Pope Francis spent his last morning in Japan at the Jesuit-run Sophia University, celebrating Mass with his Jesuit confreres, visiting aged members of the Jesuit community and addressing students and staff. Once again he invoked the spirit of St Francis Xavier, the famed 16th-century missionary to Japan, and the spark of his own, never-realised desire […]
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Beauty, creation and each human life are gifts of God to be treasured and shared, not enslaved to current societal ideas of what is valuable, perfect or productive, Pope Francis said at a Mass in the famous Tokyo Dome. “We are invited as a Christian community to protect all life and testify with wisdom and […]
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Saying it is “perverse” to think the threat of nuclear weapons makes the world safer, Pope Francis urged a renewed commitment to disarmament and to the international treaties designed to limit or eliminate nuclear weapons. Pope Francis began his first full day in Japan on 24th November with a somber visit in the pouring rain […]
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While the world knows Nagasaki as the site of a US atomic bomb blast, for the Catholic Church it is also the site of one of the fiercest campaigns of anti-Christian persecution. Visiting the city on 24th November, Pope Francis paused for prayer on the hill where St Paul Miki and 25 others were crucified […]
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Meeting Thai religious leaders and then celebrating Mass with Catholic young adults, Pope Francis encouraged them to strengthen a culture that treasures the past, holds fast to faith, is unafraid of differences and always seeks a way to promote dialogue and co-operation. No single nation or religious or ethnic group can guarantee itself a future […]
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Missionaries are not mercenaries, but beggars who recognise that some brothers and sisters are missing from the community and long to hear the good news of salvation, Pope Francis told the Catholics of Thailand. Celebrating Mass on 21st November, the feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in Bangkok’s National Stadium, Pope Francis […]
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Calling migration “one of the principal moral issues” facing humanity today, Pope Francis thanked the government and people of Thailand for the way they’ve welcomed migrants and refugees, but he urged greater efforts to protect migrants and poor Thais from human trafficking. Migration movements around the globe “are one of the defining signs of our […]
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In a message to young Catholics in Vietnam, Pope Francis offered prayers for a group of Vietnamese migrants who died while being smuggled into Great Britain in late October. “Finally, together with you, I entrust to the Lord, the merciful father, the 39 Vietnamese migrants who died in England last month. It was heartbreaking; let […]
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Arriving in Thailand after an 11-hour flight, Pope Francis was greeted by 11 children – one for each of the country’s dioceses. Pope Francis caressed the faces of the shy little ones and reciprocated a hug with the bolder, older girls. All of the children were dressed in traditional costumes and held a Thai flag […]
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A negligent and selfish culture of food waste is fuelling the global hunger crisis, damaging the lives of individuals and preventing the progress of all people, Pope Francis said. “In many places, our brothers and sisters do not have access to sufficient and healthy food, while in others, food is discarded and squandered,” the pope […]
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