While much of the world’s attention has focused in recent years on global superpowers Russia and China, the vast and sparsely-populated nation sandwiched between them, Mongolia, has often gone overlooked.

Once the seat of the mightiest land empire in history, Mongolia has a rich history and strong cultural identity rooted in Genghis Khan and the Mongol Empire. The Catholic Church in Mongolia, however, is young: Aside from a few missionary visitors in the Middle Ages, the church has only had a presence in Mongolia for about 30 years.

Pope Francis will visit Mongolia’s 1,400 Catholics from Aug. 31 to Sept. 4, speaking to civil and religious leaders, including missionaries and participants at an ecumenical and interreligious gathering, and will dedicate a new House of Mercy, one of the charitable organizations that are often Mongolians’ first encounter with the Catholic Church.

In this deep dive episode of “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle speaks with historian Dr. Timothy May, current missionary Br. Andrew Tran and former missionary Fr. Peter Turrone about the history and current situation of Catholicism in Mongolia, and what Pope Francis hopes to achieve in his visit.

Read more:

Explainer: Mongolia only has 1,400 Catholics. Pope Francis is going there anyway.

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