In the general audience held today in St Peter's Square, Francis retraced the stages of the apostolic journey that in recent days has taken him to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. "I met living communities that grow by attraction. It gladdened my heart to be able to spend some time with the missionaries and catechists of today’.
Francis reiterated his wish to visit Beijing, answering a question during the press conference on the return flight from his trip to Southeast Asia and Oceania. In his answers he gave his impressions of the four countries he visited: Singapore, East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia. On the war in Gaza, he lamented, “I do not think they are taking steps to make peace.” Speaking about the US presidential elections, Francis stressed that abortion and rejecting migrants are both against life, telling voters that “one must choose the lesser evil”.
The pope departed for Rome from the metropolis in Southeast Asia, the fourth stop on his long journey through Asia and Oceania. "Religions are different languages on the path to God. If you dialogue as young people, you will also dialogue as adults, as citizens, as politicians. Take risks, do not be afraid’. To the elderly and the sick: ‘Your prayer is very important before God’.
In the celebration at the National Stadium in front of tens of thousands of faithful, Francis referred to the city’s “great and bold architecture” to urge the faithful to look at the true source of life and beauty. He added that the “most profitable investment in God’s eyes,” is “all of us, for we are beloved children of the same Father”. The pope also referred to Saint Francis Xavier, who lived for a long time in Malacca Peninsula, stressing the primacy of the proclamation of the Gospel to the peoples of Asia.
While the whole country still has in its eyes the more than 600,000 people at yesterday's Mass, this morning - in his last appointment in East Timor - Francis met with young people, inviting them to ‘make noise’ to build the future without letting themselves be overcome by individualism. Then the departure for Singapore where the pontiff arrived in the early afternoon.
On the third stage of his apostolic journey to Asia and Oceania, Francis landed today in Timor-Leste, a country fully independent only since 2002. The pontiff praised "the commitment to achieve full reconciliation” with Indonesia, an example to the world. But he also called for “faith to be your culture” to find answers to social ills like poverty, gang violence, and child abuse.
The appeal at the Angelus at the end of the Mass celebrated at the Port Moresby stadium. The message to the Papuan faithful: ‘You are not isolated, the Lord is close here too’. In the extreme frontier of Vanimo the meeting with the missionaries, recalling the example of the martyr John Mazzucconi, ready to do anything to bring the Gospel's message of salvation. Along with that of the local catechist Peter To Rot, also blessed, who gave his life to defend the unity of the family.
The city where the pontiff will go tomorrow is located in a particularly remote area. Francis has expressly asked to add this stop to be able to meet the faithful of the diocese, but also the priests and religious of the Argentine Institute of the Incarnate Word in the parish of Baro, where he has contributed to the construction of a secondary school. The presence of Indonesian missionaries also among those who fled from across the border.
In the Oceania archipelago marked by intensive exploitation by large multinationals, the pontiff urges ‘sustainable and equitable development’. The call to the political community to work together so that the ‘tribal violence that causes many victims’ may cease. The invitation to the Church to have the strength to ‘always begin again’, to reach the most remote physical and human peripheries, including the victims of witchcraft accusations. The call to the blessed martyrs John Mazzucconi and Peter To Rot.
Hundreds of people accompanied the journey from the airport to the nunciature. Some have walked for a week from the country’s remotest to be present. For the Secretary of the Catholic Bishops' Conference, Fr Giorgio Licini, youth unemployment and the victims of witchcraft are some of the issues, “which we hope Francis will address.”
Archbishop Martinelli stresses to AsiaNews the link that makes the declaration signed yesterday in Jakarta and the 2019 text on human fraternity‘different and complementary’. In a world marked by war ‘the danger is getting used to dehumanisation’. Strong ‘symbols’ such as the Tunnel of Friendship or the Abrahamic House are essential. From the Pope also the call to look in depth’ in interreligious dialogue, returning “to the question of God as a fundamental human question”.
“Proclaiming the Gospel does not mean imposing or opposing one's faith to that of others," Francis said in his meeting with bishops, clergy, and pastoral workers in Jakarta cathedral. Calling a catechist to him, he said that catechists carry the Church forward. “What keeps the world going is not the self-interest, it is the charity that is given.”
In Francis' address to the country's authorities and diplomatic corps, the appeal to the Indonesian Constitution against the extremism and intolerance that today in the world takes the form of bloody conflicts. The call for God's blessing ‘not to count on our own strength alone’. His meeting with President Joko Widodo and his good wishes for his successor Prabowo Subianto.
The Jesuit, a well-known member of the Indonesian Church, speaks about what Francis will say tomorrow in Jakarta to the authorities and the local Catholic community. The most important issues today are “friendship between religions and care for the environment.” This trip is different from the John Paul II's in 1989, when Suharto was still in power. For Fr Magnis-Suseno, “The danger today is called oligarchy,” but he has faith in the future.
A ceremony at Sukarno-Hatta airport, before transfer to the nunciature. The people of Jakarta impressed by Francis' extreme simplicity. During the thirteen-hour flight, the pontiff was also presented with a reproduction of the Xi'an stele, testimony to the ancient roots of Christianity in China.
The pontiff left Rome on the long flight to Jakarta. Tomorrow he will arrive at the nunciature; on Wednesday morning, he will be officially welcomed at the Presidential Palace. For President Joko Widodo, Francis is a “top figure” with whom he will discuss global issues, like Ukraine and Gaza". Much hope is placed in the meeting with the Grand Imam Nazaruddin Umar with whom the pontiff will sign a joint declaration after walking through the tunnel that connects the capital’s main mosque to the Catholic cathedral.
Originally from Flores Island and the Verbite superior general until a few weeks ago, Mgr Paulus Budi Kleden began his term as archbishop of Ende on 22 August. On the eve of the pope's arrival in the country, he talked to AsiaNews about expectations surrounding the visit, as well as the missionary face of the Indonesian Church, which currently has its own priests and nuns serving evangelisation in dozens of countries around the world.
The testimony of an Indian religious of the Missionaries of the Immaculate from the first country in Oceania that will welcome the Pope in a week's time. Life on the most remote islands, the hand of God in trials and dangers, the challenge of truly bringing the Gospel inside traditional cultures, the need for new missionaries. ‘Living here has filled me with immense joy: the simple people here have inspired me, showing me the beauty of humility and the joy of daily life.’
Presenting the imminent arrival of the pontiff, the Archbishop of Jakarta announced that on 5 September there will be a declaration together with the Grand Imam of the mosque, in the spirit of the Abu Dhabi document. Having reached the maximum capacity of 88,000 faithful for the Mass in the stadium, many more will follow it via streaming in the parishes. To facilitate travel, the Jakarta Authority has decreed a smart-working day for all offices.
The city-state that awaits the arrival of Pope Francis has for the first time launched a retraining plan for low and middle-level professional workers, who are most exposed today to the hardships created by the economic upheavals linked to international crises. From April 2025, subsidies of 6,000 Singapore dollars for six months, accompanied by training activities.
On 4 September, the Pope will meet 200 Indonesian students at the ‘Grha Pemuda’ Youth House. The organisation - wanted in Argentina by Bergoglio - will launch the Scholas Citizenship programme, in collaboration with the Indonesian government and the Global 5P Movement, to train young people through its educational methodology, promoting a culture of encounter.
Demonstrations in several cities across the country just days before Pope Francis' visit. An attempt to reform regional elections to allow the president's 29-year-old son to run for governor of Central Java State and block the outgoing governor of the capital's reelection is in the crosshairs. Tensions around Parliament, turned into a “battleground” for a few hours.
Tharman Shanmugaratnam was received in audience at the Vatican, during which the two underscored the importance of this crossroads in Asia as a place of interfaith harmony. Meanwhile, a diocesan app will be up and running tomorrow to apply for tickets to the Mass scheduled for 12 September at the National Stadium. Groups of faithful are also expected from the dioceses of neighbouring Malaysia.
The symbolic images of the papal visit in September to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore were released today. The mottos call for fraternity, prayer, and outreach to local cultures, but also closeness to persecuted Christians in the region.
