About 90 bishops from around the world will accompany Pope Francis on his visit to South Korea next month, the preparation committee for the papal visit said Monday.
"Some 90 bishops, including 30 in the pope's entourage and 60 from other Asian countries, will attend various events during the pope's visit to South Korea," the committee told reporters.
The pope is scheduled to visit South Korea on Aug. 14-18, during which he will celebrate four Masses, including one for the beatification of 124 Korean Catholic martyrs and another for a gathering of Catholic youths in Asia, and hold a meeting with Asian bishops.
The papal entourage includes Cardinals Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state; Fernando Filoni, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in the Roman Curia; and Stanislaw Rylko, head of the Pontifical Council for the Laity.
Also among the 90 are Cardinal Oswald Gracias, head of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences, and bishops from Japan, Myanmar, the Philippines, Mongolia, Laos and other Asian countries, the committee said.
The bishops will attend most of the Catholic events scheduled for the pope, it said.
Thirty medical staff will be on standby for 24 hours during the period to render medical support to the pope and his entourage, according to the committee.
Some 2,800 journalists at home and abroad have registered themselves to cover the event, it added. (Yonhap)
