Security for the papal visit

JANUARY 15, 2015, is still two months away, but there is already tremendous interest in the visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines starting on that day. Part of the interest was fanned by the nation’s observing the first anniversary of super-typhoon Yolanda whick struck on November 8, 2013, the strongest typhoon ever to hit land anywhere in the world. The Pope appealed to the world to help the victims and even then expressed his desire to visit the Philippines.

Even without Yolanda, a papal visit is a major event in Philippines, whose 85 percent Catholic population sets it apart from all other Asian nations. The Pope has also gained wide appeal even among other religious groups because of his reformist campaign within the Church and his openness to those of other faiths, including Muslims and Jews.

As the papal visit is also a state visit by the Pope as head of state of the Vatican, the Philippine government and the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines have organized a national committee that will draw up the details of the visit. From Manila, the Pope will fly to Tacloban City, which suffered the most when Yolanda struck in 2013. He will say Mass at the Tacloban airport , then have lunch with some Yolanda survivors at the Archbishop’s residence in Palo, Leyte. He will be the third Pope to visit the Philippines, after Pope Paul VI in 1970 and Pope John Paul II in 1981 and 1995.

For the coming papal visit, there are plans to have him ride in a Popemobile, a glass-enclosed vehicle, so he will be more easily seen by the big crowds expected to turn out in Manila and in Leyte. The Pope, however, has been known to wade right into crowds at St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican to shake hands with the people and kiss the children held out to him. He might just be moved to reach out to the people, especially the children, when he visits the areas devastated by Yolanda.

We cannot overemphasize the need for the utmost security for the Pope during his Philippine visit. Few people may now be around to remember it, but when Pope Paul VI arrived at the Manila airport on the morning of November 27, 1970, he was attacked by a dagger-wielding Bolivian in the first papal assassination attempt in modern times. The Bolivian was wrestled to the ground but the Pope was reportedly wounded in the chest.

We pray that no such incident will mar Pope Francis’ visit. We are certain that all possible measures will be in place for the five-day papal visit. With everyone contributing his share, we look forward to the coming visit of Pope Francis whose theme of “mercy and compassion” is also the recurring theme of his teachings.