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Mass held at the same site where St. John Paul addressed East Timorese in
1989.Posted on August 17, 2015, 1:49 PM Dili: Some 8,000 Catholics packed an
open coastal area on the west side of Dili, Timor-Leste's capital, to mark 500
years of the Church's presence on the island nation.
The Aug. 15 Mass was held at Tasitolu, the site of a 1989 Mass celebrated by
Pope John Paul II, when Timorese youth unfurled banners protesting Indonesian
rule. The incident, one of the few times during the occupation that the East
Timorese had an international audience, was considered a seminal moment of the
resistance.
Catholics came from all over the island for the Mass, wearing traditional dress
and displaying banners representing their dioceses, communities, schools and
parishes.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the highest-ranking Church
official to visit Timor-Leste since St. John Paul, was the Mass' main
celebrant, which took place on the feast of the Assumption of Mary.
Other celebrants included Archbishop Joseph Marino, the Jakarta-based apostolic
nuncio to Timor-Leste, Bishop Basilio do Nascimento of Baucau, Bishop Norberto
do Amaral of Maliana, and Italian Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, the nuncio to
Singapore, who served as nuncio to Timor-Leste from 2006-2013.
Cardinal Parolin told the congregation that the Church closely followed the
country's struggle for independence and would continue to assist the fledgling
nation.
“The Catholic Church ... is committed to continuing to walk with you, as you
strive to achieve your highest aspirations as a nation, one built on justice,
solidarity and peace,” the cardinal said.
The cardinal also referred to the Aug. 14 signing of the concordat between the
Vatican and Timor-Leste, saying the accord is a means by which the Church and
state can work in collaboration for the development and advancement of the
country.
Bishop Nascimento, president of the Timor-Leste bishops' conference, said the
signing of the concordat intensifies the cooperation between the Church and the
Timor-Leste government to better serve the country’s 1.2 million people, of
whom 97 percent are Catholic.
“We are in an era of globalization. Cooperation between the Church and
government is important in dealing with issues that affect the people of
Timor-Leste,” Nascimento said.
At Tasitolu, a six-meter tall bronze statue commemorates John Paul's 1989 visit
to Timor-Leste. At the end of the pope's Mass, police reportedly seized young
men who approached the altar to draw the pope's attention to the plight of
local people under Indonesian rule. International media reported the
demonstrators were beaten and later tortured, a charge Indonesian officials
denied.
Indonesia annexed the former Portuguese colony of East Timor as a province in
1976, after taking control the previous year when the Portuguese colonial
administration withdrew amid mounting political tensions. Up to 200,000 East
Timorese died due to famine, armed resistance and reprisals during Indonesia’s
often bloody rule.
A large majority of East Timorese voted for independence in a U.N.-sponsored
referendum on Aug. 30, 1999, after which a pro-Jakarta militia went on a
rampage that left hundreds dead. A transitional U.N. administration took over
until the formal emergence of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste in May
2002.
Source: UCAN
