PORT MORESBY – Pope Francis told bishops, clergy and religious in Papua New Guinea Saturday to be close to those on the peripheries and to continue spreading hope, despite the challenges and misunderstandings they may face.

Speaking inside Port Moresby’s Shrine of Mary Help of Christians, the pope told pastors to “focus their work on the peripheries of this country.”

“I think of people belonging to the most deprived segments of urban populations, as well as those who live in the most remote and abandoned areas, where sometimes basic necessities are lacking,” he said, also pointing to those marginalized and wounded due to prejudice and superstition.

The church, he said, “desires especially to be close to these brothers and sisters, because in them Jesus is present in a special way…And where he, our head, is present, there are we, his members, for we belong to the same body.”

Pope Francis met with the bishops, clergy, religious and catechists of PNG as part of his Sept. 6-9 visit to the country, which is part of a broader tour of Asia and Africa.

Earlier that morning he held a private meeting with the Governor General of PNG, Robert Dadae, and gave a speech to civil authorities, during which he advocated for just and equitable social development in the impoverished nation, an end to crime, and for the protection of women.

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Prior to meeting with bishops, clergy and religious, the pope also met with street children assisted by programs run by the Archdiocese of Port Moresby.

In a greeting to Pope Francis after his arrival to the Mary Help of Christians Shrine, Bishop Otto Separy of Bereina and president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Island, said the local church was “delighted and grateful” for the pope’s presence at “the peripheries of the world.”

“Your presence among us helps to reaffirm and rekindle our commitment and dedication to Christ. At the same time, your visit is a precious gift to the church in this land and to each of us individually as it confirms our communion in the one faith,” he said.

As part of his meeting with bishops, clergy and religious, Francis heard testimonies from four people, including a priest, a nun, a catechist and a single mother participating in his Synod of Bishops on Synodality.

Grace Wrakia, a single mother of three daughters who attended the Rome-based session of the Synod on Synodality in 2023 and who will attend again in 2024, spoke of challenges of living synodality, especially in having her voice heard as a woman in a paternal society, where women are at high risk of domestic and sexual violence.

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She asked for a cultural change in which women are seen as partners and collaborators, and where young people are included, and local clergy are given the same respect as foreign missionaries.

Father Emmanuel Moku, from the Archdiocese of Port Moresby, said he had a late vocation, being ordained at 52, and spoke of the obstacles he faced in his seminary formation, including pressure from his clan to leave, as well as challenges related to his ministry, such as sustaining his parish, promoting marriage as a lifelong commitment, and helping young people who want to discern.

James Etariva, a catechist from Holy Family parish in Kuriva who is 68, spoke of his many years instructing the faithful, saying it has been a challenge due to lack of resources, the need to travel long distances, at times on foot, the balance between ministry and family life, the influence of other denominations, and the fact that fewer people are committing to be catechists.

Sister Lorena Jenal, who works with the House of Hope in the Diocese of Mendi which provides shelter and healing for those in need due to accusations of witchcraft or sorcery, said the practices of black magic, drug use and money laundering are common in PNG, and that they work with various faith communities and legal personnel to help those who have been falsely accused.

Pope Francis called the shrine where the event was held “a point of reference” for the local church that was built as an “act of faith” and as the result of many years of ministry and evangelization.

The pope spoke of the importance of having the “courage to begin” and not to give up, saying the missionaries who laid the groundwork for the building of the shrine “continued to preach the Gospel and serve their brothers and sisters, starting again many times whenever they failed.”

Francis also spoke of the need to prioritize the most marginalized portions of society in a country where some 40 percent of the population lives in extreme poverty, and where levels of violence and crime are high.

Being close to these people implies the “beauty of being present,” he said, saying, “we are spiritually united with all our brothers and sisters whom the Lord has entrusted to us, and with those who cannot be here, ignited by the desire that the whole world may know the Gospel and share in its power and light.”

In terms of how to engage young people, Pope Francis said there are no proven “techniques” for that, but that one thing that is helpful is to “to cultivate and share with them our joy of being the church.”

He underlined the importance of showing youth “a welcoming home made up of living, chosen and precious stones, placed by the Lord next to each other and cemented by his love.”

Francis also spoke of the “hope of growing” as a church, urging both faithful and pastors of the local church to be confident that the work they are doing will one day bear fruit, and that they are sowing “tiny seeds of good in the furrows of the world.”

“They may seem tiny, like a mustard seed, but if we trust and do not stop scattering them, by God’s grace they will sprout, yield an abundant harvest,” he said.

He encouraged pastors to evangelize with patience and without allowing themselves to be discouraged by difficulties or misunderstandings, “even when they arise in places where we especially do not want to encounter them,” such as one’s own family.

Pope Francis closed voicing gratitude for the meeting and encouraging attendees to “Carry on your mission as witnesses of courage, beauty and hope!”

Follow Elise Ann Allen on X: @eliseannallen