Manila, Philippines

Philippine church and government leaders are preparing the country for Pope Francis' visit with spiritual guidance for the faithful and precautions about crowd control.

Manila Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle announced details of the pope's Jan. 15-19 itinerary, which includes his arrival late Jan. 15, after just over two days in Sri Lanka. The itinerary was released simultaneously at the Vatican.

"The pastoral visit of Pope Francis will surely bring much blessing to all of us," said Tagle, "especially to the poor, the survivors of calamities, both natural- and human-caused and the victims of different types of injustice. The concern and solidarity of Jesus the Good Shepherd will be palpable in the person and presence of Pope Francis."

Pope Francis leaves Rome Jan. 12 to fly to Sri Lanka, which is still trying to promote reconciliation and peaceful coexistence after a bloody conflict from 1983 to 2009 claimed thousands of lives. While the majority of Sri Lanka's 20 million inhabitants belong to the Sinhalese ethnic group, rebels from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam fought for autonomy for the Tamil majority in the country's north and east.

During his stay in Sri Lanka, the pope will celebrate a Mass Jan. 14 for the canonization of Blessed Joseph Vaz, an Indian missionary credited with reviving almost single-handedly the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka during severe persecution by Dutch colonial authorities in the 17th century. The missionary was beatified in Colombo by Pope John Paul II in January 1995.

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In the country where Buddhists make up almost 70 percent of the population and Christians only about 6 percent, Pope Francis also will meet with leaders of various faith groups before leaving Sri Lanka Jan. 15.

On Jan. 16, his first full day here, Pope Francis will spend time with families from all 86 dioceses of the Philippines. On that morning, he will take care of state visit obligations with a courtesy call to President Benigno Aquino and meetings with the diplomatic corps. He also will celebrate Mass for the priests and women and men religious at the Manila cathedral.

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Philippines prepares for pope with messages on spirituality, crowds