The figures of Matteo Ricci and Father Pedro Arrupe, beacons for the Society of Jesus and the Universal Church, accompanied Pope Francis' hour-long dialogue with Singapore's Jesuits on Wednesday afternoon.

The Pope arrived in the island state a few hours earlier for the fourth and final leg of his 45th Apostolic Journey abroad. It was a day dedicated to rest, except for the meeting with his brother Jesuits, the third of his trip to Southeast Asia and Oceania.

The first was held in Jakarta, on 4 September, with 200 Jesuits; the second yesterday, in Dili, with about 40 members of the Society of Jesus.

A family meeting

On Wednesday, in a hall at the St Francis Xavier Retreat Centre, situated on a hill half an hour from the city and commercial heart of Singapore, there were 25 Jesuits of different ages, mainly Singaporeans but also some from other areas, such as Malaysia.

“There were some young men, even one newly ordained, and some older ones, some sick. The Pope was very sweet with them,” said Father Antonio Spadaro, Undersecretary of the Dicastery for Culture and Education, who has accompanied the Pope on this visit and was present at the meeting.

"The meeting lasted an hour as usual. And as usual, it was a very warm, fraternal meeting... the Pope wanted to keep speaking. It seemed that he did not want to leave this very intimate and family-like atmosphere.”

The photos, circulated by Fr. Spadaro himself on his X account, show a smiling and relaxed Pope Francis. The priest said the Pope immediately opened the floor for questions. The topics were varied and demanding, beginning with the challenges that await the Church in this time and in these lands.

“The Pope made it clear that faith must enter into human challenges, and stressed the importance of Asia today as a key continent,” Fr. Spadaro explained. “So Jesuits are called to live in this place, which presents very peculiar challenges.”

Arrupe and the ‘challenge’ of prayer

The Pope also stressed of the importance of prayer, which is also ‘a challenge’, that of “always facing the challenges posed by society with a spirit of prayer following the model of Father Pedro Arrupe”. This was a reference to the Jesuit of Spanish origin, Superior General of the Society from 1965 to 1983, who has been proclaimed a Servant of God and whose cause for beatification is under way.

“Pope Francis spoke several times of the figure of this great Father General, and has declared that he is very close to him and eager to arrive at this beatification and canonization,” said Fr. Spadaro.

Vocation and formation

There was no shortage of pastoral themes during the conversation. “The Pope discussed, above all, vocations and how, for example, they actually exist, that is, there are some people, some young people, who want to enter religious life but are sometimes frightened of formation.”

“The Pope recommended not lowering expectations,” said Fr. Antonio Spadaro. “In this regard,” he added, the Pope emphasised the importance of “high-quality and appropriate formation to meet the challenges of our time.”

The example of Matteo Ricci

In the conversation, besides the figure of Fr. Arrupe, that of Matteo Ricci, the great Jesuit apostle to China, also emerged. “He was another reference figure,” Fr. Spadaro stressed, “because he was a point of reference for the Jesuits in this place.”