(L'Osservatore Romano)

BLOGS | SEP. 13, 2017

Pope Francis Meets Liberated Salesian

Father Tom Uzhunnalil
The encounter took place at the Popes Santa Marta residence,
after which the missionary priest told reporters of his 18 months
captivity in Yemen.
Edward Pentin

Liberated Salesian missionary Father Tom Uzhunnalil bowed down to kiss the feet of
Pope Francis at his Santa Marta residence this morning, after todays weekly general
audience.

The Holy Father welcomed the Indian missionary who was freed yesterday after being
held captive for 18 months by Islamist militants in Yemen.

The Pope immediately raised Father Tom to his feet, embraced and encouraged him,
assuring the priest he would continue to pray for him as he had done during his
captivity, according to LOsservatore Romano. The Vatican newspaper added that the
Pope was visibly moved, and blessed him.

For his part Father Tom, as he is

familiarly known, thanked the
Pontiff, saying he had prayed
every day for him, offering his
own suffering for his mission and
for the good of the Church. The
words touched the
Pope, LOsservatore
Romano reported.

The religious, who was kidnapped

on March 4, 2016 in a terrorist
attack at a residential home of
the Missionaries of Charity in
Aden, also said he was not able
to celebrate the Eucharist, but
every day, he repeated in my
heart, all the words of the
celebration.

Father Tom promised to now

continue "to pray for all who had
supported him spiritually, and
remembered in particular the
four sisters of the Missionaries of
Charity and the twelve people
killed at the time of his
abduction.

He expressed special gratitude to the Omani government which helped secure his
release, as did the Holy See in a statement released yesterday.

Accompanying the Salesian today was Cardinal Oswald Gracias, Archbishop of Bombay.
After this terrible experience, the essential message that Father Tom would like to
convey is that Jesus is great and loves us, the cardinal said.

Father Tom said actually, every day, I felt Jesus next to me, I always knew and felt in
my heart that I was not alone.
The Salesian missionary will remain in Rome for some medical tests, but Cardinal
Gracias said his health is good and that he had no particular problems and was well
treated during his months of captivity.

Speaking to reporters, Father Tom said he was not tortured and the militants did not
behave badly towards me even once during the entire one-and-a-halfyears but life in
the Islamic State camp was full of challenges.

I had to wear a single cloth during the entire period, he said, and when he began to
lose much weight, they gave me medicines for diabetes. He said the militants
shifted the camp three times after the abduction and blindfolded him every time
during each transfer.

He recounted how, the night before the attack and his abduction, the director of the
home in Aden said their lives were at stake and it would be good to sacrifice them for
Jesus. One sister said she wanted to live for Jesus, and she miraculously escaped
when the terrorists attacked the next day, Father Tom said.

A native of Kerala, Father Tom, 57, said he was brought up in the Christian faith by a
deeply Catholic family. His uncle Matthew, who died in 2015, was also a Salesian priest,
and founded the mission in Yemen. At the time of his abduction, Father Tom had been in
the country for four years.

Meanwhile, the Indian government has insisted no ransom was paid to secure Father
Toms release, but did not specify how exactly he was freed, only that various methods
were adopted to get the problem solved.

Indian minister Alphons Kannanthanam said extremely complicated diplomatic efforts

were made to secure Father Toms freedom, which included the help of the office of
Indias Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.

India received help from Saudi Arabia as well as Oman, Kannanthanam said.
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