Pope Francis will visit Lebanon in June. It will be his first trip to a Mediterranean nation; Pope Benedict XVI visited Lebanon in 2012. Francis has in the past promised to visit the country, that remains in the throws of dual economic and political crises. Lebanon’s president and prime minister have recently visited the Vatican.
Lebanon, though a Muslim-majority country, is home to one of the largest Christian communities in the Middle East. About one-third of the county’s population of six million is Christian.
“The Lebanese people have been waiting for this visit for some time to express gratitude to his holiness for his support,” read a statement from the Lebanese President Michel Aoun’s office. Aoun is Christian; Lebanon’s constitution requires the president to be Christian.