Mass

Maya Hariz

Opinion Editor

The Pawprint

The Vatican has released a schedule of events and Pope Francis is set to visit the UAE for the first time for three days. Upon his arrival, he will be greeted by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, H.H Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan, along with other UAE leaders. The visit has been described as “a visit that will strengthen our ties and understanding of each other,” through a tweet Sheikh Mohammed posted on December 6, 2018.

Here is a summary of what the Pope will be doing during his visit to the UAE:

On February 3, Pope Francis will land in Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport and will be greeted by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

On February 4, a welcome ceremony will be taking place at the entrance of the Presidential Palace. Later on the same day Pope Francis will have a private visit to the Grand Mosque and will attend meetings with the Muslim Council of Elders.

On February 5, the Pope is scheduled have a private visit to the Cathedral, hold a Holy Mass in Zayed Sports City and later on leave to Rome, where a farewell ceremony will be held.

Since only 120,000 people can attend the Holy Mass, tickets are going to sell out fast. UAE officials have put out a warning not to buy tickets from any unofficial distributors since there will be a major risk of scammers.