Pope Francis Give RAAF Pilot new appreciation of Catholic Faith
Royal Australian Air Force pilot Jacob Ralph is used to flying prime ministers and world leaders on his planes, but now he can add Pope Francis to his list. Source: The Catholic Weekly.
Last month, the RAAF’s 37 Squadron and 3 Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron flew a special mission to take the Pope to remote areas of Papua New Guinea as part of his Apostolic Visitation to Southeast Asia and Oceania.
Squadron Leader Ralph led a team of 26 pilots, maintainers, doctors and medical staff to fly the Pope, alongside 40 members of the Papal delegation, on two C-130J military aircrafts.
From Port Moresby Airport, the Pope, with his wheelchair, Popemobile and team were in the RAAF’s care for a two-hour transit to Vanimo, near the border of Indonesia.
“We all had a joke saying, ‘If anything happens or goes wrong, there’ll be some divine intervention on our side,’” Squadron Leader Ralph said.
“I experienced firsthand how much of an effort he’s making to really connect to the isolated communities, the crowds that came to see him blew me away by the efforts people will go to be in the presence of His Holiness.”
The Squadron Leader presented the Pope with a commemorative plaque made from the aircraft’s frame material, engraved with the RAAF motto, Per Ardua Ad Astra – “through struggle, to the stars.”
His Holiness returned the favour by gifting each crew member one of his commemorative papal coins from the trip.
“He really wanted to give us all a few minutes to talk to him one on one and tell him a bit about our lives and backgrounds, which he was really interested in,” Squadron Leader Ralph said.
Though not Catholic, Squadron Leader Ralph said since the trip he has gained a new appreciation for Pope Francis and the Catholic faith.
“I’ve certainly taken more of an interest in the Catholic Church since then, just doing a little bit of research and background,” he said.
“The messaging that he’s bringing is overwhelmingly positive and having a very profound effect on people.”
Courtesy of CathNews
Aboard the plane, Francis brought medicine, clothing, toys, and other necessities to help people living in the remote area, the Vatican confirmed.
Sitting outside of the Pro-Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Vanimo, the pope told an estimated 20,000 local Catholics to be missionaries where they live: “at home, at school, in the workplace, so that everywhere — in the forests, villages, and cities — the beauty of the landscape is matched by the beauty of a community where people love one another.”
“In this way, we will increasingly form a great orchestra,” Francis added, “able with its notes to ‘recompose’ rivalries, 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.”
The Diocese of Vanimo has approximately 41,000 Catholics, about 30% of the area’s population, according to the Vatican.
After a history of missionary bishops, since 2018 the diocese has been led by Bishop Francis Meli, who was born in the Archdiocese of Rabaul in Papua New Guinea.
The diocese, a missionary area, was first formed as an apostolic prefecture in 1963.
Toward the end of the pontiff’s meeting with Catholics, Meli consecrated the Diocese of Vanimo to the Virgin Mary.
“After visiting your country, many tourists return home saying they have seen ‘paradise,’” Pope Francis said. “They usually refer to the natural beauty they enjoyed. We know, however, that this is not the greatest treasure. There is a more beautiful and fascinating treasure that is found in your hearts and that manifests itself in the charity with which you love each other.”
“The most precious gift you can share with everyone is to make Papua New Guinea famous not only for its variety of plant and animal life, its enchanting beaches and clear sea, but famous above all for the good people you meet here,” he said.
While in Vanimo, Pope Francis also visited Holy Trinity Humanistic School, a Catholic school founded in 1964 by Passionist missionaries.
The school, located in the village of Baro, just outside Vanimo, has 400 elementary students and another 100 students in the newly-established middle school.
The pope’s day concluded with a private meeting with missionaries, also featuring a short concert by the Queen of Paradise Children’s Orchestra, before he flew back to Port Moresby for the night.
Francis’ three-day visit to Papua New Guinea, where there are 2.5 million Catholics, was the second leg of an 11-day trip to Southeast Asia and Oceania.
His meeting with missionaries and Catholics in Vanimo took place in the afternoon after celebrating Mass for approximately 35,000 Catholics from across Papua New Guinea and Oceania in Sir John Guise Stadium in Port Moresby.
Pope Francis will return to the Sir John Guise Stadium on Monday to speak to young people before departing for East Timor, continuing his 11-day apostolic journey to Southeast Asia and Oceania.
Courtesy: CNA