By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service • Posted September 10, 2024

VANIMO, Papua New Guinea (CNS) — Pope Francis flew 600 miles to a remote outpost of Papua New Guinea to spend an afternoon with a group of missionaries — many from Argentina — and with their people.

Given a ride by the Royal Australian Air Force aboard a C-130 Hercules plane Sept. 8, the pope’s first welcome was written offshore in the Pacific Ocean using bright orange floats: “Welcome, Pope Francis.”

He brought with him about a ton of medicine, clothing, toys and other aid for the missionaries to distribute, the Vatican press office said. A pool reporter on his plane said he also had a large jar of lollipops — he has regularly been distributing candy to children he meets at the Vatican and abroad.

But for the missionaries, the presence of the 87-year-old pope was enough of a gift.

Father Tomás Ravaioli, one of the Argentine Incarnate Word missionaries working nearby in Baro, said, “at his age, in his condition, this is an enormous sacrifice. But it shows that what he says, what he writes, he also demonstrates” through his closeness and service to people.

The visit, the priest said, should be a big encouragement to the local Catholics because it shows them that they really matter to the church.

The temperature hovered around 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and the humidity held steady at 80% during the pope’s visit. An estimated 20,000 people — including many who crossed over the nearby Indonesian border — were gathered on a huge grass field in front of the modest Holy Cross Cathedral, singing, praying and dancing as they awaited the pope.

Vanimo is the capital of Papua New Guinea’s Sandaun Province, which is one of the poorest in the nation. Situated on the northwestern coast, it is an area prone to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic activity.

Bishop Francis Meli of Vanimo welcomed Pope Francis to the town, telling him, “Your visit is a symbol of peace in a world marred by conflicts and wars, violence, especially gender violence, inequality, sorcery-related violence, climate change, white-collar crime, law and order problems, etc.”

“It is my prayer and hope that your visit, Holy Father, will bring renewed fervor to all Catholics and Christians in Vanimo, uniting them in faith and mission, especially in these most challenging times,” the bishop said.

He also was greeted by Maria Joseph, a 12-year-old who has lived at the Catholic-run Lujan Home for Girls since she was abandoned at the age of 2.

“Holy Father,” she said, “we are most grateful that you have come to visit us and given us the opportunity to tell you about our home. Your visit has brought us much joy and hope.”

After flying over forests, mountains and the ocean on his way from Port Moresby to Vanimo, Pope Francis told the people, “One cannot help but be amazed by the colors, sounds and scents, as well as the grandiose spectacle of nature bursting forth with life, all evoking the image of Eden!”

“The Lord entrusts this richness to you as a sign and an instrument, so that you too may live united in harmony with him and with your brothers and sisters, respecting our common home and looking after one another,” the pope told them.

“An even more beautiful sight,” though, he said, is “that which grows in us when we love one another.”

Being Christian, the pope told them, means working “to overcome divisions — personal, family and tribal — to drive out fear, superstition and magic from people’s hearts, to put an end to destructive behaviors such as violence, infidelity, exploitation, alcohol and drug abuse, evils which imprison and take away the happiness of so many of our brothers and sisters, even in this country.”

“Let us remember that love is stronger than all this and its beauty can heal the world, because it has its roots in God,” Pope Francis said.

After the gathering in Vanimo, the pope drove about 10 miles further north to Holy Trinity Humanistic School in Baro for what the Vatican said would be a “private” visit with the missionaries.

But they had students and parishioners on hand to welcome the pope to their mission on the Pacific shore.

And he was treated to a short concert by the school orchestra, whose members were pleased to hear the plane carrying the pope also was bringing new instruments for them. The children began with the “Ode to Joy.”