Pope Francis’s Trip to Colombia

At the invitation of the Columbian bishops and of President of the Republic, Juan Manuel Santos Calderón, who received Nobel Peace Prize in 2016, Pope Francis will make an apostolic visit to the South American nation on September 6 – 11. The visit is a sign of support during the difficult peace process in a land that has been proven by years of civil war, and a gesture in favour of reconciliation. “The Pope’s presence will help discover that it is possible to come together as a nation learn how to see one another with new eyes of hope and forgiveness,” said Bishop Fabio Suescún Mutis, who heads the preperatory commitee. The symbolic dimension of the trip is provided by the Pope himself as he takes the first step,  encouraging everyone to begin dreaming of and building a future of peace.