Pope to visit Lisbon in May 2010

Lisbon, Portugal - Pope Benedict XVI is to pay his first visit Portugal in May 2010, with the pontiff to celebrate three holy masses, Lisbon bishop Dom Carlos Azevedo said Tuesday. The papal visit is set ofr May 11-14. The first mass is expected to take place on the evening of May 11 and likely to be held on the banks of the Tejo River.

A second mass will be celebrated at the pilgrimage shrine of Fatima, 120 kilometres north of Lisbon, and marking the May 13 anniversary of vision of the Virgin Mary at the site in 1917. A third mass will be held in the city of Porto.

The pope's visit would take place at the invitation of President Anibal Cavaco Silva. Premier Jose Socrates is to meet with Benedict on May 12.

The Portuguese government had unofficially already disclosed the visit in September, without consulting the Vatican first.

Benedict's predecessor, John Paul II, visited the deeply Catholic country three times, in 1982, 1991 and 2000.