Janet Ang, Singapore’s non-resident ambassador to the Vatican, said: “We told the Pope when he comes to our region, we would very much like to receive him.” - Photo: ST
SINGAPORE: The upcoming visit by Pope Francis to Singapore is one that has been eight years in the making.
The quest to bring the head of the Catholic Church and spiritual leader of over 1.3 billion Catholics worldwide started in May 2016, when former president Tony Tan invited the Pope to visit Singapore during his state visit to the Vatican.
Over the years, various government leaders and officials kept up efforts to realise that invitation, Janet Ang, Singapore’s non-resident ambassador to the Vatican since 2020, told The Straits Times.
For example, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan met the Pope in 2019 and Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) Edwin Tong did so in January 2022, with both extending the same invitation Tan made in 2016.
In January 2020, Ang received news that Pope Francis finally said yes to visiting Singapore that September, but those plans had to be postponed when the Covid-19 pandemic struck and upended the world.
In her annual audience with the Pope, Ang has repeated the same message every year: “Your Holiness, Singapore is waiting for you.”
The former Nominated Member of Parliament added: “We don’t think he will especially come just for us. But we told the Pope when he comes to our region, we would very much like to receive him.”
So what was the Pope’s reply to her reminders to visit Singapore?
She said: “Pope Francis would hold my hand warmly, look intently at me and say he would pray for Singapore. He also always closes (his remarks) with, ‘Please pray for me’.”
On January 4, 2024, she received a call from Archbishop Marek Zalewski, the Pope’s representative to Singapore, telling her her prayers have been answered.
Pope Francis, 87, will make his first papal visit to Singapore, home to about 395,000 Catholics, from Sept 11 to Sept 13.
Singapore is his final stop in his 12-day trip that includes Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste.
In Singapore, he will preside at mass at the National Stadium for close to 50,000 Catholics, give a state address and have an inter-religious dialogue with young people from different religions, among other engagements such as meeting Singapore’s leaders.
Ang, who is Catholic, said she was over the moon upon hearing the news.
When asked why she thinks the Pope had chosen to include Singapore in his itinerary, Ang said she gathered from her interactions with Vatican officials that the Holy See is impressed by the Republic’s religious diversity and harmony.
Both small city states, Singapore and the Vatican share a common interest in promoting inter-faith dialogues and understanding, she said.
She said another common area of interest is care for the environment, especially with the looming climate change crisis.
In Indonesia on Sept 5, the Pope met Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar at Jakarta’s Istiqlal Mosque, where they signed a declaration warning against using religion to stoke conflict and appealed for action against climate change.
Singapore established diplomatic relations with the Vatican in 1981, with Pope Francis’ visit coming 38 years after the late Pope John Paul II’s five-hour whirlwind visit in 1986.
While many Catholics are looking forward to seeing the pontiff, some non-Catholics are also excited by his visit too, Ang said.
She added: “Pope Francis is quite well known. There are quite a lot of people who like him even though they are not Catholic.
“He is not only the head of state, but also a global moral leader whose voice people other than Catholics pay attention to.”
In her audiences with the Pope, Ang said she was struck by his warmth, humility, care and eagerness to “encounter” the other person.
For example, after the formal introductory conversation with Tong in 2022, Pope Francis walked across the room to shake hands with every member of the Singapore delegation, from the security personnel to MCCY staff.
She noted that he did not wait for others to approach him, but went to them instead.
“Usually, leaders have no time. It’s not that they don’t want to, but they are not expected to go say hello to the last man or woman out on the fringes (of the delegation),” she said.
“Pope Francis walks the talk, and he exhorts all to go to the fringes of society to bring them joy.”
She shared an entry in her journal from her 2022 audience with the Pope, in which she had written: “Pope Francis is larger than life. When His Holiness walks into the room, without speaking, there is a sense of awe and wonder at his warm, gentle and joyful authority.”
Ang will be celebrating her 65th birthday on Sept 14, the day after the Pope departs from Singapore.
She said: “This will be the best (birthday) present ever. And my own hope is that his visit will bring joy and also give us a reason to be joyful.”
When asked about the cost of the papal visit, a spokesman for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore said that the figures are still changing with new developments and requirements.
He said: “We will be accountable to our faithful and provide all the information needed when we have the final figures. The media will be duly kept informed when we do so.”
The Catholic Foundation, the fund-raising arm of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore, has been raising funds for the papal visit, such as through the sale of specially designed souvenirs for the visit. - The Straits Times/ANN
