His Holiness was received at the airport by Ambassador Mahmoud Talaat (ambassador of Egypt to the Vatican), Ambassador Bassam Rady (ambassador of Egypt to Italy), Monsignor Beryl Farrell (deputy responsible for the Office of the Unity of Churches) and Monsignor Yoannis Lahzi Gaid (former personal secretary of His Holiness Pope Francis).

His Holiness the Pope and the accompanying delegation left Cairo International Airport this morning, where he was farewelled by Mr. Mohamed Abbas (Minister of Civil Aviation), Mr. Magdy Ishaq, (Chairman of the Board of Directors of the port) and airport leaders.

Upon his arrival, His Holiness went to the Vatican City, where he is scheduled to meet His Holiness Pope Francis (the Bishop of Rome and the Pope of the Catholic Church) tomorrow. This will be the fourth meeting between the two Popes. Their first meeting was in May 2013 in the Vatican, during which the “Day of Brotherly Love” was launched at the invitation of H.H. Pope Tawadros. The second meeting took place in April 2017 during the visit of H.H. Pope Francis to Egypt. The third meeting took place in July 2018 in the Italian city of Bari to pray together for peace in the Middle East.

Accompanying His Holiness the Pope during this visit is a Church delegation comprising: His Eminence Metropolitan Paphnutius (Metropolitan of Samalut), His Eminence Metropolitan Daniel (Metropolitan of Maadi and Secretary of the Holy Synod), His Grace Bishop Bernaba (Bishop of Turin and Rome), His Grace Bishop Angelos (Bishop of London), His Grace Bishop Yolyos (General Bishop of Old Cairo and the Bishopric of Services), His Grace Bishop Kyrillos (General Bishop of the Diocese of Los Angeles), His Grace Bishop Antonio (Bishop of Milan), the Monk Father Kyrillos Anba Bishoy (Director of His Holiness the Pope’s Office) and the media figure Michael Victor (His Holiness’ Press Attache).

H.H. Pope Tawadros and the accompanying delegation will reside in the Santa Marta Vatican House, which has 120 rooms and suites. It is usually designated to host V.I.P. visitors to the Vatican. It is the same house in which H.H. Pope Francis resides, who preferred to stay in it rather than move to the residence in which the Popes of the Vatican usually reside, on the third floor of the Apostolic Palace.

This evening, H.H. Pope Tawadros visited the shrine of Saint Peter the Apostle. He was accompanied by Cardinal Kurt Koch (Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity), a delegation of the Coptic Church and a number of representatives of the Catholic Church.

His Holiness listened to a detailed explanation of the contents of St. Peter’s Basilica. His hosts were keen to open the doors of the Basilica so that he and the delegation of the Coptic Church could see the scene from above in a panoramic view.

After this, His Holiness visited the headquarters of the Ethiopian Pontifical College in the Vatican. They were received by the Head of the College Hila-Michael Baraki and its students in the college’s lobby with melodies of joy according to the Ethiopian rites.

His Holiness prayed the “Prayer of Thanksgiving” in the college’s church. He gifted the students with a souvenir which was a small wooden icon of the Holy Family.

The Ethiopian Pontifical College held a dinner in honor of His Holiness the Pope, which was attended by Cardinal Kurt Koch, Monsignor Beryl Farrell and a number of representatives of the Catholic Church.

His Holiness the Pope delivered a speech during the banquet in which he said: “Beloved ones in Christ… On behalf of myself and on behalf of the accompanying delegation, I would like to thank you for your great love in hosting us and the accompanying delegation. I would also like to express my joy in speaking with you today. I am reminded of the words of Saint Paul the Apostle in his epistle to the Colossians: “But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection” (Colossians 3:14).”

He continued: “We believe that love is the bond that unites people, and it is the power that enables us to achieve unity and peace in the world.”

His Holiness added: “I am grateful for my visit to the Ethiopian Pontifical College, as the Ethiopian Church is a sister Church to us. The Egyptian Church has served it for many centuries, since the Coptic Pope Athanasius the Apostolic sent Father Salama as the first bishop to serve the Ethiopian nation. We thank God for our good relationship and pray for peace and stability in Ethiopia. When I visited Ethiopia in 2015, I found the beloved Ethiopian people chanting: “Saint Mark is our father and Alexandria is our mother.” Our Churches are apostolic churches, and our saints are Saint Peter the Apostle, Saint Mark the Apostle and Saint Takla Hemanot. We rejoice and feel their blessings surround the Churches, along with all the martyrs, for the sake of the world; East and West.”

He concluded: “Finally, I would like to express my gratitude for the warm welcome and hospitality extended to me and the accompanying delegation during our visit. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Thank you.”

During the current visit, it is scheduled for His Holiness to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the restoration of relations between the Coptic Church and the Catholic Church, following a break of 15 centuries since the Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D. This is in addition to celebrating the 10th anniversary of the declaration of the “Day of Brotherly Love” called for by H.H. Pope Tawadros II during his first visit to the Vatican in 2013.
The celebration takes place tomorrow in the weekly general meeting held by the Pope of the Vatican in the Square of Saint Peter the Apostle.

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