Pope John Paul has responded favourably to the formal invitation by the Irish Bishops' Conference to pay a return visit to Ireland to mark the 25th anniversary of his first visit on 29 September, 1979.
The Catholic Primate, Dr Seán Brady, has said a reply to the invitation request has been received from the Vatican's Secretariat of State indicating that the proposed visit has, in principle, been accepted.
He said that a date for the visit had yet to be decided but given the Pope's commitments, a visit this year, while not ruled out, was rather unlikely.
Dr Brady went on to say that the visit of the Holy Father would once again be a pastoral one, but that the programme of places to be visited had yet to be prepared and agreed.
Commenting on Dr Brady's statement, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said he welcomed the news and looked forward to the civil authorities providing every assistance possible in the event of a papal visit.
