In a letter sent to the faithful of his nation, Cardinal William Goh recalled: It has been 38 years since the Vicar of Christ visited Singapore. Pope John Paul II honored us with his presence on November 20, 1986. I hope that this “Visit of the Holy Father Francis brings renewed fervor to all Catholics in the country, uniting them in faith and mission, especially in these difficult times.”

The Apostolic Journey of Pope Francis to Singapore, scheduled for September 11 to 13, according to the program of the Holy See, will be above all an experience of faith. This is explained by Cardinal William Goh, archbishop of Singapore, in a message sent to the Catholic community in his country. The Cardinal affirms that “it will also be a moment that will be lived with the hope of confirming and reinvigorating the faith of Singaporean Catholics.”

Goh invites all the faithful “to join together to pray without ceasing for the Pope’s visit”, according to Fides Agency. Let us pray, as a community, for the health and safety of the Holy Father; let us ask the Lord that this will be a truly meaningful and grace-filled visit. Let us hope that the Pope’s presence in Asia can lead to greater renewal and strengthening of faith, to a conversion of heart and a missionary spirit in the Catholic communities of Singapore.

To spiritually prepare the faithful “for the encounter with Jesus through the pastoral visit of Pope Francis”, the Archdiocese of Singapore has recently launched the website www.popefrancis2024.sg dedicated to the apostolic journey.

The visit takes place ten years after the approval of the pastoral plan that the Catholic Church of Singapore prepared in 2014: then, in an assembly of some 750 representatives of parishes and ecclesiastical bodies, Archbishop Goh stressed that the Church would face challenges such as the decline of religious practice, indifference towards the sacred, the power of new technologies and the secularization of society.

Today, the archbishop said, “half of Catholics regularly attend church” for Sunday Mass, while churches are still full thanks to emigrants. Singapore’s Catholic population, currently around 395,000, includes people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds.