Vatican authority, the prefect of the Eastern Churches, Cardinal Leonardo Sandri will visit Syria from October 25 to November 3. The objective of the visit is to bring the closeness and solidarity of Pope Francis to the Catholic communities of Syria tested by years of war and in need of a moment of discernment and pastoral verification. Cardinal Sandri will arrive in Syria on the night of Monday and the program will be coordinated by the Apostolic Nunciature in Damascus.
Cardinal will meet various religious leaders and many Catholic associations in Syria. The offices of Caritas Syria, the Society of Vincent de Paul, the Orphanage of Saint Paul, the Kachkoul Dispensary, Italian and French Hospitals will be visited by him. Cardinal Sandri asked to begin a second phase in the Church in Syria now that the situation has stabilized and recalled that during the past years of conflict the Syrian bishops traveled the world to narrate the dramatic situation of the population.