(Vatican Radio) Speaking after today’s intense experience on the Island of Leyte, during which bad weather forced organizers to cut short the Pope’s schedule, Father Federico Lombardi SJ expressed his belief that the Pope’s encounter with survivors of the 2013 Typhoon represents one of the highlights of his Asian journey.
Speaking to Vatican Radio’s Sean Patrick Lovett, the Director of the Vatican Press Office pointed to Pope Francis’ off-the-cuff homily in which he said “So many of you have lost everything. I do not know what to tell you. But surely he knows what to tell you! So many of you have lost members of your family. I can only be silent; I accompany you silently, with my heart…” as the central moment of this part of his visit. “It was the moment during which we really understood his desire to be with these people in this situation” he said.
Listen to the interview :
Lombardi points out that from the very beginning, the Pope had said that it was when “he saw the images of the typhoon and the disaster that he decided to come here”.
“This is actually the end of a long journey that did not begin in Manila, but in Rome just over a year ago on the day of the typhoon” he said.
And remarking on the fact that for the Pope being here on a day of strong wind and rain, Lombardi says “it was a new experience” because this kind of weather does not happen in his native Argentina, or in Rome for that matter, but here – he said – the people are normally subject to a particularly critical situation.
“To be here, not on a sunny day, but on a day of rain and wind, this was the concrete situation in which the experience of being with the people was totally credible” he said.
Lombardi also speaks of how moved the Pope is as he experiences the affection of the Filipino people: “You cannot be indifferent to see on the streets hundreds of thousands of people waiting to see you for hours, even if you have not the time to meet them personally, they are happy to see you and feel your presence and encouragement”.
He says the Pope really feels this particular attitude Filipinos have toward s the Pope and towards the religious experience.
And as we know, Lombardi said, “he has the poor always at the center of his attention and if he has the occasion to be with them concretely in concrete situations such as this, then the experience is even stronger and more profound”.
“I think today was the most profound and intense moment of this journey” he said.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis made a very brief stop at Tacloban cathedral in the Philippines on Saturday, ahead of his departure from the island of Leyte. The Holy Father’s departure was anticipated by four hours, due to the arrival of inclement weather. Bishops, priests, men and women religious, and families affected by Typhoon Yolanda in 2013, were scheduled to meet with the Holy Father in the cathedral. Pope Francis was visitng Tacloban, on the island of Leyte, to show solidarity with the people there, who were sorely tried by the destruction caused by the storm. Please find raw audio and a transcript of the Holy Father’s remarks, below.
Click below to hear the Holy Father’s words at Tacloban cathedral
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Pope Francis : Thank you for your very warm welcome. The cardinal walking in now together with Cardinal Tagle is the Cardinal Secretary of State, Carinal Parolin, and it is his birthday. Will you sing him something?
[Crowd sings birthday greetings] Thank you.
I have to tell you something that makes me unhappy: the problem is that the way things were planned was that the plane would leave at 5pm this afternoon. But there’s a second grade typhoon, or storm that’s around us and the pilot of the plane has insisted we have to leave at 1pm. We just have time to get to the plane because the weather forecast says after 1pm it will get much worse. So I apologise to all of you.
I am so sorry about this because I had something especially prepared for you. Let us leave everything in the hands of our Lady because I have to go now. Do you know what the problem is? Airplanes can’t land here, that’s the problem.
Let’s pray the “Hail Mary” together and then I will give you my blessing.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) In the Philippines, it never rains – it pours. And, in Tacloban – it storms. It was here that, on November 8 th 2013, the six-metre high waves generated by Super Typhoon Yolanda, the strongest storm ever recorded on earth, smashed into the homes and lives of thousands of people leaving behind death, destruction, tragedy and loss.
Click below to hear this report from Sean-Patrick Lovett
And it was here, at Ground Zero, that Pope Francis chose to come, in the driving wind and rain, despite last-minute warnings to call off the visit entirely. Not that the local survivors ever doubted he would come: protected only by flimsy yellow raincoats (umbrellas were forbidden for security reasons), many of them started lining up outside the Mass site as early as yesterday afternoon. As a simple gesture of solidarity, the Pope himself wore the same yellow raincoat for the rest of the time he was there.
But it was what he said (and left unsaid) that went straight to the hearts of those present. Once again, Pope Francis departed from his prepared homily – this time altogether – in order to speak “heart-to-heart”. And his message was simple: even amidst the greatest challenges and tragedies, “Jesus never lets us down… He walks with us in the most difficult moments of life”. Most touching, though, were the passages when the Pope admitted that he himself was without words: “So many of you have lost everything”, he said. “I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does. Some of you have lost part of your families. All I can do is keep silence and walk with you all with my silent heart… Many of you have asked: why Lord? And to each of you, to your heart, Christ responds with his heart from the cross. I have no more words for you”.
The fact is, he didn’t need any. The testimony of his presence among them was enough.
The Pope also had no more time. Shortly after Mass, he was told his plane would have to leave almost immediately because weather conditions over the area were intensifying and would soon make take off impossible. But Pope Francis was determined not to disappoint. He knew perfectly well that people had travelled hundreds of miles and waited hours in the rain to see him. So, skipping lunch, he did meet survivors and victim’s families in the Archbishop’s house and then went straight to the Cathedral where he stopped just long enough to explain why he had to leave in such a hurry, and to give his blessing.
When he did leave, it was with a clear message from the people of Tacloban themselves: they are ready to move on. Inspired, consoled, encouraged by his being among them, they are picking up the pieces and rebuilding their towns and their lives. One of those pieces is a battered brass trombone. I wonder if you heard it being played during the papal Mass? It belongs to 20 year-old Gibson Pineda and it’s the only thing he was able to save when the typhoon swept away his house, friends and family. He calls it his most precious possession. It’s also his only possession.
Finally, another sign of the lasting effect of the Pope Francis’ visit to Tacloban is the fact that over the past 48 hours, six new-born babies (boys and girls) have been given his name. And I have no doubt that number will increase exponentially over the next few days.
(from Vatican Radio)…
Pope Francis on Saturday visited the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of our Lord, Palo, Philippines, where he was to address Priests, Religious, Seminarians and Families.
Due to bad weather the Holy Father had to reschedule his plans and leave early. He met all those that had gathered at the Cathedral briefly praying with them and blessing them. In his prepared remarks, he expresses his appreciation for all those who have generously helped in rebuilding the Church and the faithful, while reiterating his call for a renewal of commitment to social justice and the betterment of the poor.
Here below the text of his prepared remarks:
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I greet all of you with great affection in the Lord. I am happy that we are able to meet in this Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Lord. This house of prayer, along with many others, has been repaired thanks to the remarkable generosity of many people. It stands as an eloquent sign of the immense effort of rebuilding which you and your neighbors have undertaken in the wake of the devastation caused by Typhoon Yolanda. It is also a concrete reminder to all of us that, even amid disaster and suffering, our God is constantly at work, making all things new.
Many of you have suffered greatly, not only from the destruction caused by the storm, but from the loss of family members and friends. Today let us commend to God’s mercy all those who have died, and invoke his consolation and peace upon all who still grieve. May we remember in a particular way those among us whose pain makes it hard to see the way forward. At the same time, let us thank the Lord for all those who have labored in these months to clear away the rubble, to visit the sick and dying, to comfort the grieving and to bury the dead. Their goodness, and the generous aid which came from so many people throughout the world, are a real sign that God never abandons us!
Here, in a special way, I would like to thank the many priests and religious who responded with such overwhelming generosity to the desperate needs of the people of the areas hardest hit. By your presence and your charity, you bore witness to the beauty and truth of the Gospel. You made the Church present as a source of hope, healing and mercy. Together with so many of your neighbors, you also demonstrated the deep faith and the resilience of the Filipino people. The many stories of goodness and self-sacrifice which emerged from these dark days need to be remembered and passed down for future generations.
A few moments ago, I blessed the new Center for the Poor, which stands as another sign of the Church’s care and concern for our brothers and sisters in need. How many they are! And how much our Lord loves them! Today, from this place which has known such profound suffering and human need, I ask that even more be done for the poor. Above all, I ask that the poor throughout this country be treated fairly – that their dignity be respected, that political and economic policies be just and inclusive, that opportunities for employment and education be developed, and that obstacles to the delivery of social services be removed. Our treatment of the poor is the criterion on which each of us will be judged (cf. Mt 25:40, 45). I ask all of you, and all responsible for the good of society, to renew your commitment to social justice and the betterment of the poor, both here and in the Philippines as a whole.
Finally, I would like to say a word of sincere thanks to the young people present, including the seminarians and young religious. Many of you showed heroic generosity in the aftermath of the typhoon. I hope that you will always realize that true happiness comes from helping others, giving ourselves to them in self-sacrifice, mercy and compassion. In this way you will be a powerful force for the renewal of society, not only in the work of restoring buildings but more importantly, in building up God’s kingdom of holiness, justice and peace in your native land.
Dear priests and religious, dear families and friends, in this Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Lord let us ask that our lives continue to be sustained and transfigured by the power of his resurrection. I commend all of you to the loving protection of Mary, Mother of the Church. May she obtain for you, and for all the beloved people of these lands, the Lord’s blessings of comfort, joy and peace. God bless you all!
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis celebrated Mass on the grounds of the airport in Tacloban City, Philippines, on Saturday morning. An estimated 500 thousand people braved wind and often driving rain to take part in the liturgy. Putting aside his prepared text for the homily, the Holy Father spoke to the gathered faithful in his native Spanish. Below, please find integral audio and a transcription of the English translation of the Holy Father’s remarks, which were translated on-site by one of the ministers in the sanctuary.
Click below to hear the Holy Father’s homily at Mass in Tacloban City
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We have a high priest who is capable of sympathising with our weaknesses. Jesus is like us. Jesus lived like us and is the same us in every respect, except sin because he was not a sinner. But to be more like us he assumed our condition and our sin. He made himself into sin. This is what St Paul tells us. And Jesus always goes before us and when we pass an experience, a cross, he passed there before us. And if today we find ourselves here 14 months afterwards, 14 months precisely after the Typhoon Yolanda hit, it is because we have the security of knowing we will not weaken in our faith because Jesus has been here before us. In his Passion he assumed all our pain. Therefore he is capable of understanding us, as we heard in the first reading.
I’d like to tell you something close to my heart. When I saw from Rome that catastrophe I had to be here. And on those very days I decided to come here. I am here to be with you – a little bit late, but I’m here. I have come to tell you that Jesus is Lord. And he never lets us down. Father, you might say to me, I was let down because I have lost so many things, my house, my livelihood. It’s true if you say that and I respect those sentiments. But Jesus is there, nailed to the cross, and from there he does not let us down. He was consecrated as Lord on that throne and there he experienced all the calamities that we experience. Jesus is Lord. And the Lord from the cross is there for you. In everything the same as us. That is why we have a Lord who cries with us and walks with us in the most difficult moments of life.
So many of you have lost everything. I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does know what to say to you. Some of you have lost part of your families. All I can do is keep silence and walk with you all with my silent heart. Many of you have asked the Lord – why lord? And to each of you, to your heart, Christ responds with his heart from the cross. I have no more words for you. Let us look to Christ. He is the lord. He understands us because he underwent all the trials that we, that you, have experienced. And beside the cross was his Mother. We are like a little child in the moments when we have so much pain and no longer understand anything. All we can do is grab hold of her hand firmly and say “Mommy” – like a child does when it is afraid. It is perhaps the only words we can say in difficult times – “Mommy”.
Let us respect a moment of silence together and look to Christ on the cross. He understands us because he endured everything. Let us look to our Mother and, like a little child, let us hold onto her mantle and with a true heart say – “Mother”. In silence, tell your Mother what you feel in your heart. Let us know that we have a Mother, Mary, and a great Brother, Jesus. We are not alone. We also have many brothers who in this moment of catastrophe came to help. And we too, because of this, we feel more like brothers and sisters because we helped each other.
This is what comes from my heart. Forgive me if I have no other words to express myself. Please know that Jesus never lets you down. Know that the tenderness of Mary never lets you down. And holding onto her mantle and with the power that cones from Jesus’ love on the cross, let us move forward and walk together as brothers and sisters in the Lord.
(from Vatican Radio)…