· Vatican City ·

Holy Father on Apostolic Journey to Asia and Oceania

The beauty of a missionary Church

 The beauty of  a missionary Church  ING-038
20 September 2024

During his weekly General Audience, on Wednesday, 18 September, Pope Francis recalled his recent Apostolic Journey to Asia and Oceania, and praised the living and joyful faith and witness of the Churches in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore. The Church is much larger and more alive there,, the Holy Father said, as he thanked God for the gift of this Journey, and the various civil and religious authorities for making his visit possible. He prayed “that God will guide those countries in the way of prosperity and peace”. The following is a translation of the Holy Father’s words.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Good morning!

Today I would like to begin with some good news. I would like to introduce two “suicides” to you: these two are getting married next Saturday! A round of applause for them! It is beautiful to see when love leads us on to form a new family: this is why I wanted to present these two to you, to give thanks to the Lord.

And today I will talk about the Apostolic Journey I made in Asia and Oceania. It is called an Apostolic Journey because it is not a tourist trip; it is a journey to bring the Word of the Lord, to make the Lord known, and also to get to know the souls of the peoples. And this is very good.

Paul vi, in 1970, was the first Pope to fly towards the rising sun, with long visits to the Philippines and Australia, but pausing also in various Asian countries and in the Samoan Islands. And that was a memorable journey. Because the first to leave the Vatican was Saint John xxiii, who went to Assisi by train; then Saint Paul vi did this: a memorable journey! In this one too, I tried to follow his example but, being a few years older than he was, I limited myself to four countries: Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore. I thank the Lord, who allowed me to do as an elderly Pope what I would have liked to do as a young Jesuit, because I wanted to go there as a missionary!

A first reflection that comes naturally after this journey is that in thinking of the Church, we are still too Eurocentric, or as they say, “western”. But in reality, the Church is much bigger, much bigger than Rome and Europe, much bigger! And also, if I may say so, much more alive, in those countries. I experienced this in an exciting way by meeting those communities, listening to the testimonies of priests, religious sisters, laypeople, and especially catechists — catechists are those who drive evangelization. Churches that do not proselytize, but grow “by attraction”, as Benedict xvi wisely said.

In Indonesia, about 10 percent of people are Christians, and three percent Catholics — a minority. But what I encountered was a lively, dynamic Church, capable of living and transmitting the Gospel in a country which has a very noble culture, inclined to harmonize diversity, and at the same time has the largest Muslim presence in the world. In that context, I received confirmation that compassion is the path that Christians can and must walk to bear witness to Christ the Saviour, and at the same time to encounter the great religious and cultural traditions. On the subject of compassion, let us not forget the three characteristics of the Lord: closeness, mercy and compassion. God is close, God is merciful and God is compassionate. If a Christian does not have compassion, he is of no use. “Faith, fraternity, compassion” was the motto of the visit to Indonesia: on the basis of these words, the Gospel enters every day into the life of the people in a concrete way, welcoming it and giving it the grace of Jesus who died and rose again. These words are like a bridge, like the underpass that connects the Cathedral of Jakarta to the largest Mosque in Asia. There, I saw that fraternity is the future, it is the answer to anti-civilization, to the diabolical plots of hatred and war — also sectarianism. There is brotherhood, fraternity.

I rediscovered the beauty of an outbound missionary Church in Papua New Guinea, an archipelago stretching out towards the immensity of the Pacific Ocean. There, the diverse ethnic groups speak over 800 languages, an ideal environment for the Holy Spirit, who loves to make the message of love resonate in the symphony of languages. What the Holy Spirit makes is not uniformity, it is symphony, harmony; He is the patron, He is the master of harmony. There, in a particular way, the protagonists have been and still are the missionaries and catechists. I rejoiced to be able to stay a while with the missionaries and catechists of today; and I was moved to listen to the young people’s songs and music: in them, I saw a new future, without tribal violence, without dependency, without ideological and economic colonialism; a future of fraternity and care for the wondrous natural environment. Papua New Guinea can be a “laboratory” for this model of integral development, inspired by the “leaven” of the Gospel. Because there is no new humanity without new men and new women, and only the Lord makes these. And I would also like to mention the visit to Vanimo, where the missionaries are between the forest and the sea. They enter the forest in search of the most hidden tribes there… that is a beautiful memory.

The power of human and social promotion contained in the Christian message is particularly evident in the history of Timor-Leste. There, the Church has shared the independence process with the entire population, always guiding it towards peace and reconciliation. It is not a matter of ideologizing faith, no; it is faith that becomes culture and at the same time enlightens it, purifies it, elevates it. This is why I relaunched the fruitful relationship between faith and culture, to which Saint John Paul ii had pointed in his visit. Faith must be inculturated and cultures must be evangelized. Faith and culture. But above all, I was struck by the beauty of the people: a people who have endured much but are joyful, a people wise in suffering. A population that not only bears a lot of children — there was a sea of children, so many — but also teaches them how to smile. I will never forget the smiles of the children of that land, of that region. The children there smile all the time, and there are many of them. Those people teach them how to smile, and this is a guarantee for the future. In short, in Timor-Leste I saw the youthfulness of the Church: families, children, young people, many seminarians and aspirants to consecrated life. I would like to say, without exaggeration, that I breathed the “air of springtime” there!

The last stop on this journey was Singapore. A country very different to the other three: a city-State, ultra-modern, an economic and financial hub for Asia and beyond. There, Christians are a minority, but they nonetheless form a lively Church, engaged in fostering harmony and fraternity between the various ethnicities, cultures and religions. Even in wealthy Singapore there are the “little ones”, who follow the Gospel and become salt and light, witnesses of a hope that is greater than what economic gains can guarantee.

I would like to thank these peoples who listened to me with such warmth, with such love, and to thank their leaders who helped a great deal with this visit, so that it could be conducted in an orderly manner, without problems. I thank all those who also collaborated in this, and I give thanks to God for the gift of this journey! And I reiterate my gratitude to everyone, to all of them. May God bless the peoples I encountered, and guide them on the way to peace and fraternity! Greetings to all!

Special Greetings

I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors, especially the groups from England, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Cameroon, South Africa, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Canada and the United States. Upon all of you and your families I invoke the joy and the peace of our Lord Jesus. God bless you!

Heavy torrential rains have struck central and eastern Europe these days, in particular Austria, Romania, Czech Republic and Poland , which have been facing the tragic consequences of the resulting floods. I ensure my closeness to everyone, praying especially for those who have lost their lives and for their families. I thank and encourage local Catholic communities and other volunteer organizations, for the aid and rescue they are providing.

This Saturday, 21 September, is World Alzheimer’s Day. Let us pray that medical science can find ways to cure this sickness and that more support be offered to the sick and to their families.

Lastly, as usual, my thoughts turn to young people, to the sick, to the elderly and to newlyweds. At the start of the academic year, I invite you dear young people, especially the youth from Cristo Re Institute in Rome, to live your study commitments as an opportunity to develop the talents that the Lord has given you for everyone’s benefit. May Our Lady of Sorrows, who we recalled in the liturgy a few days ago, help you, dear sick people and elderly, to embrace, in your suffering and difficulties, the call to make your life a mission for the salvation of your brothers and sisters, and may she support you, dear newlyweds — there are many of them today — to accept work and daily crosses as opportunities for growth and the purification of your love.

And then, dear brothers and sisters, let us pray for peace: let us not forget that war is always a defeat. Let us not forget Palestine, Israel, let us not forget martyred Ukraine, Myanmar and many places where there are wars, ugly wars. May the Lord give us all a heart that seeks peace to defeat war which is always a defeat.

I offer my blessing to all of you!