Vatican City, Dec 1, 2010 / 11:55 am
Pope Benedict XVI has accepted an invitation to visit the country of Monaco in 2012. The visit would be the first by a Pontiff in nearly 500 years.
The Italian newspaper La Stampa reported Nov. 25 that the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Monaco, Msgr. Rene Giuliano, said, “We have invited (the Holy Father) many times and now we have received a positive response.”
The last visit made by a Pope to the small Mediterranean country took place in 1532 during the Pontificate of Clement VII.
In October 2009, Pope Benedict XVI held a private audience at the Vatican with Monaco’s Prince Albert.