Pope Francis Begins First Papal Trip to Asia in 25 Years
Beginning his first trip to Asia, Pope Francis arrived in Seoul Thursday - the first papal visit to South Korea in 25 years.
The five-day visit is aimed at exhibiting the Vatican's efforts to spread the faith to Asia - which has the smallest population of Catholics in the world.
"The Pope's visit to South Korea is the first part of a very intelligent opening to Asia. The Pope's presence is a powerful symbol of the Vatican's recognition that it is in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa that the church is growing most prominently," said Lionel Jensen, associate professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Notre Dame, CNN reports.
Last papal visit to Asia was St. John Paul II's visit to India in 1999. This is Pope Francis' third abroad trip and during his visit, he will sanctify 124 Korean martyrs apart from participating in the 6th Asian Youth Day celebrations - a gathering of the Asian Catholic youth.
Pope Francis will also be meeting students who survived the Sewol ferry disaster, in which more than 300 people died.
The Pope is expected to include a mass for peace and settlement on the Korean peninsula, which would include prayers for repairing relations between South and North Korea.
Meanwhile, political disturbances in the region did not fail to trigger concerns as North Korea fired three short-range rockets into the sea to the east of the peninsula, The Wall Street Journal reports.
North Korea has held several such launches recently and claims that it is in response to the provocations - like a military drill due to start Monday - of the United States and South Korea, BBC reports.
