Greg Burke -- Copyright: Zenit

Pope Pushes Corpus Christi Celebrations in Rome to the Sunday

Director of the Holy See Press Office Says Decision Was Made to Make It Easier for Faithful to Participate

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“The Holy Father has decided to postpone the liturgical celebration of Corpus Christi, from Thursday June 15 to Sunday June 18.”
Director of the Holy See Press Office, Greg Burke, confirmed this to journalists gathered in the Holy See Press Office on Thursday May 18, 2017.
Addressing why Pope Francis decided to postpone Corpus Christi celebrations, he stressed the Pontiff’s decision “in favor of a better participation of the People of God, of priests and of the faithful in Rome.”
The Vatican spokesman also noted there was a second motivation: «Thursday is a weekday and so there will be less inconvenience in Rome.”
Greg Burke did not rule out that the following years would function on Sundays as well, given that Pope’s reasoning this time around will remain equally valid.
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On Zenit’s Web page:
For a look at how the Pope celebrates Corpus Christi in Rome (from last year’s archives): https://zenit.org/articles/pope-to-lead-corpus-christi-procession-in-rome-3/

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Deborah Castellano Lubov

Deborah Castellano Lubov is Senior Vatican & Rome Correspondent for ZENIT; author of 'The Other Francis' ('L'Altro Francesco') featuring interviews with those closest to the Pope and preface by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Parolin (currently published in 5 languages); Deborah is also NBC & MSNBC Vatican Analyst. She often covers the Pope's travels abroad, often from the Papal Flight (including for historic trips such as to Abu Dhabi and Japan & Thailand), and has also asked him questions on the return-flight press conference on behalf of the English-speaking press present. Lubov has done much TV & radio commentary, including for NBC, Sky, EWTN, BBC, Vatican Radio, AP, Reuters and more. She also has contributed to various books on the Pope and has written for various Catholic publications. For 'The Other Francis': http://www.gracewing.co.uk/page219.html or https://www.amazon.com/Other-Francis-Everything-They-about/dp/0852449348/

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