by Melani Manel Perera

Religious and civil society leaders give their first impressions of the new bishop of Rome. For them, his election is "a push to bring Christ into the lives of the needy." Some Tamil students invited him to visit Sri Lanka soon.

Colombo (AsiaNews) - For some lay and religious Catholics involved in Sri Lankan society, Pope Francis represents a challenge for both lay people as well as the consecrated. Speaking to AsiaNews, they said that he is bound to open people's eyes and be an active tool for the redemption of the oppressed. Every day, they address their prayers to him.

According to Basil Fonseka, a Catholic journalist and writer, the pope's every word "flows from the life he lived, in brotherhood with the poor."

Thinking about the pope's homily on Palm Sunday, when he said that "Jesus entered Jerusalem to die on the Cross", or about his continual references to the need for "a poor Church for the poor," Pope Francis shows that he is an "active tool to redeem the oppressed, the blind, the imprisoned, and the enslaved to social and economic constraints."

What is more, "This pope," Fonseka said, "will be an ongoing challenge for both the clergy and the laity, to bring Christ into the lives of the needy through deeds."

Some female Tamil students at St Mary School in Colombo were affected "by the lifestyle shown by the Holy Father. He is a very simple person, full of love for everyone, without discrimination. We hope he might soon visit Sri Lanka, and bless us in person. "

Fr Mary Anthony, SJ, a former Jesuit provincial in Sri Lanka, is happy because of the election of Pope Francis. According to him, the Holy Father "will open the doors of the Church to the poor and marginalised. He will work for all the victims of an unjust system."

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