DILI, 10 september 2024 (TATOLI) Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Dili to attend Holy Mass presided over by Pope Francis, the third open-air Mass of the Holy Father trip to ASEAN and Oceania.
According to the official registered data, more than 100,000 Catholics registered to attend the Mass, but the number could be much higher, as tens of thousands of unregistered people were also allowed into the Mass arena.
The Mass is scheduled for 4:30 p.m., but the crowds start pouring in before 4 a.m., coming from all sides of Tasi Tolu, an open area located in the western part of Dili, where Pope St. John Paul II presided over the first Mass for the Timorese in 1989.
The entry points to the Mass Arena were closed at 2pm, but the crowds were still desperately trying to get in, which left thousands of people attending the Holy Mass from outside.
Thirty minutes before the Mass, the crowd prayed the mystery of the rosary to prepare to receive the Pope in the Mass area.
More than 30 years after Pope John Paul II’s mass in Tasi Tolu, the faith of Timorese Catholics has grown stronger.
The Tasi Tolu Mass Arena was decorated in the color of the Vatican flag, yellow and white, showing how much Timorese Catholics love the Holy Father.
The Pope enters the Mass area at 4:14pm, with the crowd applauding, cheering, and greeting him: “Viva Santu Padre Papa Francisco” (Long live Holy Father Pope Francis).
The entrance song of the mass was sung by more than a thousand choir members and accompanied by local musical instruments called Babadook and other instruments to represent the most widespread native folk music known as Tebe-tebe.
Pope Francis began his homily by reading the Gospel of Isaiah 9:6, “A child has been born for us, a son given to us.”
The Holy Father referred to Timor-Leste as a child that is being born and is trying to find the best way to face the various challenges in order to achieve a better future.
“How wonderful that here in Timor-Leste there are so many children. Indeed, you are a young country, and we can see every corner of your land teeming with life. What a great gift it is that so many children and young people are present, constantly renewing the freshness, energy, joy, and enthusiasm of your people,” Pope Francis said in his homily at the Open-Air Mass, held in Tasi Tolu, Dili, on tuesday.
Pope Francis urged Timor-Leste to take care of its children, making room for the little ones and welcoming them.
The Holy Father also appealed to all Timorese Catholics not to be afraid to make themselves small before God.
“So, dear brothers and sisters, let us not be afraid to make ourselves small before God, and before each other, to lose our lives, to give up our time, to revise our schedules, to give up something to help a brother or sister become better and happier. Let us not be afraid to scale down our plans when necessary, not in order to diminish them but to make them even more beautiful through the gift of ourselves and the acceptance of others, with all the unpredictability that this entails,” he said.
Pope ended his Holy Mass in Dili at around 6.30pm and said, “Thank you, thank you very much for your charity. For your faith. Go forward with hope.”
On behalf of the Timorese Catholics, Cardinal Carmo da Silva, and Metropolitan Archbishop of Dili and Pro-President of the CET thanked Pope Francis for visiting the country: “Your Holiness Pope Francis, on behalf of the faithful present at this solemn Eucharistic celebration, and in particular on behalf of the entire Timorese people, I would like to express our profound gratitude to you for your presence among us.”
“Today, this place, Tasi Tolu, is again the epicenter of a historic event for the Timorese people. After Pope Saint John Paul II’s visit in 1989, which marked the decisive step in our process of self-determination. Today the presence of Your Holiness Pope Francis marks a fundamental step in the process of building our country, its identity, and its culture,” said Cardinal Silva.
He added that Pope Francis’ paternal presence in Timor-Leste is a sign of God’s closeness to the simple, the poor, the humble, and the marginalized: “Proximity, the compassionate gaze, love, and attention towards this land, now almost lost in the world panorama, show that the Holy Father is an example of a leader with the heart of a father.
Pope Francis’ next stop will be Singapore, the last country to end his longest journey since becoming Pope in 2013.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Rafael Ximenes de A. Belo
