Ecclesia in Asia

Located in the Ulaanbaatar Cathedral compound, the centre is meant to foster the inculturation of foreign missionaries and volunteers engaged in pastoral and social activities, deepening their knowledge of the local language, history, and society. The inauguration coincided with Pastoral Week, which saw the small Catholic community reflect on the theme, “Grace and Mission”.

A solemn celebration led by Cardinal Suharyo commemorated the solemn consecration that took place in 1901. The large neo-Gothic church designed by architect Father Antonius Dijkmans, SJ, was recognised as a National Cultural Heritage Site in 2018. “Caring for creation, cultivating faith" is the motto that sums up the spirit of the anniversary.

One year after Bergoglio’s death, the Church in Sri Lanka has placed the theme of synodality – dear to his heart – at the centre of the Sunday that annually brings together the grassroots groups which, for over thirty years, have been gathering in their neighbourhoods or villages to walk together in faith. Bishop Wickramasinghe: “A privileged place to live out each person’s responsibility towards others”.

Elected by the synod underway in Rome after the resignation on 10 March of his predecessor, Louis Sako, the new primate chose the name Paul III. The 58-year-old, originally from Alqosh, led the community in Mosul during difficult years and accompanied the communities in exile after the Islamic State takeover. He must now implement the mandate of unity among Iraqi Catholics Leo XIV entrusted to the synod.

A Lenten initiative from the country’s bishops, with a call to pray “that God may grant his peace to the world and to Myanmar, and that there may be mutual understanding and progress in unity”. In a country where civil society has been systematically dismantled, the importance of such gestures, which also draw the world’s attention to the suffering of the people of Myanmar.

The Statement of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea on the Partial Amendment to the Maternal and Child Health Act, currently under discussion in the country, aims to fill a legal vacuum created by the 2019 Supreme Court ruling decriminalising abortion. The South Korean Church calls for mandatory counselling and a period of reflection before terminating a pregnancy and for the strengthening of men's shared responsibility in childcare.

In Assisi, the extraordinary exposition of the saint's remains for the 800th anniversary of his death. Thousands of pilgrims, including some from Asia, tell AsiaNews: “We pray for peace, there are too many wars in the world.” Young people from South Korea are also visiting, ahead of World Youth Day in Seoul in 2027. At the same time, a relic of St. Francis' ashes is travelling through the Philippines, offering the country a unique opportunity for veneration.

From Myitkyina, a testimonial comes from Father Kurt Pala, a Philippine priest of the Missionaries of St. Columban, who has been ministering in a country disfigured by war for more than five years, where ”the poor and the earth [. . .] have taught me to pray while waiting for peace, to trust in God every moment of life, to share the last cup of rice with a neighbor, and to find joy in the small things”.

A journey marked by spiritual and social activities to deepen understanding and unity between spouses and their relationship with their children. The example of a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu experienced by the families of Marriage Encounter in the parish of Puttalam.

The version of Scripture in the Bidayuh language was officially launched in the Archdiocese of Kuching, Malaysian Borneo. This is an important tool for the elderly who lack literacy, but also for young people immersed in digital technology. For Archbishop Simon Poh, it “will help to promote and preserve the language, and in so doing preserve the faith and the cultures.”

The director of the Catholic Research Centre in Kuala Lumpur offers an initial assessment for Asia of the path Pope Francis set for dioceses worldwide, which continues with Leo XIV. Awareness is growing, albeit at different speeds depending on the context. Now the challenge is to translate the vitality of our Churches in Asia into a way of truly “walking together”.

Leo XIV's text for mission's Sunday published today on feast of the Conversion of St Paul, marking 100 years after its establishment in 1926. “One in Christ, united in mission” is the theme indicated by the pontiff.