Pope Francis arrived in Lisbon this Wednesday to participate in the World Youth Day (WYD) events with a busy schedule that runs until August 6, which includes, among other activities, a visit to the Sanctuary of Fatima. This is the second visit to Portugal by the 86-year-old Argentine pontiff, who in 2017 was in the aforementioned sanctuary.

The papal plane from the Ita Airways company landed at the Figo Seco military base, on the outskirts of the Portuguese capital, at 9:44 a.m. local time (8:44 a.m. GMT), some 15 minutes earlier than the initially scheduled time, and was received by the Portuguese President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.

On board the papal plane, Francis assured this Wednesday that he would continue to “make a mess”, alluding to the speech ten years ago in which he told the young Argentines who were participating in WYD in Brazil: “Make a mess!” and which became a motto for Catholics. “Ten years have passed since that 'Make a mess,'” the pontiff was asked during the flight, to which he replied: “And we will continue to make a mess.”

On the flight to Lisbon, Francisco appeared leaning on his cane and in a good mood and wanted, as is tradition, to greet the nearly 80 media representatives from around the world who were accompanying him on the visit one by one.

As he explained to the journalists, although the organizers have spoken that close to a million young people will participate in WYD in Lisbon, it is expected that this number will be exceeded.. “They have told me that there will be more than a million,” he said.

Meeting with victims of child abuse

On his first day in Lisbon, the Pope will also meet with the Prime Minister, António Costa, representatives of the diplomatic corps and civil society, and will conclude with a meeting with members of the Portuguese Church in which a mention of the investigation that uncovered 4,800 abuses of minors in the last 70 years. Outside the official program, a meeting of Francisco with a group of victims has been announced, about which no details have been provided to protect the privacy of the participants.