Pope Francis travels to the coastal city of Vanimo in Papua New Guinea, and urges the Catholic faithful to bear witness to the Gospel as missionaries in their daily lives.
By Devin Watkins
After a two-hour flight aboard an Australian C-130 military transport plane, Pope Francis arrived in the northwestern city of Vanimo to spend a few hours with local Catholics and express his appreciation for the Church’s missionary work carried out in the area.
In his address in front of the Holy Cross Pro-Cathedral, the Pope acknowledged that many people had traveled from far away, thanking them for being with him in Vanimo.
He praised the work of missionary priests and religious sisters who have evangelized the area since the mid-19th century, as well as the work of modern-day missionaries who travel long distances to preach the Gospel to remote communities.
“They have faced many difficulties in order to be an instrument ‘of peace and love’ for all,” he said, as Sister Jaisha Joseph, DPMT, had told those gathered just moments before.
‘Experts in beauty of Christ’s Gospel’
Pope Francis said the Church’s mission to spread the Gospel in the area had led to the creation of churches, schools, hospitals, and missionary centers, saying these institutions help the faithful to “flourish in all their beauty for the sake of the common good.”
“You are ‘experts’ in beauty here, because you are surrounded by it!” he noted. “You live in a magnificent land, enriched by a great variety of plants and birds.”
He said God has entrusted the people of Papua New Guinea with this “sweetness” of nature for the benefit of all.
“When we look to ourselves, we realize that there is an even more beautiful sight: that which grows in us when we love one another,” said the Pope. “Indeed, our mission is precisely to spread the beauty of the Gospel of Christ everywhere through loving God and our brothers and sisters.”
Defending Christian values
The Holy Father said Catholics need not travel far to be missionaries, since each of us can be “missionaries where we live: at home, at school, in the workplace”.
He invited the Papuan faithful to love one another in order to “overcome divisions – personal, family and tribal – to drive out fear, superstition and magic from people’s hearts, and to put an end to destructive behaviours such as violence, infidelity, exploitation, alcohol and drug abuse.”
These behaviours, he added, are evils that steal the happiness of those who engage in them.
“Let us remember that love is stronger than all this and its beauty can heal the world, because it has its roots in God,” he said, urging everyone to spread and defend that love.
Pope Francis recalled the witness of Blessed Peter To Rot, a father, catechist, and martyr of Papua New Guinea, saying he gave his life “to defend the unity of the family”.
The country’s greatest treasure, concluded the Pope, is the “beautiful and fascinating treasure” that lies in their hearts and is expressed in acts of charity and love.
“I say this especially to you, children, with your contagious smiles and your exuberant joy, which spreads out in every direction,” he said. “You are the most beautiful image that visitors can take with them and keep in their hearts!”