Suffice it to say, the communication surrounding the papal visit to Corsica - a French island in the Mediterranean sea - has been uncertain at best. One might even describe it as erratic.

As you read this, the pope's visit to Ajaccio, the capital of the Mediterranean island, has been confirmed.

However, details about the timing of the Pope's visit kept people guessing, and late last week, two reliable sources assured an announcement would be made November 16.

Two others, equally reliable, suggested November 18.

And another one announced November 20. Recently, numerous local media outlets have mentioned an "imminent announcement," "in the next few hours," "tomorrow," or "in the coming days."

These inconsistencies stem from more than just a lack of sources or corroboration. In 2013, Francis was elected pope with a clear mandate to restore order to a Curia weakened by scandals.

While he has partially reformed it, he has mainly established a highly personal style of governance that frequently circumvents his own administration. Under Francis, a "Vatican source," even a "high" one, is not always "well-informed."

Legacy

"Is this trip to Corsica real?" an influential member of the French episcopate reportedly asked a representative of the Vatican's diplomatic services in October.

This query was the first time that the member of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, responsible for relations with states, heard of this possible trip.

The study of a potential trip to Corsica has been conducted in strict secrecy at the Vatican, in direct connection with the diocese.

Parts of the Secretariat of State, the French Bishops' Conference, the French Presidency, and the French Embassy to the Holy See were only informed late in the process.

An official invitation, a prerequisite for envisioning the pope on French soil, was requested from the French Presidency at the beginning of November, which reportedly sent it.

A Vatican delegation recently traveled to Corsica to arrange technical details.

The secrecy around this information is open to interpretation. Vatican "sources" remained divided on the matter. Should Francis be seen as a master strategist who wants to keep his options open with respect to the Curia or the agenda of an embattled Emmanuel Macron?

"I think this trip to Corsica is more of an impulsive or heartfelt decision, tied to his friendship with (the Bishop of Ajaccio, François) Bustillo, whom he made a cardinal," said a close papal confidant.

This less political theory doesn't preclude concern: "At nearly 88 years old and with this modus operandi, I worry that some of Francis' choices might be less understood and could damage his legacy." But again, who knows?

Two others, equally reliable, suggested November 18. And another one announced November 20. Recently, numerous local media outlets have mentioned an "imminent announcement," "in the next few hours," "tomorrow," or "in the coming days."

These inconsistencies stem from more than just a lack of sources or corroboration. In 2013, Francis was elected pope with a clear mandate to restore order to a Curia weakened by scandals.

While he has partially reformed it, he has mainly established a highly personal style of governance that frequently circumvents his own administration. Under Francis, a "Vatican source," even a "high" one, is not always "well-informed."

Legacy

"Is this trip to Corsica real?" an influential member of the French episcopate reportedly asked a representative of the Vatican's diplomatic services in October. This query was the first time that the member of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, responsible for relations with states, heard of this possible trip.

The study of a potential trip to Corsica has been conducted in strict secrecy at the Vatican, in direct connection with the diocese. Parts of the Secretariat of State, the French Bishops' Conference, the French Presidency, and the French Embassy to the Holy See were only informed late in the process.

An official invitation, a prerequisite for envisioning the pope on French soil, was requested from the French Presidency at the beginning of November, which reportedly sent it.

A Vatican delegation recently travelled to Corsica to arrange technical details.

The secrecy around this information is open to interpretation. Vatican "sources" remained divided on the matter. Should Francis be seen as a master strategist who wants to keep his options open with respect to the Curia or the agenda of an embattled Emmanuel Macron?

"I think this trip to Corsica is more of an impulsive or heartfelt decision, tied to his friendship with (the Bishop of Ajaccio, François) Bustillo, whom he made a cardinal," said a close papal confidant.

This less political theory doesn't preclude concern: "At nearly 88 years old and with this modus operandi, I worry that some of Francis' choices might be less understood and could damage his legacy."

But again, who knows?

• First published in La Croix
• Mikael Corre is a journalist and senior reporter at La Croix L'Hebdo.
• This piece was written before the Vatican confirmed Pope Francis' visit. It has been edited to reflect the confirmation of the visit.

Speaking at St Peter's Square on 18 September, the Pope said the Church is "more alive" in areas like Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore.

The pontiff emphasised the Church's need to move beyond its European roots and embrace the global Catholic community.

Francis remarked "We are still too Eurocentric… but in reality, the Church is much bigger… and much more alive in these countries".

Fraternity is the future

Reflecting on the Asian tour, Pope Francis praised the "missionary, outgoing Church" he encountered, especially in Indonesia, a Muslim-majority country where Catholics make up only 3% of the population.

He observed a dynamic faith community there, actively transmitting the Gospel.

Pope Francis signed a joint declaration with the Grand Imam of the Istiqlal Mosque in Indonesia, condemning religious-based violence and promoting interfaith harmony.

"There, I saw that fraternity is the future, it is the answer to anti-civilisation, to the diabolical plots of hatred, war and also sectarianism" he said.

In Papua New Guinea, the Pope was welcomed by indigenous tribes who have embraced Catholicism.

He met with missionaries and catechists whom he called the "protagonists" of his visit and expressed hope for a future free from tribal violence and colonial dependencies.

Salt and light

The Pope's visit to East Timor, predominantly a Catholic nation, also left a strong impression.

He was touched by the country's large families and abundant religious vocations.

He called East Timor a model of a "culture of life", contrasting it with wealthier nations like Singapore which he said could learn from its example of high birth rates.

His final stop in Singapore, though starkly different from the other nations, reaffirmed his belief in the power of small, faith-driven communities.

"Even in wealthy Singapore, there are the ‘little ones' who follow the Gospel and become salt and light, witnesses to a hope greater than what economic gains can guarantee" he added.

The Pope's reflections emphasised the universality of the Catholic Church, urging believers to look beyond Europe to the flourishing faith communities in other parts of the world.

Sources

Catholic News Agency

La Croix International

CathNews New Zealand

How has China followed Pope Francis' Asian tour, and what interests has it seen in it?

Michel Chambon: Beijing has closely observed the entirety of this trip, seeking to assess to what extent Pope Francis could contribute to the balance of power, the common good, and the development of the region—and to what extent, therefore, this "universal sovereign" could be an interesting partner for China.

On Chinese social media, Pope Francis' gestures and speeches have been shared in real-time, under the watchful eye of the Communist Party, which allowed this information to circulate.

Like other Asian leaders, China has also seen political interests behind this tour as it expands its influence throughout Southeast Asia and seeks to secure a share of the region's vast natural resources (forestry, minerals, etc.).

Recently, Beijing took a major step by forming a military alliance with the Solomon Islands, east of Papua New Guinea, which has caused significant tensions with Australia and the Western world.

Chinese diasporas have also long been present in various Southeast Asian countries (such as Indonesia), which China seeks to make part of its sphere of influence.

For Beijing, there were therefore several significant geopolitical and economic stakes.

What message has the Pope sought to send to the Chinese authorities?

M.C.: By visiting these Asian countries, the Pope has shown that he is fully committed to the unity of peoples and the integrated development of the region. With his "soft power," he helps all parties return to fundamental issues of stability, dignity, justice, and peace.

The Holy See has demonstrated, through extensive communication, what kind of universal sovereignty Francis wants to exercise in Asia in the service of the common good.

The Pope has also shown great delicacy and adaptability toward his various interlocutors: one can see this as a signal to Beijing, indicating that he can also be its partner.

What impact could this trip have on the renewal of the China-Vatican agreement, which is set to expire at the end of October?

M.C.: In my opinion, it is highly likely that the agreement will not only be renewed but that a new version will be developed in the coming weeks.

The international context—the Pope's trip to Asia, the Synod on Synodality, U.S. elections—seems favorable: the Holy See and Beijing are free to renegotiate this agreement in peace.

This will likely be done quietly. Chinese authorities also seem eager to move forward. At the end of August, the Holy See announced that Beijing had recognised an "underground" bishop (1) in the northeastern part of the country.

Both parties are reminding the world that the agreement exists and is working, even though Beijing still maintains tight control over civil society, including Catholics.

In early August, Pope Francis once again expressed his desire to visit China. Do you think such a trip could really happen for him?

M.C.: I strongly doubt that this will ever concretely happen. Francis is 87 years old, and China is not ready. For me, these somewhat provocative statements are more of a form of "gunboat diplomacy."

By publicly envisioning such a trip, Francis is once again demonstrating his desire to build a relationship of collaboration and trust with Beijing despite all obstacles.

(1) Previously recognised by Rome, but not by Beijing.

• First published in La Croix
• Michel Chambon is a theologian and cultural anthropologist. He is Research fellow at the National University of Singapore.

His visit showcased his focus on global peripheries and the Church's need to navigate complex political and interreligious issues in today's world.

Pope Francis is arguably at his best when far from Rome.

His apostolic trips to the Middle East and the Far East are prime examples, and the exhausting September journey to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore is no exception.

Promoting interreligious dialogue in Indonesia

In Indonesia, where Christianity is a minority, Pope Francis spoke about the importance of working for peace and interreligious coexistence, particularly with Islam, in the "Istiqlal Declaration" signed on September 5.

He repeated his vision of a dialogical Christianity that rejects religious extremism and fundamentalism.

He encouraged the inculturation of the faith, making clear that the post-Vatican II inculturation of liturgy, theology, and catechesis is here to stay and that there is no prospect of a re-Latinisation or a new Romanisation of global Catholicism.

Francis walks in the footsteps of St. John Paul II, updating and bringing to the antipodes the "spirit of Assisi" (the first World Day of Prayer for Peace in Assisi, Italy, on October 27, 1986, and called by the Polish pope), which is still seen by some traditionalist Catholics as a sacrilege.

Francis traveled to Asia and Oceania not to announce new policies or reshape local churches but to bring the Pope's presence closer to those Christians and their fellow citizens, allowing lived Catholicism to flourish while also teaching something to the global Church.

He has done all this in a moving display of joy, tenderness, and simplicity, which also sends a powerful message to those who identify Catholicism with an outburst of grievances against modern culture and secularisation, against the institutional Church, and against fellow Catholics on the other side of the ideological barricades.

A journey to the peripheries

This trip is the quintessential embodiment of Francis' closeness to the peripheries. It is the longest and farthest from Rome for Francis.

It is a trip that once again redefines the Catholic imagination of the world map in the third millennium: the north-south and east-west relations and where the center of the world and the Church are today in this post-European global order.

Papua New Guinea is 19,047 kilometers away from the Vatican. It is closer to New Delhi, Beijing, and Tokyo than a trip to Los Angeles and New York.

And yet, in some sense, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore represent the closest places Francis could go to find an experience of the Church that he has in mind.

There are three issues that this trip keeps hidden or does not show but are at the heart of the crisis of Catholicism today.

The challenge of Catholicism in a post-European world

The first element is political.

By beginning this trip with Indonesia, it carries an echo of the new "Non-Aligned Movement".

During the Cold War, countries of the developing world abstained from allying with either of the two superpowers (the United States and the Soviet Union) and instead joined together in support of national self-determination against all forms of colonialism and imperialism.

The foundational moment was the 1955 conference in Bandung, Indonesia.

This was viewed with sympathy by some Catholics in Europe and the West, foreshadowing the shifts brought about by Vatican II and the Popes since John XXIII in repositioning the Holy See and Catholicism away from a political and ideological identification with the West.

"Francis' papacy is still longing for a third option between the United States and Russia—one that rejects both the neoliberal, American-dominated world order and the illiberal ethno-nationalism and authoritarian regimes that have taken hold in many countries."

Today, Francis' papacy is still longing for a third option between the United States and Russia — one that rejects both the neoliberal, American-dominated world order and the illiberal ethno-nationalism and authoritarian regimes that have taken hold in many countries, some still formally part of what remains of the Non-Aligned Movement.

For example, the Republic of Belarus, Putin's Russian neighbor and staunchest ally, has been a member of the Non-Aligned Movement since 1998.

The 19th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement was held this past January in Kampala, and the movement is currently chaired by Uganda, a country with one of the harshest anti-gay laws in its criminal code.

What the Non-Aligned Movement has become says something about where the Vatican is (and isn't) on today's ideological world map and the lack or scarcity of viable political interlocutors for the Holy See.

Finding Comfort in Asia-Oceania's non-aligned Catholics

The second element is ecclesial.

This September trip to Asia and Oceania brought the Pope as far as possible from the historical borders of the Roman Empire (in all its possible dispensations, from Augustus to the Holy Roman Empire until Napoleon), from Washington D.C., and from the international liberal order once dominated by the West.

But Asia and Oceania also provide an ecclesial environment that is for Francis much more comfortable than the one in Europe and the West today.

Francis' visits to these peripheries signal his preference for the non-aligned Catholics in our intra-ecclesial cold wars.

They are those who do not align with a particular agenda on issues such as the diaconate for women, the different theories of synodality, the policies to fight clericalism and the abuse crisis.

(This is despite the case of Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belo, a hero of the independence movement in his native East Timor and Nobel Peace Prize winner, whom Pope Francis indirectly acknowledged on September 9).

"Francis' visits to these peripheries signal his preference for the non-aligned Catholics in our intra-ecclesial cold wars — those who do not align with a particular agenda on issues."

Catholics in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore differ from the images of Catholicism in mainstream media in the West. But they are Francis' people, more than the activists for Church reform, feminist theologians, or, for that matter, most academic theologians.

And yet, the issues that are not visible in this trip will continue to be central issues for Catholicism in the Western world and, in the not-so-distant future, also in these Churches of the peripheries.

Interreligious dialogue in the context of global tensions

The third element is interreligious, and it has to do with Islam and Judaism.

The Istiqlal Mosque in Indonesia sits across from Jakarta's cathedral, linked by a "tunnel of friendship" as a symbol of religious fraternity. Francis visited the tunnel before the meeting, offering blessings and signing a section of it.

On that September 5, it was hard not to think about other tunnels that tragically connect and divide today, like the tunnels of Gaza, where Israeli hostages, taken on October 7, 2023, were held and murdered by Hamas.

"Forging a new relationship with Islam requires confronting the intentionally unaddressed issues of the pre-Francis era, from the Vatican II declaration Nostra Aetate onwards: political and religious Zionism, the land and state of Israel."

As delicate as the relations between Christians and Muslims are in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, the immediate challenge today lies in dealing with Islam and Judaism in the Middle East.

Francis' pontificate is trying to do for the relationship between the Church and Islam what St. John Paul II did for the relationship with Judaism.

The challenge is that forging a new relationship with Islam requires confronting the intentionally unaddressed issues of the pre-Francis era, from the Vatican II declaration Nostra Aetate onwards: political and religious Zionism, the land and state of Israel.

The interfaith dialogue led by the Vatican has become incredibly more difficult since Hamas' terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023, and Israel's indiscriminate war against Gaza.

Interreligious dialogue is key to the credibility of Catholics and Christians in many parts of the world where they are a small minority.

The situation in Israel and the Middle East threatens not only world peace but also the survival of minority Churches, which often do not appear on social media, in Catholic pundits' columns, and the agendas of "cultural Christians" in European and Western politics.

This will likely be a major part of the agenda for the next conclave that elects Francis' successor. Whenever it happens, it will take place in the Vatican, 19,047 kilometers away from Papua New Guinea.

• First published in La Croix
• Massimo Faggioli is an Italian academic, Church historian, professor of theology and religious studies at Villanova University, columnist for La Croix International, and contributing writer to Commonweal.

The remarkable attendance was a testament to the overwhelmingly Catholic Southeast Asian country and the esteem with which its people hold the church.

The Mass, held at Tasitolu Park near the capital Dili, marked a significant moment in the country's religious history and echoed the visit of St John Paul II 35 years ago.

The gathering highlighted the deep devotion of the Timorese people in a nation where 97% of the population is Catholic.

Catholic Church's key role

Pope Francis arrived at the park in his popemobile and stayed well after sunset to greet the faithful, who illuminated the park with mobile phone lights.

"I wish for you peace, that you keep having many children, and that your smile continues to be your children" the Pope said, delivering his message in Spanish.

East Timor, also known as Timor-Leste, gained independence from Indonesia in 2002 after decades of conflict that claimed up to 200,000 lives. The Catholic Church played a key role in supporting the country during its struggle, drawing international attention to human rights abuses under Indonesian rule.

Cardinal Carmo da Silva, the archbishop of Dili, told the crowd at the end of the Mass that John Paul's visit "marked the decisive step in our process of self-determination" and that Francis' visit to the same place "marks a fundamental step in the process of building our country, its identity and its culture".

Tasitolu Park once bore witness to atrocities committed by Indonesian forces. The park, where bodies were disposed of during the occupation, is now a symbol of peace. A large statue of St John Paul II stands in the park, commemorating his 1989 visit during East Timor's push for independence.

While local organisers initially expected 300,000 attendees, the actual turnout reached 600,000, according to the Vatican. The Pope's presence was described as a powerful source of blessing and hope for the people.

Prevent every kind of abuse

The day before the Mass, Pope Francis urged Timor-Leste's leaders to address child abuse following recent scandals involving clergy. He called for action to protect young people and condemned alcohol misuse and the violent use of martial arts, which has led to government crackdowns.

"Let us not forget the many children and adolescents whose dignity has been violated. The phenomenon is manifesting all over the world" he said in a speech in the capital, Dili.

"We are all called to do everything possible to prevent every kind of abuse and guarantee a healthy and peaceful childhood for all young people" the pope added.

Sources

AP News

UCA News

CathNews New Zealand

"No one cares about the tragic fate of the Papuan minority, who suffer from the injustices of the ruling powers and the Indonesian military, who accuse them of being separatists," said Father Alexandro Rangga.

Speaking by phone from Jakarta, the 37-year-old Franciscan, originally from Flores and living in Jayapura, the capital of Indonesian Papua for 20 years, summarised the tragedy and violence the Papuan minority has suffered since their territory's annexation in 1969, largely hidden from the world.

Papua lives under constant tension

"Majority Christian and Catholic," Father Rangga noted, "the Papuans hope to hear a message of support and hope from Pope Francis, who is attuned to issues of injustice, migration, and environmental destruction."

Closed off to journalists and UN diplomats seeking to investigate human rights abuses by the Indonesian military, Papua remains tense.

While neighboring Papua New Guinea, with a population of 10 million, gained independence from Australia in 1975, Indonesia forcefully took control of the other half of the island, Papua, home to 6 million people, in 1962, officially annexing it in 1969 after a sham referendum endorsed by the United Nations.

A militarised province

"It's Indonesia's original sin against this province, rich in natural resources," lamented a Jesuit priest recently returning from Papua.

The wealth from copper, gold, nickel, gas, and precious timber does not benefit the people of Papua, who remain the poorest in Indonesia.

Underdevelopment and discrimination have fueled an independence conflict that has displaced 100,000 people and claimed 150,000 lives.

For five decades, the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM) has waged a low-intensity guerrilla war against the Indonesian military, which tightly controls the region.

"Since 2001, there's been a special autonomy law, but it's had little impact on local populations who demand a fairer share of the mining profits.

"What's happening is both a genocide and an ecocide, while the military presence has never been stronger," asserted Ayu Utami, a Catholic writer and human rights activist in Jakarta.

"She believes "Papua is a disaster because the government only approaches the issue through a security lens. The army should be withdrawn to pacify the region, but local oligarchs, politicians, and generals are in collusion."

Delivering messages to the Pope remains a challenge

For weeks, the Justice and Peace Commission in Jayapura has been trying to send a message to Pope Francis about the humanitarian catastrophe in Papua.

However, an Indonesian priest, speaking anonymously, revealed there are "obstacles and significant pressure, even from within the Catholic hierarchy, to prevent the pope from receiving these messages or addressing the Papuan issue."

A book written by 34 Papuans, including priests, detailing the history of Papuan Catholics and translated into Italian, was meant to be presented to Pope Francis in Jakarta by the Bishop of Jayapura, but this was prohibited.

"We still have hope," said Father Rangga.

"For the Papuans, even a simple mention of their existence by the Pope would be a form of recognition of their suffering and a political success that could improve their future."

• First published by La Croix International
• Dorian Malovic is a French journalist, winner of the 2007 Grand prix catholique de littérature.

He will visit Indonesia, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea and Singapore. No doubt some Australians will grumble that he passed so close without dropping in to visit us.

For the 87 year-old Pope such travel will be arduous. His determination to continue visiting distant lands might well lead us to ask why he gives precedence to this over his other responsibilities as Pope.

The Pope's place in the Church

This question leads to reflection on the Pope's place in the Catholic Church.

As the Bishop of Rome, he is seen as the successor of St Peter and St Paul who both spent time and were martyred in Rome.

In Catholic tradition he shares Peter's role in the Church of strengthening his brother Bishops in living and spreading their faith in Jesus. This is primarily a pastoral service, a fact easily overlooked in the many controversies about the extent and limits of his powers in the Church.

Over the centuries the strengthening of faith in the local Churches has taken many forms.

Bishops of Rome have gathered the Church together in times of dispute about the implications of faith, have helped heal divisions in the Church, have been a centre of communication and of preaching the Gospel, been a sign of unity in the Church, adapted Church law and liturgy to changing circumstances, and have ensured that the prayer and devotional life of the Church reflect the Gospel.

Although public attention has focused on their exercise of power, their service through letters, preaching and teaching, holiness of life, and concern for the universal Church as well as for the local church of Rome, has been more significant in confirming the local Churches in faith.

The contribution of each pope has reflected his personal gifts and the influence of the culture of his time as well as his office. Like the rest of humanity Popes have also sometimes acted unwisely and rashly.

Papal visits

Travel has only recently entered the Papal armoury.

Like most people of their time Bishops of Rome generally travelled only when they were forced to flee to other towns or were dragged there as prisoners.

ln the nineteenth century the revolution that created Italy meant that the Pope ceased to be the ruler of his own territory and won some sympathy for being the ‘Prisoner of the Vatican'.

Even after they made peace with the new Italian State, Popes stayed home to be with their people in times of depression and war.

Pope John XXIII was the first pope to travel outside Rome for over seventy years.

Paul VI then travelled extensively, including to Australia in 1974.

Pope John Paul II, however, made travel central to his mission of encouraging the Churches in their faith.

He was a commanding presence with a gift for powerful public speaking and for such dramatic gestures as kissing the ground whenever he arrived at an airport. Particularly in nations where Catholics were discriminated against, as was the case in his native Poland, his presence stirred hunger for freedom.

Pope Francis has put an equal emphasis on travel to strengthen his brothers in the faith.

He also puts an equal weight on gestures to match his and words in preaching the Gospel. His style has been popular rather than patrician, showing a gift for the common touch.

He became famous for travelling simply, for leaving cavalcades to embrace crippled people waiting by the side of the road.

And in a nation divided by its attitude to refugees, one of his earliest journeys was to the isle of Lampedusa to mourn the deaths of refugees who had died at sea.

He has constantly reached out to people who are marginalised.

Pope Francis and marginalised people

Underlying these differences of style, however, is an enduring challenge that faces an international Church. It is to negotiate the tensions between universality and particularity and between the centre and the margins.

In any Church the focus of its members is local. It is about the relationship of each individual person with God, spreading out to the relationships in family and in local congregation, and so extending to city, state, nation and finally to world.

It is easy for commitment to the local to become parochial, and for Catholics in other nations and their concerns to be seen as a foreign country. Any local Papal intervention can be seen as a bureaucratic impertinence by head office.

'In these most recent travels, as in previous ones, Pope Francis preaches the Gospel through homilies at Masses, but equally through the warmth of his feeling for people who are doing it hard, through his concern for a world marked by discouragement, and through the people with whom he associates.'

It is also easy for people in small local Churches marginalised by their small size or by discrimination against them to see themselves as neglected and marginal, and for people in well-endowed churches to identify their perspectives and priorities with those of the universal Church.

In this world, the visit of the Pope who represents the Universal Church can be powerful in giving it a personal face and in encouraging people who feel marginalised.

It allows their gifts and concerns to be recognised outside their own local Church, and for the priorities of the Universal Church also to wear a personal dress. In strengthening faith, the choreography of the papal visit will be as important as the papal words.

Pope Francis has clearly seen the priority of the Church to lie in reaching out to the margins.

This calls for Catholics in parishes and dioceses to reach out to people who are marginalised by poverty, illness, flight from persecution. They must also reach out to people on the edges of the Church who belong to other religious groups and none.

These priorities are embodied in his visits.

He gives precedence to small Churches in non-Christian and developing nations, seen most recently and spectacularly in his visit to Mongolia with its few thousand Catholics.

In this week's journey he has chosen to visit East Timor and Papua New Guinea, and to nations and cultures in which Catholics are a small minority, such as Indonesia and Singapore. His journeys also reach out to Catholics living in cultures that where Catholics are small minority.

In all his engagements, he encourages the local churches by meeting as an equal the local heads of state and leaders in civil society, by meeting as friends the local Bishops and groups of clergy and catechists, and to celebrate Mass in large gathering of Catholics.

He also embodies the priorities of the Church at the margins. In this journey he will meet groups of young people in schools and programs for the poor, groups of people who are elderly, ill and with other disadvantages.

In countries where Christians are a minority, he will also meet groups from other religions on their home ground. In Indonesia and East Timor, too, he will gather informally with his fellow Jesuits.

In these most recent travels, as in previous ones, Pope Francis preaches the Gospel through homilies at Masses, but equally through the warmth of his feeling for people who are doing it hard, through his concern for a world marked by discouragement, and through the people with whom he associates.

His visits are gestures of encouragement.

• First published in Eureka Street
• Andrew Hamilton is consulting editor of Eureka Street, and writer at Jesuit Social Services.

"No matter what, I will go. There's no turning back," said Angeline Lee from Kuala Lumpur.

The 52-year-old told UCA News that she is not dropping her plans to go to Singapore but will take precautions, such as wearing a mask in public spaces and staying hydrated.

Singapore's health ministry said in a bulletin on Aug. 22 that "13 confirmed cases of mpox have been detected this year, all of which are of the less severe Clade II infections."

"There have been no mpox Clade I cases detected in Singapore to date," the ministry added.

Read More

Extremely expensive

Last Thursday human rights organisation Lao Hamutuk told Union of Catholic Asian (UCA) News that the Government's budgeted US$12 million is out of line with the country's extreme poverty.

Among the provisions within the budget is an altar costing US$1 million.

A researcher at the Timor-Leste Institute for Development Monitoring and Analysis is concerned about the imbalance between the amount budgeted for the papal visit and the amount budgeted for food production.

Far from the millions the Government has set aside for the two-days Francis will spend in East Timor, it has earmarked only US$4.7 million to increase food production the researcher says.

Such a "really low" budget will contribute almost nothing to increasing East Timor's food production sustainability or to agricultural development.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation is concerned about the Southeast Asian country.

It says East Timor is facing major challenges in terms of food security.

In addition, the United Nations organisation says high inflation and weather changes have reduced grain production.

Right now, about 364,000 people (27 percent of the population) are currently suffering from acute food insecurity.

Families evicted

The location chosen for the papal Mass is also garnering criticism.

It will be held in Tasi-Tolu, an open area on the coast about eight kilometres from Dili - East Timor's capital city.

To create the space needed for the Mass, the Government has seized 23 hectares of land.

Human rights activists say the confiscation will displace the 185 families who live there.

A Land Network coordinator says the Government hasn't offered the families - who are all poor - any alternatives.

"They are still waiting for compensation" the coordinator told UCA News.

" The date of their eviction is constantly changing. The lives of these families are uncertain at the moment, they don't know where to go."

Catholic majority

Like the Philippines, East Timor has a Christian majority.

Almost 98 per cent of the population is Catholic.

About 700,000 of East Timor's 1.3 million population are expected to attend the papal Mass.

Source

• katholisch.de

The Holy See Press Office on July 6 released the full schedule of what will be the first papal trip ever to the sparsely populated East Asian nation squeezed between Russia and China, which is home to fewer than 1,500 Catholics.

Francis is to fly out of Rome on the evening of August 31, making a nine-and-a-half-hour overnight flight to the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar.

He is due to arrive at Chinggis Khaan International Airport at 10 o'clock the next morning (September 1) and be officially welcomed to the country by leading government officials, but he will not officially take part in any events until the next day.

Read More

Yeom, who is the archbishop of Seoul, also serves as the acting chief of North Korea's Pyongyang Diocese.

According to Lee Hae-chan, the chief of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), Yeom made the comment during a meeting where they were discussing the pope's tacit agreement to visit North Korea someday.

They say Francis effectively accepted an unofficial invitation to visit North Korea last month when South Korea's President Moon Jae-in relayed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's verbal invitation.

Speaking on Francis's behalf, Cardinal Pietro Parolin said last month a visit to North Korea would require serious preparation and consideration.

Parolin, who is the Vatican Secretary of State, added that a papal visit could also "give support to the process of peace and denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula."

Cheong Wa Dae from Seoul's presidential office says he expects a papal visit could help expedite the process to bring peace to the Korean peninsula, which is the world's last remaining vestige of the Cold War.

If he were to visit Pyongyang, Francis would be the first pope to visit North Korea.

Source

• The Korea Herald
• Aju Business Daily
• Image: Vatican News

If he goes, it will be only the second time a Catholic pontiff has visited visit Japan. St Pope John Paul II visited Japan in 1981.

Francis made the announcement of his proposed visit to members of the "Tensho Kenoh Shisetsu Kenshokai" association he met with on Wednesday.

"... I would like to announce my desire to visit Japan next year. Let's hope I can do it," he told them.

Francis is said to have long expressed his admiration for Japanese culture and history.

He is said to have hoped to become a missionary in Japan after he was ordained a priest - a desire his superiors quashed, citing his frail health at the time.

During his papacy, Francis has repeatedly spoken in admiration of the missionary work of his Jesuit order to bring Christianity to Japan in the 16th century.

He has also often spoken of the witness of the martyrs who suffered from the anti-Christian persecution that ensued.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is known to have extended an invitation on several occasions for Francis to visit.

He has suggested Francis could visit Hiroshima, the site of US atomic bombing at the end of the Second World War, to raise awareness about the continuing dangers of nuclear weapons.

Christianity is a religious minority in Japan, where those who identify with an organised religion are primarily Shinto or Buddhist.

According to the Vatican's 2016 statistics, the latest available, there are 539,000 Catholics in Japan.

Source

• NCR Online
• ABC News
• aaronbonneau.com

The Church is trying to persuade wealthy followers to donate millions of euro to cover the costs of the visit.

The World Meeting of Families, which will take place from August 21 to 26, is estimated to cost around €20million. Read more

The fact that a Protestant was the first person to use it is a source of quiet amusement for the man who constructed it.

Upholsterer Colin Loach tells how he put the very large chair in front of his elderly neighbour's door.

"He wandered out with his leg in plaster and a smoke in his mouth and in his pyjamas, of course and said, 'What the bloody hell's that?' I said to him, 'It's the Pope's throne'."

"And that was when he collapsed in the chair, had his photo taken and declared himself the world's first Presbyterian Pope!"

For security reasons, Loach worked on the chair in secret, not even telling his children what he was doing.

Before completing it, he slipped something special inside.

For many years Loach had been a tram driver at both Ferrymead Heritage Park.

On the back of a photo of a Christchurch tram he wrote his and Joe O'Neill's details, identifying them as the chair's makers.

"And I stuffed it in among the springs. I must say I was quietly amused to see him there [the Pope, at Lancaster Park] in all his glory."

"Little did he know he was sitting on a picture of a Christchurch tram!"

O'Neill, a cabinetmaker, made the frame of the chair. Sisters from the Carmelite Monastery of Christ the King embroidered the Pope's Coat of Arms onto a piece of cream velvet.

After being rescued from the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament the chair has been stored along with other items from the Cathedral in six securely locked shipping containers near the ruined building.

This is a digest of a story produced by Justin Gregory and used archival audio from Nga Taonga Sound and Vision. You can subscribe or listen to every Eyewitness podcast on iTunes or at radionz.co.nz/series.

Image: radionz.co.nz

Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said the pope's itinerary hasn't been finalized because organizers are still reviewing possible stops during the visit.

Italian media is reporting that the trip will occur June 22-26, but Lombardi said no dates have been set.

Francis first floated the possibility of a visit to Armenia during his return flight from his November visit to Africa, when he said he had promised the three Armenian patriarchs that he would go. "The promise has been made," he said. "I don't know if it will be possible, but I did promise."

A few months before, Argentine Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Eastern Churches, had raised the possibility of a papal visit during his own trip to Armenia, saying that the pontiff "wishes with all of his heart to go to Armenia," and that he'd already received an invitation from Armenian president Serzh Sargsyan.

Last year, Francis sparked a diplomatic incident with Turkey by celebrating a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian slaughter by the Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I and defining the massacre as the "first genocide of the 20th century."

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He will visit the former Nazi death camp in southern Poland on July 29, on the third day of his visit to the country.

Two of his predecessors have also visited the camp, John Paul II - himself Polish - in 1979 and retired pope Benedict XVI in 2006.

1.1 million people, including a million Jews from across Europe, were killed by Nazi Germany at the camp from 1940 to 1945.

The other victims were mostly non-Jewish Poles, gypsies and Soviet prisoners.

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The state-run Associated Press of Pakistan reported that the pontiff has accepted the invitation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The invitation was extended by Pakistan's Ports and Shipping Minister Kamran Michael, a Catholic, and Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Yusuf during a meeting in the Vatican last month.

Bishop Rufin Anthony of Islamabad-Rawalpindi told ucanews.com that the possibility of Pope Francis coming to Pakistan was good news.

"The minority Christians will be definitely encouraged," he said. "However the security of the Holy Father will be sole responsibility of the government," added the prelate.

"This is totally unexpected," said Father Saleh Diego, director of the bishops' National Commission for Justice and Peace in Karachi Archdiocese.

The priest, however, said the visit will be a "big risk for the government as things are different than they were when Pope John Paul II had visited Karachi in 1981."

Father Diego noted that "intolerance is generally prevalent in the society."

Christians make up for 1.6 percent of Pakistan's population, which accounts for about 2.8 million people.

Sources

ucanews.com
TIME
The Indian Express
NDTV
Image: Pakistan Information Department/ucanews.com

The saint and martyr is the patron of Naples.

A vial of his blood, preserved by the faithful since the 4th century, regularly turns into liquid form on his feast day.

Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe of Naples, who presided at a traditional ceremony in the cathedral, told a large congregation that the miracle had been repeated.

"St Januarius is alive in his blood," said Cardinal Sepe. "And he loves Naples."

Cardinal Sepe said that there would "soon be an announcement that will shake the cathedral".

Il Mattino, a local newspaper, speculated that Cardinal Sepe will soon announce a papal visit to Naples.

Many residents of Naples believe that if the saint's blood does not turn to liquid form, it is a sign that some tragedy will befall the city.

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The short range rockets were fired from multiple launchers from North Korea and travelled 220 km, before landing in waters east of the Korean peninsula on August 14.

The last rocket was fired 35 minutes before Pope Francis was due to arrive at an air base in Seoul, where the Pontiff started a five-day visit to the south.

The test site was hundreds of kilometres (miles) away from the Pope's plane.

North Korea fired two more projectiles from the same location later the same day.

"Our scientists do not know what the Pope has done for the people of the world, and especially for our nation, and we don't feel any necessity to know about it. And we don't know and are not interested in the purpose of his visit to Korea," a North Korean spokesman said on state media.

The launches preceded the start of US-South Korean military exercises set for August 18.

Seoul and Washington say the exercises are defensive in nature, but North Korea regularly protests against what it sees as a rehearsal for war.

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Mateparae wrote on his Facebook page: "Our audience with Pope Francis was a very special occasion for us today."

"Pope Francis was well informed about New Zealand. He was most interested in hearing about people. I did say to him that he would get a better impression of New Zealand and us if he was to visit!"

A video at romereports.com released on the Governor-General's Facebook page shows the meeting and some of the conversations between the two.

In this video clip the Governor General says, "We would be absolutely honoured if you could come to our part of the world for a visit."

He presented Pope Francis with a koru pounamu and told him it signified peace and understanding.

The Pope gave him a pen, which Sir Jerry said he would use for important documents.

The item at romeports.co says the Governor General gave the Pope a coral stone (sic).

A Vatican statement released after the meeting said that during their discussions the parties focused on a number of aspects of the social and economic life of the country, as well as the valuable contribution of the Catholic Church in various sectors of New Zealand society.

There was also an exchange of opinions on the international situation, with particular reference to regional cooperation in various development programmes and participation in peace missions in different parts of the world, the Vatican Statement said.

Watch Video clip on TV3

Source

• Stuff.co.nz
• Vatican Information Service
• 3News
• Image: GettyImages/FrancoOriglia