The Associated Press reports — Pope Benedict XVI will arrive in Mexico Friday, a decade after his predecessor's last visit, to a very different country and a church that has suffered debilitating setbacks amidst sex abuse scandals and a lower percentage of Mexicans who call themselves Catholic today, compared to a decade ago.

Alexandre Meneghini / AP
People walk past a street artist dressed as a magician performing for money by a church in the main square in Leon, Mexico, on March 22, 2012. Leon's Metropolitan Park has been prepared for more than 100,000 campers in anticipation of the Pope's visit.