Myanmar Celebrates the 150th Anniversary of the Arrival of Catholic Missionaries

Source: FSSPX News

In April 2018, the diocese of Taungngu is solemnly celebrating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the first missionaries from the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) in eastern Burma.

Crossing the Sittang River, four priests led by Eugenio Biffi brought the light of the Gospel to the most isolated region of Burma.

Armenian merchants in the Middle Ages, Indian painters in the 13th century, and Portuguese sailors in the 16th century were the first to spread the Gospel in Myanmar. After 1700, several missionary institutions came to give Christianity roots in the country. First the Barnabites or Clerics Regular of St. Paul, then in the 19th century the Salesians and the Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

The Institute for Foreign Missions of Milan, founded in 1850 by Angelo Ramazotti, sent missionaries to Burma in 1867. They arrived in 1868 and went to the most remote and abandoned regions, where the eastern tribes lived, regions that had not yet been colonized by the English.

Five dioceses were founded: Taunggyi, Toungoo, Kengtung, Lashio, and Loikaw. The evangelization of the country was strewn with heavy trials and many crosses, as are all works of God. After the country’s independence was proclaimed on January 4, 1948, the political situation deteriorated due to the uprisings supported by the Chinese Communist Party. Five missionaries died as martyrs between 1950 and 1953. In 1966, all the foreign religious who had come to the country before its independence were expelled and the Church goods were confiscated.

To celebrate the anniversary of the arrival of Catholicism fittingly, bishops from everywhere in Myanmar came together on April 7, 2018, and were joined by the Superior General of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions. The festivities began with the blessing of a Catholic cemetery where the first missionaries were buried. It was followed by a Mass attended by about 200 priests and thousands of faithful.

While it is wonderful that the 150 years of Catholic presence were celebrated worthily, there is a great contrast between the true religion as it was established and the present state of Christianity, ravaged by enculturation and the conciliar religion. The pictures are eloquent: they show that the religious habit and priestly dignity have been abandoned, which went along with the liturgical, disciplinary, and moral reforms. Vatican II’s aggiornamento is above all an immense slackening and the ruin of Catholicism.

Today in the country, 89.2% of the Burman population profess Buddhism. Christians represent 5% of the Burmans, Muslims 3.5%, and Hindus 0.5%. There are 675,745 Catholics in Myanmar, which is a little over 1% of the population.