Pope Francis begins vacation ahead of intense September travel
7:09 PM EDT, June 30, 2024
Pope Francis has made an important decision. Starting Tuesday, he will be partially unavailable to the faithful and will not perform his usual duties because he is beginning his vacation. He certainly wants to gain strength before the intense travels planned for September.
According to the "Vatican News" portal, July will be Francis's vacation rest. Hence, there will be no papal audiences throughout the month.
The Prefecture of the Papal Household, responsible for organizing meetings with the Holy Father, informed us that from July 2 to the end of the month, there will be no Wednesday, particular, or private audiences.
The first Wednesday audience after the summer break will take place on August 7, the portal informs.
The pope will not leave the Vatican. What are his plans?
During his rest, Francis will regularly meet with the faithful for the Sunday Angelus prayer.
Due to the heat in August, the audiences will likely be held in the Paul VI Hall in the Vatican.
Additionally, he does not intend to travel to the Castel Gandolfo residence like his predecessors, who recently transformed it into a museum at Francis's directive.
Francis will stay at the Casa Santa Marta, where he indeed lives. Before the summer break, he will preside over a consistory related to upcoming canonizations. On July 7, he will travel to Trieste.
The Holy Father has a busy schedule in the second half of the year. In the first half of September, he will visit Asia and Oceania: Indonesia, East Timor, Singapore, and Papua New Guinea. At the end of September, he will return to Europe and visit Luxembourg and Belgium.
