Singapore prepares for papal visit

Singapore’s largest arena, where Taylor Swift and Madonna have performed, is gearing up to welcome an even bigger icon: Pope Francis.

The pope will celebrate mass to 50,000 people at the National Stadium on Thursday evening, a packed house as his 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific region draws to a close.

The 87-year-old has been to Indonesia, East Timor and Papua New Guinea. The visit to the Pacific island was the furthest journey he has ever made to meet believers.

He arrived Wednesday afternoon in Singapore, where less than 10% of the population — about 400,000 people — identifies as Catholic. The three-day visit includes meetings with government officials, religious leaders and students.

This was the longest foreign visit of his papacy and given his poor health, volunteers say the visit would have been unthinkable a year ago. A bout of illness at the time had made foreign travel difficult, forcing him to cancel a trip to the UAE.

“Since we were told he was coming (to Singapore), we have been praying,” said Karen Cheah, one of 5,000 volunteers recruited for tasks ranging from singing in the choir during Mass to protecting the pope.

“Once he got on the plane and visited the other countries, he realized it was coming: we are next.”

It is no small feat to receive the Pope for even one evening, such as in the stadium.

It’s a hive of activity the day before Mass. The field is covered with rubber flooring. The rows of chairs grow longer as workers unload more.

On the other side of the arena, the choir is rehearsing psalms at full volume, under the close supervision of conductors, the sound clashing with the routines practiced by the event’s hosts.

A volunteer goes through the sequences for Mass while maneuvering an empty wheelchair. Pope Francis is expected to use a wheelchair for most appointments because of a knee ailment.

Meanwhile, security volunteers are working with police to secure the area around the Pope and guard his residence in Singapore.

These volunteers have undergone weeks of training, learning skills such as how to break free from a strong grip and how to respond to a knife attack.

“Because the sense of security is so high at the moment, the police are working very actively with us,” says Kevin Ho, head of the security volunteer team.

“Our volunteers have had sleepless nights, because they were doing the operational work. We try to make the visit as safe and successful as possible.”

Precautions have also been stepped up in response to a recent threat. Seven people were arrested in Indonesia last week over a failed assassination attempt on the pope. Police said they seized bows, arrows, a drone and pamphlets allegedly linked to the militant group Islamic State.

The pope, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, is known for his fearlessness in addressing issues such as LGBT+ inclusion and interfaith tensions. During this trip, he joined the grand imam of Southeast Asia’s largest mosque in Jakarta to make a joint appeal for peace and met with other religious leaders.

He praised Indonesians for choosing to have large families rather than pets, an apparent commentary on falling birth rates in China, South Korea and Japan. But his figures that Indonesian parents have up to five children were decades out of date, commentators pointed out. Indonesian women now have an average of just over two children in their lifetime, UN data shows.

In resource-rich Papua New Guinea, which attracts international companies and investors, the pope called for fair treatment of workers. And in East Timor, he said young people must be protected from abuse after a prominent local bishop was accused of sexually abusing young boys in the 1980s and 1990s.

“Of course the pope has a message. But at the same time, he is also the message,” said Monsignor Stephen Yim, co-chair of the organizing committee of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore.

This is the second papal visit to Singapore.

The late Pope John Paul II spent just five hours in the city-state in 1986, celebrating Mass in the old National Stadium.

Mr. Ho, who was a student at the time, remembers that day well. He says the crowd roared as the pope circled the site in the popemobile, undeterred by the rain.

“The old stadium had no roof and we all got soaked,” Mr. Ho recalled. “The only emotion I remember was that palpable excitement when the Pope came by. It was electric. I will never forget that.”

Demand for Thursday’s mass was also high – nearly half of those who tried to get a seat were unsuccessful. Those who were unlucky were given a response with an emoji and a verse from the Bible.

“Seeing the pope in person feels like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Stephanie Yuen, who managed to get a seat in the stadium. “As a Catholic, it’s something I don’t want to miss, especially in my own country.”

The Mass will be “a very profound spiritual experience that I get to share with thousands of fellow Catholics in Singapore,” said Sherilyn Choo, another enthusiastic participant.

The visit was also of interest to non-Catholics, such as carpenter Govindharaj Muthiah, who built two chairs for the Pope in Singapore.

“Tensions are quite high around the world. It’s heartening that he’s traveled to countries with many different religions,” Mr. Muthiah said. “Unity is the message he’s conveying.”