Pope Francis celebrates mass in Bahrain stadium

Thousands of Christians from around the Gulf packed Bahrain’s sports stadium on Saturday for Pope Francis’ big Mass, as he shifted the attention of his four-day visit to ministering to the Catholic community.

According to the Vatican, local organizers estimated some 30,000 people attended the service.Organizers had said that passes to the event were snapped up within two days of them becoming available, with pilgrims coming from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.

Francis is on the first-ever papal visit to the island kingdom the size of New York City that lies off the coast of Saudi Arabia.Francis wraps up his visit Sunday meeting with priests and nuns at the church.