As you receive this edition of In the Word, the universal Church has just celebrated the 112th World Day of Migrants and Refugees.
Taking the theme, ‘Even just one of these children’, inspired by Matthew 18:10, Pope Leo XIV’s message for the day focused on the vulnerability of minors on the move who are forced to flee due to war, poverty, violence and environmental disasters.
It seems that Pope Leo XIV has already endeared himself to the world, with his warm smile, calm demeanour and steady influence.
But if we listen carefully to his words, we find that behind that serene exterior, he is calling us to step up as Christians and missionaries and launch a revolution! Not a revolution of arms or violence, but a revolution of love.
When Fr Olivier Noclam SVD farewelled his parish in Santa Teresa, Central Australia for his new assignment in Rome early this year, he did not realise he would soon be watching first-hand as the white smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel, announcing the election of a new pope.
Fr Ollie, who comes from Vanuatu and is now assigned to the SVD Generalate in Rome, said the opportunity to farewell Pope Francis and welcome Pope Leo XIV along with thousands of other people from all over the world was something he will always remember.
