I am very pleased to be here with you today and to be able to visit Papua New Guinea. I thank the Governor General for his cordial words of welcome and all of you for your warm welcome. I address my greeting to all the people of the country, wishing them peace and prosperity. And from this moment I express my gratitude to the Authorities for the help they offer to the many activities of the Church in the spirit of mutual collaboration for the common good.
In your homeland, an archipelago with hundreds of islands, more than eight hundred languages are spoken, corresponding to as many ethnic groups: this highlights an extraordinary cultural richness; and I confess to you that this is an aspect that fascinates me greatly, also on a spiritual level, because I imagine that this enormous variety is a challenge for the Holy Spirit, who creates the harmony of differences!
Your country, then, in addition to islands and languages, is also rich in land and water resources. These goods are destined by God for the entire community and, even if their exploitation requires the involvement of broader skills and large international companies, it is right that in the distribution of the proceeds and in the employment of the workforce, the needs of the local populations are given due consideration, so as to produce an effective improvement in their living conditions.
This environmental and cultural wealth represents at the same time a great responsibility, because it commits everyone, governments together with citizens, to promote every initiative necessary to enhance natural and human resources, in such a way as to give life to a sustainable and equitable development, which promotes the well-being of all, no one excluded, through concretely executable programs and through international cooperation, in mutual respect and with agreements that are advantageous for all the contracting parties.
A necessary condition for obtaining such lasting results is the stability of institutions, which is favored by agreement on some essential points among the different conceptions and sensibilities present in society. Increasing institutional solidity and building consensus on fundamental choices represents an indispensable requirement for integral and supportive development. It also requires a long-term vision and a climate of collaboration among all, despite the distinction of roles and the difference of opinions. I hope, in particular, that tribal violence will cease, which unfortunately causes many victims, does not allow us to live in peace and hinders development. I therefore appeal to everyone’s sense of responsibility, so that the spiral of violence is interrupted and instead we resolutely take the path that leads to fruitful collaboration, to the benefit of the entire people of the country.
In the climate generated by these attitudes, the issue of the status of the island of Bougainville may also find a definitive settlement, avoiding the rekindling of old tensions. By consolidating harmony on the foundations of civil society, and with the willingness of each to sacrifice something of their positions for the benefit of all, it will be possible to set in motion the forces necessary to improve infrastructure, to address the health and educational needs of the population and to increase opportunities for dignified work. However, even if we sometimes forget it, human beings need, in addition to the necessities of life, a great hope in their hearts, which will make them live well, give them the taste and courage to undertake far-reaching projects and allow them to raise their gaze upwards and towards vast horizons.
The abundance of material goods, without this breath of the soul, is not enough to give life to a vital and serene, industrious and joyful society, indeed, it makes it fold in on itself. The aridity of the heart makes it lose its bearings and forget the right scale of values; it takes away its impetus and blocks it to the point – as happens in some opulent societies – that it loses hope in the future and no longer finds reasons to transmit life and faith to future generations.
For this reason it is necessary to orient the spirit towards greater realities; it is necessary that behaviors are supported by an inner strength, which protects them from the risk of becoming corrupted and of losing along the way the ability to recognize the meaning of one’s actions and to carry them out with dedication and constancy.
The values of the spirit have a significant influence on the construction of the earthly city and all temporal realities, they infuse a soul – so to speak –, they inspire and strengthen every project. The logo and motto of my visit to Papua New Guinea also recall this. The motto says it all in one word: “Pray”. Perhaps someone, too observant of “political correctness” might be surprised by this choice; but in reality they are wrong, because a people who pray has a future, drawing strength and hope from above. And even the emblem of the bird of paradise, in the logo of the trip, is a symbol of freedom: of that freedom that nothing and no one can suffocate because it is internal, and is guarded by God who is love and wants his children to be free. For all those who profess to be Christians – the great majority of your people – I fervently hope that faith will never be reduced to the observance of rites and precepts, but that it will consist in loving Jesus Christ and following him, and that it will be able to become a lived culture, inspiring minds and actions and becoming a beacon of light that illuminates the route. In this way, faith will also be able to help society as a whole to grow and to identify good and effective solutions to its great challenges.
Ladies and Gentlemen, as Successor of the Apostle Peter, I have come to encourage the Catholic faithful to continue on their journey and to confirm them in their profession of faith; I have come to rejoice with them in the progress they are making and to share their difficulties; I am here, as Saint Paul would say, as a “collaborator for your joy” (2 Cor 1:24). I congratulate the Christian communities for the works of charity they carry out in the country, and I urge them always to seek collaboration with public institutions and with all people of good will, starting with our brothers and sisters belonging to other Christian confessions and other religions, for the common good of all the citizens of Papua New Guinea.
The shining testimony of Blessed Peter To Rot – as Saint John Paul II stated during the Mass for the Beatification – “teaches us to generously place ourselves at the service of others to ensure that society develops in honesty and justice, in harmony and solidarity” (cf. Homily, Port Moresby, 17 January 1995). May his example, together with that of Blessed Giovanni Mazzucconi, of PIME, and of all the missionaries who have proclaimed the Gospel in this land of yours, give you strength and hope.
May Saint Michael the Archangel, Patron Saint of Papua New Guinea, always watch over you and defend you from every danger, protect the Authorities and all the people of this country.
Your Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen!
I joyfully begin my visit among you. I thank you for having opened the doors of your beautiful country to me, so far from Rome and yet so close to the heart of the Catholic Church. Because in the heart of the Church there is the love of Jesus Christ, who on the cross embraced all men. His Gospel is for all peoples, it is not tied to any earthly power, but is free to fertilize every culture and make the Kingdom of God grow in the world, a Kingdom of justice, love and peace. May this Kingdom find full acceptance in this land, so that all the peoples of Papua New Guinea, with the variety of their traditions, live together in harmony and give the world a sign of brotherhood.