Smiles all around: Francis greeting Catholic faithful after his arrival in Singapore. (Below) Choir members rehearsing for the papal Mass at Singapore’s National Stadium. — AFP
POPE Francis has touched down in Singapore, the last stop of a four-nation Asia-Pacific trip aimed at boosting the Catholic Church’s standing in the world’s most populous region.
Crowds waved Vatican and Singapore flags as Francis’ plane arrived at the city-state’s Changi Airport yesterday, on the last leg of a 12-day tour to the region.
The pontiff, 87, has defied doubts about his health during a journey that has taken him from a Jakarta grand mosque to a remote jungle in Papua New Guinea.
In recent years, the ailing pope has undergone hernia surgery and suffered respiratory issues. He now relies on a wheelchair, walking sticks or aides to get around.But throughout the trip, he has carried out dozens of public engagements, energised congregations through impromptu call-and-response and repeatedly sat for hours in the brutal tropical heat.In Timor-Leste, he held a Mass for 600,000 faithful – almost half the nation’s population – before flying yesterday to Singapore.
About 30% of Singaporeans are Buddhist, 20% have no religion and the rest are a mix of Catholic, Protestant, Taoist and Hindu.
Erik Hon, a 45-year-old Buddhist fintech worker, said he was “delighted” by the pope’s visit, hoping it would “spread the message of love, peace and unity to all stripes of humanity”.
Like many businesses, Francis is likely to use Singapore as a platform to reach out to the rest of the region and the world.
“The pope will most likely continue to underline a number of global issues that are not specific to a single country,” said Michel Chambon, an expert on Christianity in Asia at the National University of Singapore.
“The importance of interreligious harmony and international peace, the need for a more resilient and equitable development as well as the necessity for stronger efforts to fight climate change,” he said, suggesting familiar themes for this leg of the pope’s trip.For Asia’s 100-million-plus Catholics, the tour has made them feel connected to a Church steeped in the customs and conventions of a far-away continent.
The papal visit “shows that while Catholicism is a minority faith in Singapore, it’s still a big part of civil society”, said 46- year-old homemaker Veronique Dawson. — AFP
