Milan () – These days mark the tenth anniversary of the election of Pope Francis as successor to Peter on March 13, 2013. Among the many facets of these ten years of pontificate, a very significant one is the constant attention to the peoples from Asia. Pope Francis has visited them repeatedly, has often recalled the testimony of his martyrs, has bent over the wounds he is suffering, has chosen many new cardinals from the “little flock” of his Churches. We want to summarize this look with ten fragments of as many speeches that we have chosen from the trips that took Pope Francis to Asia and from some other significant gestures or moments of these ten years. Words that ideally embrace the challenges that the entire continent is experiencing today.
Korea: convincing witnesses of reconciliation
“Have confidence in the power of the cross of Christ. Receive his reconciling grace in your hearts and share it with others. I ask you to give convincing witness to Christ’s message of reconciliation in your homes, in your communities and in all spheres of national life. I hope that, in the spirit of friendship and collaboration with other Christians, with the followers of other religions and with all the men and women of good will who care about the future of Korean society, you will be leaven for the Kingdom of God on this earth. In this way, our prayers for peace and reconciliation will reach God from purer hearts and, through his gift of grace, will reach that precious good that we all desire.
Seoul, Mass for Peace and Reconciliation, August 18, 2014
Sri Lanka: respect and openness in dialogue between religions
“At the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church declared its deep and permanent respect for other religions. In this spirit of respect, the Catholic Church wishes to cooperate with you, and with all men of good will, in the search for the prosperity of all the citizens of Sri Lanka. But, as experience shows, for this dialogue and meeting to be effective, it must be based on a complete and frank presentation of our respective convictions. Indeed, such a dialogue will highlight the variety of our beliefs, traditions and practices. But if we are honest in presenting our convictions, we will be able to see more clearly what we have in common. New avenues will be opened for mutual appreciation, cooperation, and certainly friendship.”
Colombo, interfaith meeting, January 13, 2015
Philippines: Jesus on the cross and the victims of natural disasters
“When I saw this catastrophe from Rome, I felt that I had to be here. I am here to tell you that Jesus is Lord, that Jesus does not disappoint. Father, one of you can tell me, he disappointed me, because I lost my house, I lost my family, I lost what I had, I am sick. What you tell me is true and I respect your feelings; but I look at it stuck there and from there it does not disappoint us. Many of you have wondered looking at Christ: Why, Lord? And, to each one, the Lord responds in his heart, from his heart. I have no other words to tell you. Let us look at Christ: He is Lord, and He understands us because he went through all the trials that befall us.
Tacloban, Mass with the victims of Typhoon Yolanda, January 17, 2015
China: with Matteo Ricci in dialogue with the culture of this great country
“Matteo Ricci’s experience teaches us that it is necessary to dialogue with China, because it is a concentrate of wisdom and history. It is a land blessed with many gifts. And the Catholic Church, which has among its duties to respect all civilizations, before this civilization, I would say that it has the duty to respect it with a capital R. When I first crossed the border into China, they told me on the plane, ‘In ten minutes, we will enter Chinese airspace and send your greetings.’ I confess that I felt very emotional, something that does not usually happen to me. I was moved to fly over this great wealth of culture and wisdom.”
Interview with AsiaTimes, February 2, 2016
India: Mother Teresa is the example of free and free Christian love
“Mother Teresa, throughout her entire existence, has been a generous dispenser of divine mercy, making herself available to all by welcoming and defending human life, both the unborn and the abandoned and discarded. Her mission in the peripheries of cities and in the existential peripheries remains to this day as an eloquent testimony of God’s closeness to the poorest of the poor. May this tireless worker of mercy help us to understand more and more that our only criterion of action is free love, free of all ideology and all bonds and poured out on everyone without distinction of language, culture, race or religion.”
Rome, Canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, September 4, 2016
Myanmar: the future must be peace, founded on the rule of law
“The future of Myanmar must be peace, a peace based on respect for the dignity and rights of every member of society, on respect for each ethnic group and its identity, on respect for the rule of law and a democratic order that allows each individual and each group — without excluding anyone — to offer their legitimate contribution to the common good. In the great task of reconciliation and national integration, Myanmar’s religious communities have a privileged role to play. Religious differences should not be a source of division and mistrust, but rather an impetus for unity, forgiveness, tolerance and wise nation-building.”
Naypyidaw, speech to the authorities and civil society, November 28, 2017
Bangladesh: God is called Rohingya today
“Dear brothers and sisters, we are all close to you. There is little we can do because your tragedy is very great. But there is room in our hearts for you. In the name of everyone, of those who persecute you, those who have done evil, especially because of the indifference of the world, I ask your forgiveness. Sorry. Many of you have told me about the great heart of Bangladesh that has welcomed you. Now I appeal to your big heart so that you can give us the forgiveness we ask for. Let’s not close our hearts, let’s not look the other way. The presence of God, today, is also called “Rohingya.” Let each one give his own answer.”
Dhaka, speeches to a group of Rohingya refugees, December 1, 2017
Thailand: the Churches of Asia must not forget that it was the laity who evangelized them
“Let us not lose sight of the fact that many of your lands were evangelized by laymen. Let’s not clericalize the mission, please. And much less let us clericalize the laity. These lay people had the possibility of speaking the dialect of their people, a simple and direct exercise of inculturation, neither theoretical nor ideological, but the fruit of the ardor to share Christ. The holy faithful People of God possesses the anointing of the Saint that we are called to recognize, value and expand. Let us not lose this grace of seeing God acting in the midst of his people, as he did before, he does now and will continue to do so.
Japan: Nuclear weapons are a continuous attack that cries out to heaven
“In this city, which is witnessing the catastrophic humanitarian and environmental consequences of a nuclear attack, there will always be few attempts to raise our voice against the arms race. This wastes valuable resources that could, instead, be used for the benefit of the integral development of the towns and for the protection of the natural environment. In today’s world, where millions of children and families live in subhuman conditions, the money spent and fortunes made manufacturing, modernizing, maintaining and selling increasingly destructive weapons is an attack. I keep crying out to heaven.”
Nagasaki, Speech on Nuclear Weapons, November 24, 2019
Kazakhstan: there is a grace in being a small flock as a Church
“Faced with so many challenges of faith, as well as with the problems and fatigue of life, looking at the numbers, in the vastness of a country like this, we could end up feeling “small” and incapable. And yet, if we adopt the hopeful look of Jesus, we discover something surprising: the Gospel says that being little, poor in spirit, is a beatitude, the first beatitude (cf. Mt 5,3), because littleness humbly gives us to the power of God and leads us not to base ecclesial action on our own capacities. And this is a grace! I repeat it: there is a hidden grace in being a small Church, a small flock, instead of displaying our strengths, our numbers, our structures and any other form of human prestige, we allow ourselves to be guided by the Lord and we approach with humility the people. Rich in nothing and poor in everything, we walk with simplicity, close to the sisters and brothers of our people, bringing the joy of the Gospel to the situations of life”.
Astana, meeting with bishops, priests and pastoral agents, September 15, 2022
