A video, recorded on a smartphone, offers words of encouragement to young people in Thailand who are gathered for a prayer vigil. Before, Pope Francis arrives at Bangkok Airport after an eleven-hour flight from Rome. Thailand is the first stop on a seven day Apostolic Journey to Asia taking him to Thailand and Japan.
“Don’t spend your life on the couch: go out and make something of it, work hard!”
Those are Pope Francis’s first words to young people after his arrival in Bangkok. Stopping briefly in the atrium of the nunciature where he will be staying during his visit to Thailand, the Pope sent a message to a group of young people gathered for a prayer vigil on Wednesday night.
Speaking in Spanish, the Pope said he knows of the prayer vigil and he knows that many other young people are on their way to Bangkok to participate in a Mass on Friday.
Walking and praying, he said, are both beautiful things to do!
And he urged them to always open their hearts to God who gives us the strength to carry on walking because, he said, “we must never stand still in life”.
“A young person cannot retire at the age of 20, he must walk! Always going further, always uphill, “he said.
In his improvised message, the Pope also encouraged those who may fall to have the strength to get up and carry on going forward.
He said all young people owe it to themselves to reach for happiness, which he said, is not to be found on the couch or in “swamps of difficulties”.
It is to be found treading a path that is paved with courage and commitment, he said.
Pope’s journey and arrival in Thailand in a minute
Pope Francis arrived in Bangkok on Wednesday where he was welcomed at the city’s International Airport by Thai authorities and bishops and was treated to full military honours.
11 children were also on hand in traditional dress expressing their joy for his presence.
Once at the nunciature, the Pope was able to rest after his long journey and to celebrate the Eucharist in private.
Decking-out papal venues in Thailand
Pope Francis is on a seven-day Apostolic Journey to Asia. His first stopover is in Thailand, where Catholics number around 300,000. The Pope will focus on confirming the faith of this small Catholic community, promoting interreligious dialogue and paving the way for peace and understanding in a predominantly Buddhist country. In a video message sent to the people of Thailand, the Pope expressed his hope that his visit will “strengthen the bonds of friendship with many Buddhist brothers and sisters”.
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