Bishop of Dinajpur: Pope Francis, support for Bangladeshi Christians
Rome (AsiaNews) -
"The Catholics and the Church of Bangladesh are very happy about Pope
Francis. Ours is a minority community in a Muslim country and the Pope's words
about a poor Church for the poor, supports us in our ministry and
in our lives as Christians". These are the
words of Msgr.Sebastian
Tudu, Bishop of Dinajpur, who spoke to AsiaNews
about reaction to the election of Pope Francis, in the middle Year of Faith and
which has inspired and continues to inspire Catholics of Bangladesh, just 0.1%
of a population that is 89.5% Muslim. The
prelate has been leading the Diocese of Dinajpur since 2012 and was
the first ethnic Santal priest to become bishop.
"Pope
Francis - says the bishop - spoke directly of the Church: it is the center of
our lives, and the Church means the people, not just the structure. The Holy
Father spoke often of our ministry as priests, nuns
and religious, encouraging us to be closer to the people, to take care of them,
love them. I think these are very important things, because it means going back
to the real needs of the Church, at this historic moment. "
The
election of Pope Francis and the Year of Faith in progress represent a double
blessing as well as a source of inspiration for the Catholics of Bangladesh. "The
proclamation of the Year of Faith - recalls the bishop - gave new vitality to
the people. In the Diocese of Dinajpur we are organizing various pastoral
activities, and in the coming months will build two new parishes and will open
two new centers." One
of these will be entrusted to the Sisters of Shanti Rani, the diocesan congregation;
they have sprung to life. "These
nuclei - he explains - and all are dedicated to serve the many villages that
are part of our diocese."
Accepting
the invitation to the New Evangelization launched by Benedict XVI in the Year
of Faith, Msgr. Tudu
has also launched a program to promote vocations. "We
are working on several levels - he said - and we have also thought of ad hoc
projects for priests and nuns. They are like 'refresher courses', to raise
awareness about the meaning of their vocation and to help them understand the
ministry to which they were called.
Pope Francis himself has reminded priests of the importance of pastoral work
and going out to meet the people, and even as a bishop I feel I have to be
closer to them, so that I can build a more solid relationship with my people.
"
For
the past three months Bangladesh is the scene of constant strikes (hartal)
promoted by supporters of the Islamist party, which often result in vandalism
and violence of various kinds, especially against the Hindu community. However,
thus far the Catholics do not seem to have encountered any problems. "Being
a minority - notes the bishop - is always a challenge. We Catholics have always
been here, so in a sense 'it is normal' for us to be here. Nevertheless, the
situation is quite good: we live in harmony with
other communities, we have good relations with Hindus and Muslims, they often want
to work with us and help us solve problems. " It
is clear, he adds, "there are special cases of tension, even for us in the
Church, but they can not be taken as a general rule."
In
Bangladesh, Islam is considered to be the state religion, but the Constitution
does not provide for Shari'a (Islamic law) and guarantees the freedom of
worship. However,
it is still difficult to speak of conversions in the country, particularly from
Islam to another religion. With
the exception of tribal people, there are no official figures on the number of
baptisms carried out each year. Bishop
Tudu tries to explain the situation: "In general, I would say that the
situation in Bangladesh is better than in other areas, such as Pakistan. We are
a minority, but we are not totally abandoned. Yet this country was born from a partition,
which had the goal of creating a Hindu state [India, ed] and an Islamic state
[East and West Pakistan, ed.] Even when we became independent and the Awami
League came to the fore, the party that proclaims
and defends democratic religious freedom, the basic objective has always been the
same: to be an Islamic state. "
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07/02/2019 17:28
