Papua New Guinea: 20,000 attend Mass with Pope Francis

Screenshot

Source: Vatican Media

More than 20,000 local Catholics gathered in the Sir John Guise Stadium yesterday, some arriving as early as 2am, to secure a spot at Sunday Mass with the Holy Father. Many had walked for days from remote parts of the country, to reach Port Moresby in time for this special event.

As the Pope entered the stadium he was greeted with joyous traditional singing and dancing.

In his homily, the Pope reflected on the Gospel passage from Mark about Jesus healing a deaf man with a speech impediment. He reminded the faithful that, although they may feel far from God, they "are at the centre of His heart."

He stressed that "the most important thing is to open ourselves to God and our brothers and sisters, and to open ourselves to the Gospel, making it the compass of our lives."

The Pope reiterated that evil and witchcraft do not change lives in a positive way, but lock people up "in lies and fear."

In the afternoon, the Pope boarded an Australian military transport plane for the two-hour flight to the coastal city of Vanimo in the northwestern part of the country, where he spent a few hours with local Catholics.

He listened to testimonials and conveyed his gratitude for the missionary work being carried out in the area, and he urged the entire community to support the Church's efforts by being missionaries themselves, be it at home, at school, or in the workplace.

He said that by loving one another they would be able to overcome personal, family, and tribal rivalries and divisions, to drive out fear, superstition, and magic from people's hearts, and to put an end to destructive behaviours, such as violence, infidelity, exploitation, and alcohol and drug abuse.

After addressing the faithful, Pope Francis made a short visit to the nearby village of Baro to meet a group of Argentinian missionaries and religious sisters belonging to the Institute of the Incarnate Word (IVE).

An old friend,Papua New Guinea , a missionary who has been working in Papua New Guinea for ten years had invited Pope Francis The community was overjoyed that the Holy Father made the long trip out to meet them, and they called him "a man of great heart."

Shortly after this happy reunion, the Holy Father boarded the aircraft back to Port Moresby, to take a rest, before concluding his Apostolic Journey to Papua New Guinea today (Monday) with a meeting with young people.

LINKS

Highlights of Pope Francis' second full day in Papua New Guinea on Vatican youtube channel:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yvlgL-GAdU

Meeting with the Faithful of the Diocese of Vanimo: www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3cSdWChcFc and

www.youtube.com/watch?v=103JRHldl_w