Cardinal Bo urges Myanmar Catholics to be ‘messengers of peace’ despite bombings

More than 103,000 homes have been burned across Myanmar by the military and pro-junta militias since the 2021 coup.

The Archbishop of Yangon Cardinal Charles Maung Bo urged Myanmar’s Catholics “to cultivate inner peace and become messengers of peace in our troubled world” amid escalating violence by junta forces.

“We pray that the warring parties in Myanmar may come together,” Cardinal Bo said in an address to pilgrims at the Marian Shrine of Nyaunglebin in the Diocese of Yangon on 9 February. He said he saw the face of the pregnant Mary reflected in every child-bearing woman in the refugee camps across the country, holding more than 3.8 million people.

Bo asked the 3,000-strong gathering to “support displaced families”, to “participate in interreligious efforts” and to “support human rights and justice”.

In early February, junta forces torched more than 200 homes in the north-western region of Sagaing. The monitoring group Data for Myanmar and residents said the latest incident was part of a campaign to punish communities where rebels operate. It reported that more than 103,000 homes have been burned across Myanmar by the military and pro-junta militias since the 2021 coup, and 69 per cent of them have been in Sagaing.

This region is home to people known as the Bayingyi, who are Catholics partly descended from sixteenth-century Portuguese settlers in the. Some Bayingyi have joined the resistance against the 2021 coup, and the military has responded with reprisals that have destroyed many churches.

In Chin State, junta forces bombed the Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church in Mindat, which Pope Francis had designated in January as the cathedral of the newly-established Diocese of Mindat. “We are very sad that our church has been hit by the bombs … but we will not let ourselves be defeated. We will rebuild it,” said the local priest, Fr Paulinus.

Last week, Myanmar’s bishops condemned the killing of a 44-year-old Catholic priest on 14 February. Fr Donald Martin Ye Naing Win was stabbed to death by an armed gang in a village in  Sagaing.

The bishops described him as “a victim of war like countless innocent people”. Archbishop Marco Tin Win of Mandalay said: “Let us learn from this heartbreaking tragedy.  We call on all brothers and sisters to wake up and put an end to the violence.”

Myanmar’s Christians pray for peace on coup anniversary

Pope Francis will meet ‘vibrant’ Church in Asia

Stay updated — add us as a preferred news source on Google: