Mission

The Latin patriarch received his cardinal's biretta from Pope Francis. The presence of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch was a sign of progress in ecumenism. Christians in the Holy Land face the problems and challenges of the West (the family) and the East (the exodus). The patriarch expressed proximity to Card Sako and stressed Jerusalem’s role as a bridge with Asia’s Churches and faiths.

The nun, who pioneered the prison ministry in the Indian Catholic Church, passed away at the age of 92. Speaking about prejudices against inmates, she said: “If Christ did not discriminate, why can't we, who claim to be his disciples, do the same?”

Located in a mission in Andhra Pradesh started in 1942. Apostolic Nuncio Msgr Leopoldo Girelli at the inauguration: "Shrines remind us that the Church is not born of our initiative, but of God's".

The new prelate will work alongside Archbishop Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi, who was recently elected president of Caritas Internationalis. In the Japanese capital since 2009, the 49-year-old heads he Shinsei-Kaikan Catholic cultural centre in Tokyo. His ministry is especially dedicated to young Japanese. He talked recently to AsiaNews about his predecessor, Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus Paul Kazuhiro Mori, who passed away earlier this month.

The 33-year-old member of the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate, a congregation linked to PIME, is set to leave shortly for the mission in Italy. In the farewell Mass, Fr Giacominelli highlighted the joy of working in education, which many Italian Sisters experienced in his parish of Bonpara. Her testimony is an example for other girls and young women who want to follow the same path.

The Archbishop of Colombo led the annual Blessing of the Sick at the Marian shrine in Tewatte. Many Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims joined in the celebration. The cardinal mentioned again the denial of justice for the victims of 2019 Easter massacres.

The jubilee of the presence of the Omi missionaries was celebrated by the archbishop of the capital in the presence of 80 priests and nuns and 600 faithful, witnesses of the mark left in the country since 1973. Starting with the dozens of schools open to all. Today there are 33 Oblates from 6 Bangladesh, 6 of whom are on mission abroad.

Now 93, the French missionary arrived in Korea after the country’s civil war. In 1969 he became the first bishop of a small diocese in a rural region that had welcomed people displaced by the conflict. Speaking to the Catholic Times, he said he was proud of what Koreans have achieved. With respect to today's concerns, he says: “accept what the Lord gives us.”

In Marianpally, Khulna Bishop Msgr. Boiragi presided over the priestly ordination of Fr. Ruben Biswas of the Congregation of the Holy Cross. A mature fruit of the first evangelization brought 70 years ago among the last people of southern Bangladesh by the Xaverian missionaries.

An Italian PIME missionary, he ministered for 65 years in many parishes in Hong Kong. In 2005 he launched an online School of Evangelization in Mandarin and Cantonese. In 2019 he involved artists and producers in a large musical about Matteo Ricci that attracted thousands of people.

Three schools for the children of poor and exploited brick kiln workers inaugurated by Bishop Msgr. Rehmat in Bonnieabad, the city being created for them in Punjab thanks to Fr. Bonnie Mendes' Society for Human Development. A mother of three tells AsiaNews, "To see that our children will be able to study for us is a dream come true."

Before he was admitted to the Gemelli Polyclinic for surgery, Francis welcomed the relics of the Carmelite patroness of missions, in St. Peter's Square. On the 150th anniversary of her birth, which falls this year, he announced his intention to write an Apostolic Letter dedicated to her. For the feast of Corpus Christi, he urged the faithful to reach out, “frequently and with devotion, to Jesus, the Bread of Life”.