DFA chief reiterates invitation for Pope Francis to visit Phl

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine government has reiterated its invitation to  Pope Francis to visit the Philippines.

A statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs on Friday said, Secretary Albert del Rosario gave the invitation again through Archbishop Guiseppe Pinto, Apostolic Nuncio in the Philippines.

The invitation was conveyed during a get-together lunch hosted by the Apostolic Nuncio for Del Rosario and other DFA officials.

Pinto has assured the DFA chief that he has conveyed the invitation to the Vatican.

Retired Archbishop of Manila Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales earlier said he believes that the Pope will visit the country in 2016.

Rosales was one of the three Filipino cardinals who flew to Vatican for the papal conclave following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the first pope to resign in 600 years, in February.

Rosales said he talked to Pope Francis to invite the latter to attend the 51st International Eucharistic Congress in 2016 to be held in Cebu City. The 2012 International Eucharistic Congress was held in Dublin, Ireland.

Vice President Jejomar Binay, who represented President Benigno Aquino III in the inaugural mass of Pope Francis, was reported to have  also invited the new leader of the Catholic Church  to visit the Philippines for the eucharistic congress.

Pope John Paul II had visited the Philippines twice. His first visit was in 1981 for the beatification of Lorenzo Ruiz. His visit purportedly convinced then President Marcos to lift martial law. In 1995, Pope John Paul II visited the Philippines for the World Youth Day Catholic festival. His mass in Rizal Park was attended by an estimated crowd of between five million and 7 million, said to be the largest single gathering in Christian history.