Rome Newsroom, Dec 1, 2022 / 04:41 am
Pope Francis has rescheduled his trip to the African countries of the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan for Jan. 31–Feb. 5, 2023, the Vatican announced on Thursday.
The visit was originally to take place in the beginning of July but was postponed by the Vatican due to problems with Pope Francis’ knee. The 85-year-old pope apologized in June for having to put off the trip, and vowed to reschedule it “as soon as possible.”
Francis will spend the first leg of the trip, Jan. 31–Feb. 3, in the Congolese city of Kinshasa before visiting the South Sudanese capital, Juba, Feb. 3–5.
An updated schedule released by the Vatican Dec. 1 showed that the pope no longer plans to visit the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo, part of the original trip schedule.