Caravaggio’s work was supported by Pope Francis and attracts crowds in Osaka25 – Observer

The “deposition”, by Italian painter Caravaggio, is exhibited in the Vatican Pavilion by the will of Pope Francis, who supported the presence of the work at Expo 2025 Osaka, which has attracted crowds, Father Nuno Lima tells Lusa.

Osaka Cathedral parish priest, Japan, since 2018, and deputy compensation of the Vatican space, which is within the Italy Pavilion, the Portuguese priest says that the exposure of this picture has attracted many visitors, which Lusa found in the place.

A “DepositionMichelangelo Merisi, known as Caravaggio, was created in early 1600s, is preserved in Vatican museums and It represents the moment when the body of Jesus is descended from the cross by Nicodemus and John and placed on the anointing stone, in the presence of the Virgin Mary, Mary Magdalene and Maria de Cléofas.

Asked if the visits have increased with the death of Pope Francis, the parish priest says there is no direct relationship.

“I think the number of visitors has been good, it has responded to our expectations, I do not think it is related to the death of Pope Francis“He says.

By the way, “when it was from Pope Francis’ death we prepared a space for people to leave the flowers (…), I do not think this increase in visits is related” with it, “but with the theme we chose,” says Nuno Lima.

“The theme of the Vatican Pavilion space is“ Beauty leads to hope ” [“La Bellezza porta Speranza“, em italiano]we are in the year of hope, in the Holy Year of Hope, ”he contextualizes.

The idea that “I have is that in the middle of so much digital” that is evident at Expo 2025 Osaka “Found with Caravaggio’s painting with that impressive beauty leads people to come to see, I think it’s this beauty call”That attracts people to space, considers Nuno Lima, who admits that he helped bring the picture to the world exhibition.

“It was not me who chose, I helped prepare things for the exhibition. Who chose was the commissioner, but then it was the will of Pope Francis that the picture came,” he says.

This “because there were some difficulties on the part of the Vatican in giving such an important picture, but thanks to Pope Francis’ intervention we were able to bring the picture to be exposed here,” says the Portuguese priest.

Died on April 21, the Pope was in Japan in 2019 and “was well welcomed.”

However, “I personally was surprised by the news space they gave to the death of Pope Francis, I was not expecting the Japanese television chains” to do so, because “they are usually more reserved, not only in relation to Christianity, but also to religions.”

However, “they gave a noble space, they gave the news of Pope Francis’ death for a long time,” said the parish priest of Osaka Cathedral.

About who will be the successor of Francis, the priest considers that he is someone “capable of making bridges.”

“We say in Portuguese that the Pope is the high pontiff. The pontiff is to make bridges and I think this will be the Pope’s great mission also following Pope Francis,” he continues.

Francis “was a pope of making bridges and I think the neighbor can continue”, because “this is the great desire not only of Catholics here in Japan, but everyone” from all over the world, “May the Pope be in this world so divided, such a person capable of making bridges,” he says.

Nuno Lima came to Japan in 1999, “26 years ago”, being a missionary of Boa Nova, a Portuguese institute that has been present in the country since then, he says. Currently, “as a priest, I do the service that is needed in the cathedral”, in a community that is small but has been increasing with foreigners.

“The Japanese church is a church made above all Japanese, these are registered in parishes, and we then have about 0.34% of the Japanese population that is registered in our parishes, we can say Japanese faithful,” he says.

Now, “especially in recent years there are many foreigners who come to work in Japan and the reality of the Japanese church has diversified immensely,” he says.

For example, “at the cathedral we currently have masses in Japanese, in English, Vietnamese and Korean, which” are the most present realities in the Japanese Church. “

The reality of the Japanese church, “being small, tries to make bridges with the various Japanese realities,” as Pope Francis argued.

In fact, “the numbers [de católicos] They are very small if we want to include foreigners [chega a] 1%, but the contact of the Japanese with the church goes far beyond this number, ”he says.

There are those who have children in the infantry or Catholic schools. The Jesuit University is a prestigious university in Japan, reports, added that the presence of the Catholic Church “in these academic, school means, for example, in hospital media goes far beyond” that presence in churches.

The church in Japan, for having a small community, meets people in various places, especially in the social area, hospitals, educational area, schools, summarizes.

The 133 cardinals voters who are expected to elect the new Pope in the conclave gather, this Wednesday in the Sistine Chapel from 4:30 pm (2:30 pm in Lisbon), starting the secret votes to elect Pope Francis’ successor.

Expo 2025 runs from April 13 to October 13 on Yumeshima’s artificial island, located on the edge of Osaka, Kansai, Japan.