Sacred Heart of Mary Parish and Saint Louis Parish

ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM SINGAPORE (CNS) -- Asked what a U.S. Catholic given a choice between voting for a person who supports abortion or one who supports closing borders and deporting migrants, Pope Francis said one must choose "the lesser evil."

"Who is the 'lesser evil' that woman or that man?" the pope asked, referring to Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. "I do not know. Each person must think and decide in his or her conscience."

Pope Francis spent 45 minutes answering questions from 10 journalists on his flight Sept. 13 from Singapore to Rome at the end of a 12-day trip. He was asked about the four countries he visited, about sexual abuse, about his future travel plans, about the war in the Holy Land and the Vatican's relations with China.

A U.S. television reporter asked him about the choice Catholic voters face between Harris, who supports legalized abortion, and Trump, who wants to severely restrict immigration and has said he wants to deport tens of thousands of migrants.

Both attitudes "are against life: the one who wants to throw out the migrants and the one who kills children," the pope said. "Both are against life."

In the Old Testament, he said, God's people are repeatedly reminded to care for "'widows, orphans and the stranger,' that is, the migrant. They are the three that the People of Israel must protect. The one who does not care for migrants is lacking; it is a sin."

And "to have an abortion is to kill a human being. Whether or not you like the word, it is killing," the pope said. "The Catholic Church does not allow abortion because it is killing. It is assassination. And we must be clear about that."

Pope Francis was asked if there were situations when a Catholic could vote for a candidate who was in favor of abortion.

"In political morality, generally, they say not voting is wrong; one must vote, and one must choose the lesser evil" in accordance with one's conscience, he said.

Abortion and care for migrants are both issues the U.S. bishops urge Catholics to consider when voting. In their document, "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship," however, they say, "The threat of abortion remains our pre-eminent priority because it directly attacks our most vulnerable and voiceless brothers and sisters and destroys more than a million lives per year in our country alone."

At the beginning of Pope Francis' trip, a French writer started a rumor that the pope would travel to Paris Dec. 8 for the reopening and consecration of the altar in Notre Dame Cathedral, rebuilt after a devastating fire in 2019.

When asked about that trip, the pope's response was simple: "I will not go to Paris."

As for the idea of the 87-year-old pope making a trip to Argentina, his homeland, he was not as clear.

"That is something that still hasn't been decided," he said. "I would like to go. They are my people. But there are various things to resolve first."

However, if he does go, he said, he would want to stop over in the Canary Islands, a Spanish autonomous region in the Atlantic, where thousands of migrants -- including many unaccompanied minors -- have arrived from Senegal, Mali and other African countries.

Regarding the ongoing clerical sexual abuse scandal, Pope Francis was asked about new revelations in the case of Abbé Pierre, the French priest and founder of the Emmaus Community, who died in 2007 at the age of 94.

As the pope's trip began, the Emmaus Community announced that new accusations of sexual abuse of women and children had been made against the priest, and French media reported that church officials and leaders of the community had tried to cover up allegations as far back as the 1950s.

"We must speak clearly on these things and not hide them," the pope said. "Abuse, in my judgment, is something diabolical" because it attacks the sacredness and God-given dignity of another person.

At that point in the Singapore Airlines flight, the pilot interrupted Pope Francis and announced over the loudspeaker that everyone should return to their seats and fasten their seatbelts.

"Your question created some turbulence," the pope quipped to the reporter.

Nevertheless, the pope remained on his portable chair in the center aisle and continued answering questions.

"The sexual abuse of children, of minors, is a crime," he said.

After answering two other questions, Pope Francis returned to the topic of Abbé Pierre to tell the reporter, "I don't know when the Vatican came to know about it. I don't know because I wasn't here, and I never thought to research it, but certainly after his death -- that is certain."

On the Vatican's relationship with China, the pope said, "I am content with the dialogue with China. The results are good. Also, on the nomination of bishops, the work is going forward with goodwill."

In 2018, the Vatican and the government of China signed an agreement outlining procedures for ensuring Catholic bishops are elected by the Catholic community in China and approved by the pope before their ordinations or installations. The provisional, two-year agreement, already renewed in 2020 and 2022, is up for renewal in October.

The text has never been made public, but the Vatican has complained a couple times in the past six years when China named or transferred bishops in apparent violation of the accord.

The pope also said he welcomed China's efforts to encourage a peaceful settlement of the fighting in the Gaza Strip.

"I call the parish in Gaza every day, every day," he said; inside the compound of Holy Family Parish, some 600 people -- Christians and Muslims -- have taken shelter.

Pope Francis said he could not judge whether Israel's reaction to the Hamas invasion in October is excessive, "but, please, when you see the bodies of children who have been killed -- when you see that because of a presumption that there are some guerrillas there they bomb a school -- it's awful, awful."

"Sometimes," he said, "a war is just too much, too much."

ROME (CNS) -- "The church has always been in spaces with people in extremely fragile situations, always," said Sister Idília Carneiro, the new superior general of the Sisters Hospitallers, and as global rates of mental illness continue to rise, she insisted that Catholics have an obligation to expand their ministries in addressing the crisis.

The World Health Organization estimates nearly a billion people are living with a mental disorder worldwide. And Sister Carneiro, a specialist in social work, ethics and human resources, linked the global mental health crisis to the fragmentation of community life and the loss of widely-held values that once brought people together.

The church, she said, is uniquely poised to address that issue, since "mental health is very much linked to the health of the heart."

Sister Carneiro spoke with Catholic News Service in mid-September some three months after taking the reins of the Sisters Hospitallers, a congregation of about 1,000 sisters, working with over 11,000 helpers and volunteers, assisting nearly 820,000 people in need across 25 countries.

Like many women's religious congregations, the Sisters Hospitallers was founded in the late 19th century with the mission of caring for the sick, but they dedicated their ministry in particular to caring for those with mental disabilities.

At the time of the congregation's founding, people "very rarely saw mental illness as illness," she explained, prompting their founder St. Benedict Menni to start a congregation to bring "mercy and compassion to the holistic care of people with mental illness."

Today, however, Sister Carneiro said that people have become more open to discussing mental health, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic which brought the global mental health crisis into sharper focus -- global rates of depression and anxiety increased by more than 25% in the first year of the pandemic, according to the World Health Organization.

The church, she noted, must respond to that change. Trends in the United States already reflect an increasing involvement of religious communities in mental health care. According to the National Congregations Study, the percentage of Christian congregations offering services targeted at mental illness increased from 21.6% in 2012 to 27.1% in 2018-2019.

It is precisely in that context, Sister Carneiro told CNS, that the church "has an important role of hope, of offering a new horizon" to people struggling with mental illness.

While society as a whole must be active in addressing mental health issues, she explained that the church has a unique "differentiating element, because it is motivated by faith, with a dimension of hope and recognition that each person is more than their illness and has human dignity."

"When there is a mental health problem, it is not only the mind that is ill, it is all of the being, the entire sense of life," she said. "For the church and for us as a congregation, what is most important is to help vulnerable people who are suffering to again find a sense of life and hope."

Sister Carneiro said the broader mental health crisis can partly be traced to "the loss of strong relationships that give us meaning as a person and the values that teach that there is something here that is beyond each one of us."

Beyond addressing the individual needs of patients, she stressed that "one must look at the global perspective, and society must ask how we can take steps to find each other again as people and help create that time and space in which people can make significant relationships that can help them."

"If we have spaces of connection and belonging where we are welcomed, loved, accompanied, as we are, that provides a structure for a balanced life," she said. But today "it is easy to find fractured spaces, (due to) the media, the absence of strong relationships that form community."

Many of the 25 countries in which the Sisters Hospitallers work are developing nations in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Sister Carneiro explained that these regions face significant challenges, such as the stigma surrounding mental illness and insufficient government investment in mental health care services, though she noted that these such problems affect the sisters' ministries in Europe as well.

Addressing mental health "requires resources, just like any other form of health," Sister Carneiro said.

Members of the congregation are trained as nurses, psychologists, therapists, or social workers. Many also join the congregation with previous professional backgrounds, but Sister Carneiro said that "theological formation comes first" when discerning a vocation with the sisters so they can fully live out "the evangelizing dimension of hospitality."

"Caring for and welcoming each person, that is the first stage of evangelization -- to humanize by recognizing their dignity," she said. "Hospitality, as we live it in our charism, obliges us to welcome all, independently of religion or their life plans."

Evangelization today, she added, "is a challenge in its expression, but not in its root, because the root comes to us as the institution of the church," whose nature is to evangelize through relationships.

"It is not only through the explicit proclamation of words; for us it is to evangelize through our lives as service, as a gift, through our dedication to care," she said. "The challenge is for the church to establish that closeness."

SINGAPORE (CNS) -- Pope Francis praised Singapore and its citizens for their hard work and ingenuity, but he urged them to be mindful of the poor and of the migrant workers who do much of the hard labor.

"I hope that special attention will be paid to the poor and the elderly -- whose labors have laid the foundations for the Singapore we see today -- as well as to protecting the dignity of migrant workers," the pope told government and civic leaders Sept. 12. "These workers contribute a great deal to society and should be guaranteed a fair wage." 

More than 40% of Singapore's workforce is made up of foreign workers, many of whom are migrant workers with a two-year work permit, which does not allow them to bring their families with them or to switch employers once they arrive in Singapore. The government also does not mandate a minimum wage for work-permit holders. They primarily work in construction, manufacturing, domestic service and in the shipyards.

Pope Francis had arrived in Singapore -- often named as the world's fourth wealthiest nation -- from Timor-Leste, one of the world's poorest countries.

Meeting the government and civic leaders in a theater at the National University of Singapore, he described the country as "a commercial crossroads of primary importance and a place where different peoples meet." About 75% of the citizens have Chinese ancestry, but there also are large numbers of people of Malay or Indian descent. 

Singapore "has not only prospered economically but has also striven to build a society in which social justice and the common good are held in high regard," he said, pointing specifically to efforts to help citizens "through public housing policies, high quality education and an efficient healthcare system."

"I hope that these efforts will continue until all Singaporeans are able to benefit from them fully," the pope said. While the city-state is a modern seat of international finance, it does suffer from wealth inequality with about 25% of the population being considered poor.

Focusing "solely on pragmatism or placing merit above all things," he said, runs the risk of excluding people on the margins of society from benefiting from progress.

Pope Francis also asked Singapore to use its technology, resources and regional influence to promote "better care of our common home."

"Your search for innovative solutions to address environmental challenges can encourage other countries to do the same," he said. "Singapore is a shining example of what humanity can achieve by working together in harmony, with a sense of responsibility and a spirit of inclusiveness and fraternity."

In a country with Buddhists, Christians, Muslims, Taoists, Hindus, Jains, Zoroastrians, Jews, Sikhs and Baha'is, Pope Francis praised Singapore's embrace of religious freedom and he asked the government "to continue to work in favor of the unity and fraternity of humanity and the common good of all peoples and all nations, in a way that does not exclude others or is restricted to your national interests." 

Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam told Pope Francis, "We are a multiracial, multireligious and multicultural society. There was a time in our history when these realities gave rise to inter-communal tensions," but through the efforts of the government and religious leaders, the people have come to value their diversity.

He also thanked the pope for being a "strong and principled advocate for human fraternity and environmental sustainability."

SINGAPORE (CNS) -- Arriving in Singapore from Timor-Leste, Pope Francis made the biggest transition of his 12-day trip to Asia and the Pacific, moving from one of the world's poorest countries to one of its wealthiest and from one of the most youthful to one of the oldest.

The pope landed in Singapore Sept. 11, the last stop on his Sept. 2-13 trip. He, his entourage and the 75 journalists traveling with him flew four hours on Aero Dili, Timor-Leste's national airline, which has only one plane.

According to the World Population Review, the median age of Singapore's population is 38.9 years in contrast to the global median age of 31. In Timor-Leste, where the pope had spent the previous two days, the median age is just 20.

Singapore is considered the world's fourth richest nation, based on gross domestic product. Timor-Leste ranks 172nd out of 196 nations, according to the Asian Development Bank.

Arriving at the Singapore airport, Pope Francis was welcomed by Edward Tong, minister for culture, community and youth, and four children, who did a little dance and offered flowers.

The pope and Tong held a brief meeting inside the airport before Pope Francis got in an electric golf cart -- covered because of the rain -- and did a little tour around the airport's garden paths to greet hundreds of people who were waiting to welcome him.

The pope then went to the St. Francis Xavier Retreat Centre, where he was staying. In the evening, he was scheduled to hold a private meeting with the Jesuits of Singapore, but had nothing else on his official schedule.

DILI, Timor-Leste (CNS) -- In a predominantly Catholic country where clergy are treated with great respect, they must make extra efforts to remain humble servants of their people, Pope Francis told the priests of Timor-Leste. 

Respect "should not make you think of your ministry as bestowing social prestige, acting as leaders who crush others," the pope said Sept. 10 during a meeting with bishops, priests, religious and catechists in Dili's Immaculate Conception Cathedral.

"The gesture that the faithful make here when they meet priests is meaningful: they take your consecrated hand and bring it close to their foreheads as a sign of blessing," the pope said. "It is beautiful to see in this gesture the affection of God's holy people, for the priest is an instrument of blessing. Never take advantage of this role. You should always bless and console; always be a minister of compassion and a sign of God's mercy."

Pope Francis arrived at the cathedral after visiting the Irmas Alma School and their students, who are seriously ill or have severe disabilities. 

After gently shaking hands with some of the children and caressing the cheeks of others, Pope Francis told the sisters and other staff that when Jesus spoke about the final judgment, he said the blessed are those who fed, clothed, cared for and visited him when they did so for others.

"I call this the sacrament of the poor. It builds and reinforces," he said. "And one cannot understand this without love." 

And then pointing to a little boy named Silvan, the pope said people have much to learn from the children at the home. "We have to learn to let ourselves be cared for, as they teach us, to let ourselves be cared for by God."

"Look at his face; he's sleeping peacefully, and just as he allows himself to be cared for, we must let ourselves be cared for," he said.

At the cathedral, Florentino de Jesus Martins shared his story with Pope Francis. Parkinson's disease forced the 89-year-old to retire seven years ago after more than 60 years as a full-time catechist. 

"I often had to walk from 6 to 10 kilometers (4-10 miles) in order to catechize. Along the way, I sometimes faced challenges such as rain and strong wind, or overnight stays during the journey," he said. "Despite the challenges, I was never discouraged, and I continued to work with the utmost responsibility, zeal and devotion."

When he finished speaking, Pope Francis quipped, "This man gives the Apostle Paul a run for his money!"

In his main talk to the churchworkers, the pope used the image of Timor-Leste's famous sandalwood trees and their fragrance, comparing it to the fragrance of the Gospel that gives joy to every home and every heart.

"Evangelization occurs when we have the courage to 'break' the jar containing the fragrance, breaking the 'shell' that often closes us in on ourselves, of leaving behind a lazy and comfortable religiosity that only serves our personal needs," he said.

Canossian Sister Rosa Sarmento had told the pope that the church in Timor-Leste was an "outgoing" one, full of vocations to the priesthood and religious life and sending missionaries to countries around the world.

"I liked the expression that Sister Rosa used in her testimony," he said, "a church on the move, a church that does not stand still, does not revolve around itself, but burns with passion to bring the joy of the Gospel to all."

"In particular, the fragrance of the Gospel must be spread in order to counter anything that humiliates, disfigures or even destroys human life; to counter those plagues that cause inner emptiness and suffering such as alcoholism, violence and disrespect for the dignity of women," the pope said. 

He was greeted with strong applause when he asked the religious women present to be "mothers of the people of God."

Four sisters from the U.S.-based Maryknoll Missionaries traveled from their home in Aileu, southwest of Dili, to join some 2,000 other bishops, priests, religious and catechists in the cathedral.

Sister Hyunjung Kim, a social worker who has been in Timor-Leste for nine years, said she was particularly pleased about Pope Francis' emphasis the night before on the importance of education because that is the one thing that will help the nation's women and girls.

"Here early marriage is common; girls can marry as soon as they start menstruating, and they have babies at 15," she said. Their schooling ends, and "they do not know their rights."

The tradition of "hola" or a "bride price" is still very common, she said. It often is more than a dowry; "they buy the girl. And if there is sexual abuse, the offender pays the 'hola,' and the family saves face" with no regard for the girl.

"That is why, for me, it is all about education," Sister Kim said.

In addition to education and health care in Aileu, the Maryknoll sisters teach gardening and crafts that can help local women make money.

Maryknoll Sister Susan Wanzagi, who teaches gardening, said, "To empower women, they have to have a skill. If the husband is always giving and the woman always receiving, she will always be second. But if they both contribute, they are equal."

DILI, Timor-Leste (CNS) -- The faith that sustained the hope of the people of Timor-Leste in their struggle for independence should be a resource now as the country tries to cope with social, economic and environmental problems, Pope Francis said.

Landing in Dili Sept. 9, the pope was welcomed at the airport by both President José Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão, as well as two children who offered him flowers, customary for when he arrives in a country, but also a "tais" -- a traditional scarf.

Tens of thousands of people, young and old, lined the streets from the airport into the city to see Pope Francis as he rode by in an open popemobile. Many people took shelter from the sun under yellow and white umbrellas featuring the logo of the trip as well as the flags of Timor-Leste and the Vatican.

After an hour's rest at the new, "green" Vatican nunciature, where he was staying, Pope Francis went to the presidential palace, where he received more flowers, another tais and hugs from the three girls chosen to give him the gifts.

Of the four nations the pope was visiting Sept. 2-13, Timor-Leste was the only one with a Catholic majority. According to Vatican statistics, close to 96% of the population is Catholic.

After Timor-Leste was granted independence from Portugal in 1975, Indonesian troops invaded; after more than 25 years of struggle and the deaths of as many as 100,000 people, Timor-Leste became an independent, democratic nation in 2002.

"You remained firm in hope even amid affliction and, thanks to the character of your people and your faith, you have turned sorrow into joy," Pope Francis told government officials and leaders of civil society.

While the "dark clouds" of war have cleared, he said, the nation has "new challenges to face and new problems to solve. That is why I want to say: May the faith, which has enlightened and sustained you in the past, continue to inspire your present and future," particularly with "principles, projects and choices in conformity with the Gospel."

Poverty, underemployment, crime and emigration all are signs of the need for change and a commitment to working together for the common good, the pope said.

The president told Pope Francis that the government is working to fight "multi-dimensional poverty, hunger and food insecurity, maternal-childhood malnutrition, violence of any kind, different forms of exclusion and social marginalization."

"Infants, children and youth have a right to a better world, where they can develop their potential in a peaceful, dignified and balanced family environment," Ramos-Horta said.

Timor-Leste also is struggling with what the pope called "social scourges, such as the excessive use of alcohol and the formation of gangs by young people. These gang members are trained in martial arts, but instead of using this knowledge in the service of the defenseless, they use it as an opportunity to showcase the fleeting and harmful power of violence."

The prime minister extended a ban on martial arts instruction in the country during the visit of Pope Francis as part of security measures for the pope; different martial arts groups have been known to engage in street fighting.

Pope Francis also spoke of children and adolescents whose dignity has been "violated," and said, "We are all called to do everything possible to prevent every kind of abuse and guarantee a healthy and peaceful childhood for all young people."

It was unclear whether Pope Francis' general comment also was meant to refer to the case of former Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo of Dili, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996 with Ramos-Horta for nonviolent resistance to Indonesia's occupation of his homeland, but who has been accused of sexually abusing boys.

Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, confirmed Aug. 30 that the restrictions imposed on Bishop Belo in 2020 after a Vatican investigation continue to be in force, including a prohibition from him returning to Timor-Leste. He is living in Portugal.

With some 65% of Timor-Leste's population being under the age of 30, Pope Francis insisted it is essential for the nation to invest in education and supporting families.

The pope promised that, as it has done for centuries, the Catholic Church will contribute to that process through its schools and its efforts to educate Catholics in morality and in the social teaching of the church.

"Looking at your recent past and what has been accomplished so far, there is reason to be confident that your nation will likewise be able to face intelligently and creatively the difficulties and problems of today," the pope said. "Trust the wisdom of the people."

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."

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (CNS) -- Building enthusiasm for living and sharing the Christian faith is not a matter of "techniques" but of being joyful and serving others, Pope Francis said.

In an afternoon devoted to the Catholic Church in Papua New Guinea Sept. 7, the pope visited with some of the most vulnerable members of society, the Catholics who care for them, and with the country's bishops, priests, religious, seminarians and catechists.

He started at the Caritas Technical Secondary School in Port Moresby, meeting some 800 students as well as children who were living on the streets and children and adults with disabilities who are assisted by the Callan Services network.

Clemens, who cannot hear and signed while his sister, Genevieve, spoke, said to the pope, "Holy Father, I would like to ask you, first: Why do we have to suffer with our disability? Two: Why am I not able like others? Three: Why this suffering? Four: Is there hope for us, too?"

A young girl said that just having the meeting showed how much the pope loves the street children, "even though we are not productive, sometimes we are troublemakers, we roam around the streets and become (a) burden for others."

"I would like to ask you Holy Father, why we do not have opportunities like other kids do and how we can make ourselves useful to make our world more beautiful and happy even if we live in abandonment and poverty?" she asked.

Calling the children's questions "challenging," the pope responded that every person is unique, and each has talents and difficulties, but God has a mission for each person based on loving others and knowing how to accept love.

"To give love, always, and to welcome with open arms the love we receive from the people we care about: this is the most beautiful and most important thing in our life, in any condition and for any person -- even for the pope," he told the children.

"None of us are a 'burden,' as you said," the pope responded. "We are all beautiful gifts from God, a treasure for one another!"

Pope Francis ended the afternoon at the city's Shrine of Mary Help of Christians by listening to churchworkers share the joys and challenges of their ministries, including efforts to help people -- usually women or children -- who endure torture and even face death after being accused of witchcraft.

Sister Lorena Jenal, a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Divine Providence, told Pope Francis about one of the 250 women her House of Hope has helped.

"Maria came to us in 2017," Sister Jenal said. "She was so badly tortured and burnt that we did not know if we could save her life."

But, she said, "today she is working in our team standing up for human rights and the dignity and equality of women. She witnesses to the importance of love and forgiveness among all people."

Father Emmanuel Moku, a self-described "late vocation" who was ordained 12 years ago at the age of 52, told the pope that "my clan expects a man to become a father and to work and feed his people. As a seminarian, I was therefore viewed as unfruitful. This made me feel hopeless."

But after ordination his family was proud to have a priest in the clan, he said. "Only then was I relieved of the pressure of my cultural norms."

Grace Wrakia, a laywoman who is a member of the Synod of Bishops on synodality, told the pope that she is not sure how long it will take for the church in Papua New Guinea to become truly synodal.

"But it would only take a few men in a strongly paternal society such as mine to believe in and support a woman in order to see her rise above her traditional status in society and bring about change," she said.

"I want to see change where women are partners and cooperators, where young people are not ignored or neglected but received with open hearts and minds, where priests and religious work as partners and not as competitors, where priests and consecrated men are not regarded as 'big men' but as servant leaders," she said.

Pope Francis encouraged all of them to hold fast and keep trying, inspired by the missionaries who arrived in Papua New Guinea in the mid-1800s. "The first steps of their ministry were not easy. Indeed, some attempts failed. However, they did not give up; with great faith, apostolic zeal and many sacrifices, they continued to preach the Gospel and serve their brothers and sisters, starting again many times whenever they failed."

More than anything, the pope said, those who truly want to be missionary disciples of Jesus must start at "the peripheries of this country" with "people belonging to the most deprived segments of urban populations, as well as those who live in the most remote and abandoned areas, where sometimes basic necessities are lacking."

"I think too of the marginalized and wounded, both morally and physically, by prejudice and superstition, sometimes to the point of having to risk their lives," the pope said. "The church desires especially to be close to these brothers and sisters, because in them Jesus is present in a special way."

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (CNS) -- With a 21-cannon salute, Pope Francis was welcomed to Papua New Guinea Sept. 6, the second stop on his four-nation visit to Asia and the Pacific.

After flying five and a half hours from Jakarta, Indonesia, the 87-year-old pope landed at Jacksons International Airport in Port Moresby and was greeted with flowers from children wearing traditional dress.

John Rosso, Papua New Guinea's deputy prime minister, led the official welcome ceremony, which featured the cannon salute, a review of the honor guard, the playing of the Vatican and Papua New Guinean national anthems and the presentation of their respective delegations.

Although the pope landed an hour after sunset, the roads from the airport were lined with thousands of people hoping to see him. Many held long-handled, battery-powered candles.

Unlike Indonesia, where Christians are a small minority, in Papua New Guinea an estimated 98% of the population is Christian. According to Vatican statistics, Catholics represent about 31% of the nation's 8.2 million people.

With Pope Francis the Pacific-island nation was hosting its third papal visit; St. John Paul II visited in 1984 and again in 1995.

Papua New Guinea is known as a land of hundreds of ethnic groups living in remote areas and speaking their own languages; it is rich in natural resources, including gold, copper and natural gas, but one-third of the population lives below the poverty line.

The nation, and particularly Port Moresby, has been plagued by crime and gang violence for decades. In January, riots broke out over a cut in the salaries of public workers.

Pope Francis' itinerary for his trip Sept. 2-13 focused only on the capitals of Indonesia, Timor-Leste and Singapore. But in Papua New Guinea, the pope wants to visit a community of missionaries from Argentina ministering in and around the town of Vanimo in the northwest, so that was added to the schedule.

The trip to the outpost will give Pope Francis an opportunity to pay tribute to the generations of foreign missionaries who have and continue to share the Gospel with the people of Papua New Guinea through their preaching and religious education, but also through their schools, orphanages, hospitals and work for justice and the safeguarding of creation.

Papua New Guinea illustrates the connection Pope Francis often highlights between "the cry of the poor and the cry of the Earth," a situation where minerals are extracted, forests denuded and energy supplies sold off to the financial benefit of only a handful of people, leaving the poor with a scarred and barren landscape.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNS) -- While members of every religion must be free to profess and practice their faith, they also should recognize that members of other religions have that right, too, and they all are searching for God, Pope Francis said.

Nasaruddin Umar, the grand imam of the Istiqlal Mosque, welcomed the pope to the mosque compound Sept. 5 and led him directly to the "tunnel of friendship," a wide underground walkway that connects the mosque and the Catholic cathedral across the busy street.

Like the pope, the imam was dressed in white from head to toe and greeted Pope Francis with a kiss on the cheek. At the end of the meeting, Umar put an arm around the pope's shoulder and kissed him on the top of the head. Pope Francis, who was seated in his wheelchair, took the imam's hand and kissed it.

Earlier, facing the entrance to the tunnel, Pope Francis had told the imam and donors who helped build it, "When we think of a tunnel, we might easily imagine a dark pathway. This could be frightening, especially if we are alone. Yet here it is different, for everything is illuminated."

"I would like to tell you, however, that you are the light that illuminates it," the pope said, "and you do so by your friendship, by the harmony you cultivate, the support you give each other, and by journeying together, which leads you in the end toward the fullness of light."

The pope and imam signed "The Istiqlal Declaration," a short document committing members of both religious communities to defending human dignity, especially when threatened with violence, and to defending the integrity of creation.

"The values shared by our religious traditions should be effectively promoted in order to defeat the culture of violence and indifference afflicting our world," the declaration said. "Indeed, religious values should be directed toward promoting a culture of respect, dignity, compassion, reconciliation and fraternal solidarity in order to overcome both dehumanization and environmental destruction."

Engkus Ruswana, a leader of Majelis Luhur Kepercayaan Indonesia, an organization for followers of Indigenous religions, said his faith's priority "is humanity and community, and the relationship between the human and nature. Indigenous religions, you know, have a good relationship between human beings and nature. Our principle is that we have to care for the Earth, for the world."

In a large tent draped with the white and red colors of the Indonesian flag, Ruswana joined the imam, the pope and other representatives of the country's religious communities, including Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus and Confucians.

The formal meeting began with the chanting of a passage from the Quran by Kayla Nur Syahwa, 16, who won a national Quran recitation contest for children with disabilities, and a reading from the Gospels by a Catholic priest.

Pope Francis asked the religious leaders to consider how the tunnel can be a metaphor for the faith life of Indonesians by providing a meeting ground between the prayer spaces of two communities.

The tunnel, he said, should be a sign that "all of us, together, each cultivating his or her own spirituality and practicing his or her religion, may walk in search of God and contribute to building open societies, founded on reciprocal respect and mutual love, capable of protecting against rigidity, fundamentalism and extremism, which are always dangerous and never justifiable."

"The visible aspects of religions -- the rites, practices and so on -- are a heritage that must be protected and respected," the pope said. "However, we could say that what lies 'underneath,' what runs underground, like the 'tunnel of friendship,' is the one root common to all religious sensitivities: the quest for an encounter with the divine, the thirst for the infinite that the Almighty has placed in our hearts, the search for a greater joy and a life stronger than any type of death, which animates the journey of our lives and impels us to step out of ourselves to encounter God."

The Rev. Kriese Anki Gosal, a Presbyterian minister and vice general secretary of the Communion of Churches, the main ecumenical body in Indonesia, said, "The visit of the pope is very amazing for us. We want to have our pope's message."

When asked about using "our" to refer to the pope, she said, "He is the pope of all people. He has messages we must pass on," whether one is a Catholic or not, a Christian or not.

The Rev. Jacklevyn Manuputty, general secretary of the ecumenical group that includes 97 churches and Christian communities, insisted Christians -- who make up about 10% of Indonesia's population -- are not minorities. "We are citizens, not minorities. 'Majority-minority' are political terms that can and have been misused."

"We are living in one of the most diverse countries in the world, so dialogue is our lifestyle," he said. "All over the world there is a growing tendency of populism and identity politics based on race or religion -- dialogue is how we promote authenticity."