Global Outreach and Local Contexts: Pope Francis in the Partitioned Islands of Asia Pacific

Global Outreach and Local Contexts: Pope Francis in the Partitioned Islands of Asia Pacific By Michel Chambon SYNOPSIS The Pope’s recent visit to Southeast Asia highlights both the Church’s attention to particular countries and aspects of the Vatican’s wider diplomatic agenda concerning the Pontiff’s envisaged global sovereignty. [...] By visiting this archipelago, Pope Francis has directly and indirectly engaged with the intricate geopolitical reality of Southeast Asia and spelled out what the universal sovereignty of the Holy See could offer to the peoples of the region and their leaders. [...] Later that day, the pope, a few journalists, and humanitarian aid workers were transported by a military aircraft of the Royal Australian Air force to the north of the country near the border with Indonesia. [...] And the Catholic clergy, which was so crucial in the independence process, did not rush now to mobilise its prestige and privileges to enact the social doctrine of the Church and effect socio-economic changes. [...] Rooted in a theological point of view which believes in the socio-political transformative presence of the resurrected Christ, the pope and his administration continue to engage with complex economic and political issues of every single nation and region.