Thai Catholic students take lessons about life in converted villages
A group of youth from Assumption schools went to five hill villages which recently converted to Christianity.
Chiengmai (AsiaNews) A group of 32 youth accompanied by the parish priest of the Assumption Cathedral, Fr Khomtuon Suksuthip, were invited to "undergo a first-hand experience of daily life in hill villages". They went to Mae-taeng district in Chieng province and together with nine youth from the area, they visited five villages which recently converted to Christianity.
The first stop was Mae-jok-luang, where the youth lived and worked alongside residents for five days. They were hosted in homes and worked in rice and ginger fields, the main source of income of the villages.
They then headed for the village of Pakleuw where there are 17 families and a total of 60 residents. The village came to the Christian faith thanks to a love story between a Catholic boy from the village of Pakaolam and a girl from Pakleuw; the young couple set up their home in Pakluew and at first they were not well accepted by the inhabitants. Gradually, however, the couple gained the trust of the rest of the villagers and ended up by converting and baptizing the entire village.
The third village visited was Pongnoi, close enough to the city to be a tourist attraction, hence standards of living were different from those in the other place. Maemania, the fourth village is of average size. Here the youth came face-to-face with the simple lifestyle of residents who, like those of other villages, live off produce from nature, like fish and and rice.
The last stop of the youth was the village of Pakaolam, the largest and the first of all five villages to be converted. There are schools and shops and the youth organize activities, like football games for the children of the place.
Fr Suksuthip celebrated Mass in the local dialect together with youth from the village. He said: "This exposure programme was organized on a voluntary basis for students from three Catholic schools with the co-operation of religious men and women who run the schools. The objective of the programme was to learn about evangelization and to be aware of the hardships and difficulties faced by foreign missionaries serving the Catholic Church in Thailand, especially in remote areas. Beside, on the orientation day, members of the team were briefed about the culture of places they were about to visit, and about what they would find there. Learning about the villagers' culture was another objective of the programme."
Thongtanawat, a student from Assumption College, said: ""I experienced the simplicity of living with nature of the hill tribe people. Their generosity in sharing with us what they have impressed me. Most of the villagers believe Jesus Christ is always with them in everything they do, this idea made me reflect that we people in the big cities do not have strong faith like them, we tend to live a life based more on convenience. I thank God for his presence with us because He loves us and I should return His love by loving other people. The first thing I want to do is to share this impressive experience with my school friends and my family."
"This programme was important for me," said Nat-tha, a Buddhist student of the Assumption Suksa School. "I hope to be able to return next year. I have new friends, and I have understood the importance of sharing with others".
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