The most important part of his visit will be the canonisation of a Spanish friar but he also aims to support the local Catholic Church, whose flock is getting smaller after an increasing number of conversions over recent years.

The Pope expressed his profound joy at visiting Guatemala for the third time (AP)

The trip is being seen as a message of hope in a country deeply scarred by a civil war

Chanting "Pope, we love you," thousands gave Pope John Paul II a rousing welcome (AP)

The Pope's car drove slowly over carpets of exotic flowers

Guatemalan leader, Alfonso Portillo, responded to a request by the Pope and announced a moratorium on executions