Fr Robert, a PIME missionary who went from Myanmar to a Papua New Guinea mission "on water"
Loikaw (AsiaNews) - Fr Robert Moe, an ethnic Kaya seminarian from the mountains of Myanmar, a country where Christians are 1 per cent of the population, discovered his vocation and became a PIME missionary, now on an island in predominantly Christian Papua New Guinea, which is still in need of rediscovering the Gospel.
The journey of the 35-year-old priest reflects the fate of the Church in Myanmar, which is marking the 500th anniversary of its first evangelisation. When he met PIME missionaries, Fr Robert discovered - and saw confirmed - the notion that the faith he received had to be brought as gift to the ends of the earth.
The interview with Fr Robert took place last April, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Diocese of Loikaw, and by mail after the missionary visited his homeland for the first time in four years (BC)
Fr Robert, tell us about yourself . . .
My name is Robert Moe and I was born in Nanattaw in 1979. I entered the diocesan seminary at 15, in 1993, in Loikaw, and later moved to the regional seminary in Taunggy. I wanted to become a diocesan priest.
In 2003 in Taunggy, I met some of the PIME fathers who taught there. I particularly remember a talk with Fr Adriano Pelosin. At that time, he was working in Bangkok, but he often came to see us. That year, he spoke to us about the life of missionary, about his work. This generated a desire in me for the mission outside the boundaries of the diocese.
You discovered the missio ad gentes . . .
Yes. Fr Pelosin explained this aspect of PIME. "If you become a father and a PIME missionary," he said, "you cannot count on being sent to your country, tribe, diocese or family. They send you out of your culture and geographical boundaries because this is PIME's charisma. That sparked my interest even more.
I was struck by Fr Adriano's experience, the way he lives PIME's charisma, his relationship with Buddhists, his love and concern for street kids. After talking with the bishop, three of us from the diocese of Loikaw made the decision to join PIME.
You have lived in Papua New Guinea for four years now . . .
I have been working for two years after the time I spent studying the language.
What did this missionary experience give you?
I suggested to my superiors of sending me to Papua because I love forests more than cities. But when I arrived I noticed the difference. In my home State of Kaya there are mountains. In the mission, there is only water; you go on the sea, by boat. I went to Watuluma Island.
I found it hard to adapt to the local way of thinking. There, the priest must do a bit of everything. The priest must sometimes be judge, sometimes teacher. So I often feel unable to take on all these roles. In addition, the culture is different. Sometimes you say something and locals understand something else. It is a culture shock. Anyway, I am glad of these years.
With all the needs one can see in Myanmar, what is the point of going on mission elsewhere?
My friends asked me that same question several times. I myself tried to find an answer. In Myanmar, Christians (Protestants and Catholics) are at best 5 per cent of the population. In Papua, most people are Christian. We are there to help the local church to grow up and mature. For my part, I do what other missionaries have done, when they brought the faith to Myanmar.
I received the faith because others made this choice before me, abandoning their country and their needs. They came to us to pass on the faith. Now it is up to us to pass it on ourselves. In my diocese and in my country, we need to understand the urgency of passing on the faith to the world. This is why I am here.
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