Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC) Easter Greetings! AsIPA (BEC) Desk 643-1, Junggok, 1 - dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, Korea(143-912) Tel: 82 10 4503 5924 asipa.fabc@gmail.com Women s Desk CAEC, 2 Highland Road, #01-09 Singapore 549102 Tel: 65 9626 5911 fabc.laityfamily@gmail.com Youth Desk c/o Archbishop s House 1 No. Kakrail Road, Ramna G.P.O. Box 03, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh Tel: 88-02 934 5131 / 831 5405-09 psimongomes@yahoo.com Jan - Mar 2016 FABC Office Of Laity and Family 2 Highland Road #01-09, Singapore 549102 Tel: 65 9626 5911 Email: fabc.laityfamily@gmail.com Dear friends, I wish all of you a wonderful season of Easter with the joy of the resurrection and accompaniment of the Risen Lord in all that you do. In this year of Mercy may the Risen Lord give us his light to live out his Compassionate love and guide especially in our families, grow in our understanding of the dignity and rights of women, guide and accompany the youth and support the laity in their vocation and mission. A lot has happened in the Office of Laity and Family. First of all let me welcome the new Youth Desk Executive Secretary, Fr Gustavo Benitez. We are really grateful to the Bishop of Phnom Penh Msgr Olivier for allowing Fr Gustavo to work for the FABC OLF. Also we are truly delighted that Fr Gustavo is taking on this very important work of the Youth Desk. I wish to put on record my very sincere thanks to Fr Simon Patrick Gomes for his 4 years of service to the Youth Desk. Let the FABC OLF join His Eminence Oswald Cardinal Gracias, the President of FABC, to express our sentiments to Fr. Simon Patrick saying: Your dedication, leadership, energy and untiring efforts in the formation of the youth and youth ministers are evident from the many successful youth programmes which you organized over these years We are grateful that your expertise and contributions in youth ministry have touched, transformed and influenced the lives of many young people not only in Asia but world-wide. We hope you will read with interest and concern the report from our SEAsia Regional meeting on Women and the Impact of Climate Change which was held in Battambang Prefecture, Cambodia. The venue and the topic coincided perfectly to give a very meaningful Seminar. The AsIPA Desk continues to support local churches through their training programmes and was in January in Keng Tung Diocese in North East Shan State, Myanmar. From near freezing temperatures in Keng Tung, to frying temperatures in Battambang, Cambodia, the FABC OLF continues to serve the churches of Asia within their areas of concern. We hope you will let us know if there is anything in particular you would like us to look into or you would like to host a meeting in your Diocese. Once again, a very happyeaster. Alleluia! Yours in the service of Christ, Archbishop Patrick D Rosario, csc Chairman, FABC OLF
AsIPA Desk Report on AsIPA Workshop in Kengtung Diocese Context and Background Myanmar is a melting pot of multi-national races. The arrival of the Christian missionaries on the soil of Myanmar was the dawning of a new era in the history of a predominantly Buddhist country. The pioneering missionaries set foot on the soil of the Eastern most part of Myanmar, where the present Kengtung Diocese finds itself, in the year 1912 with the arrival of the first PIME (Pontificio Instituto Missione Estere) missionaries. However, the evangelizing effort was without much success due to wars and various forms of political instability. The Shan State in Myanmar is divided into three areas: the Southern, Northern and Eastern parts. Kengtung Diocese is comprised of the nine townships of Eastern Shan State, which is situated in the most Eastern part of Myanmar that is also known as the Golden Triangle. This area shares its borders with Thailand, China and Laos. Problems that are facing the people of this area include conflict among ethnic groups and the country s army, displacement, loss of indigenous lands and livelihood opportunities, human trafficking, poppy cultivation and drug abuse, HIV/AIDs, high potential for illegal migration, lack of opportunities for education, and poverty. Catholic Church is serving the most vulnerable people despite all challenges. There are great needs for social awareness, peace building, and social development, capacity building of the local resources, creating opportunities for education and providing livelihood opportunities for youth and illiterate population especially young women who belong to vulnerable groups. Pastoral Focus of Kengtung Diocese Kengtung Diocese celebrated its first Diocesan Synod in 2007. This Synod formulated six areas as the pastoral focus of the Diocese. These areas are: 1. Faith Formation and Catechesis 2. Evangelization and Pastoral Renewal Programs 3. Youth Ministry 4. Laity and Family Ministry 5. Media Apostolate 6. Inter-faith Dialogue Workshop on AsIPA The concrete step taken by the Diocese in response to the aforementioned challenges is introducing of the Asian Integral Pastoral Approach (AsIPA) in the life and mission of the Diocese. On January 25-30, 2016, Diocesan AsIPA Resource Team organized workshop on AsIPA at Diocesan Pastoral Center in Kengtung. The workshop was facilitated by AsIPA Resource Team (ART): Ms. Wendy Louis (Executive Secretary of the Office of Laity & Family of FABC, Singapore) and Ma. Bibiana Joohyun Ro (Executive Secretary of AsIPA Desk of OLF of FABC, Korea) in coordination with National and Diocesan AsIPA Resource Team. The objective of the workshop is Integral Pastoral Development of the Christian Communities in Kengtung Diocese through AsIPA in order: 1. to discover and deepen a vision of the Church: New Way of Being Church (communion of communities; a participatory Church) 2. to clarify Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) are a way and instrument of implementing a vision of the New Way of Being Church 3. to deepen the understanding of BECs 4. to experience Christ and the community through Gospel Sharing 5. to share the experiences of BECs from other Dioceses. 2
Youth Desk Participants There were 167 participants who took part in the seminar/ workshop representing all the parishes (20) in the Diocese. Among the participants were 2 Bishops, 40 priests, 25 religious, 27 catechists, 30 members of women association, 15 members of fathers association and 28 youths. Bishop Lucius Hre Kung, Bishop of Hakha and President of Episcopal Commission on Laity and Family, presented to the participants the vision of a new way of being Church. AsIPA Text in Burmese National AsIPA Resource Team translated the whole AsIPA text into Burmese and the AsIPA text in Burmese was used for the first time during the seminar. Action Plan for Future Following the AsIPA workshop, we could draft some action plans in the followings: 1) to revitalize the Christian communities through the new way of being Church; 2) to train lay leaders; 3) to sustain the local Church by means of promoting Small Christian Communities (SCCs) at village level. The Diocesan AsIPA Resource Team would like to express our sincere thanks and heartfelt gratitude to AsIPA Resource Team (ART): Ms. Wendy Louis (Executive Secretary of the Office of Laity & Family of FABC, Singapore), Ma. Bibiana Joohyun Ro (Executive Secretary of AsIPA Desk of OLF of FABC, Korea) and National AsIPA Resource Team for their invaluable support that contributed to the success of the first AsIPA workshop in Kengtung Diocese. All the best for your new assignment! I would like to extend my sincere thanks and gratitude to all the members of the FABC family, whose accompanyment and cooperation helped me to experience a deep bond of friendship while working as the Executive Secretary of the Youth Desk of the Office of the Laity and Family. I would like to thank His Eminence Gracias Cardinal Oswald, the President of the FABC, Reverend Father Raymond O Toole, the Secretary General of the FABC, Most Reverend Archbishop Patrick D Rozario, CSC, the Chairman of the Office of the Laity and Family and Most Reverend Bishop Joel Baylon, the In-Charge of the FABC Youth Desk for their support and guidance. I would also like to express my gratitude to Miss Wendy M. Louis, the Executive Secretary of the Office and of Family and Women Desk and Miss Bibiana Joo-Hyun Ro, the Executive Secretary of AsIPA Desk for being so cooperative colleagues. I will never forget my Asian friends who made my journey with the youths meaningful and grace-filled. I am sure that I will carry lot of sweet memories of my working with and for the youths of Asia. May I express my deepest longing for being remembered in your prayers, my friends? May the love of Jesus be embodied in the youths of Asia, now and always! Fr Patrick Simon Gomes Welcome Fr. Gustavo Adrian Benitez Rev. Fr. Gustavo Adrian Benitez, PIME, Pontifical Mission for Foreigner Mission. I come from Argentina. I m 44 years old and missionary in Cambodia since 2000: from July 2000 to October 2002 as a lay missionary and from 2009 till now as a missionary priest. I am parochial vicar at St. Joseph Parish in the city of Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia. In particular I take care of three communities on the other side of the Mekong River: Mary, Queen of Peace, St. Peter and St. Joseph. Furthermore since 2010 I m in charge of Youth Ministry in the Apostolic Vicariate of Phnom Penh and priest delegate from Cambodia in all international meetings since 2011. I participated in the preparation and organization of some events of national, regional and international scale, namely World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain, the Fifth Preparatory Meeting for the Asian Youth Day in Korea and the Asian Youth Day as well, BILA 3 in Malaysia and the Preparatory Meeting in Krakow for the next World Youth Day and others regional meetings for SEA1, especially as a region we organize a Taize Retreat Program, in collaboration with Taize Brothers, in Cambodia for the five countries of the region and the First Youth Gathering between Laos and Cambodia in August 2015. 3 Since January 1st, 2016 I was appointed as Executive Secretary of Youth Desk from FABC (Federation Asian Bishop Conferences) till now.
Women s Desk REPORT on the FABC OLF Women s Desk South East Asian Regional Meeting on Women and the Impact of Climate Change 7-11 March, Apostolic Prefecture of Battambang, Cambodia. By Wendy Louis, Executive Secretary, FABC OLF Women s Desk Why in Battambang? Why this topic? Who is interested in this? Why Battambang? The Apostolic Prefect, Bishop Kike Figaredo, welcomed us and was willing to support us with parish exposure visits and a rich experience of pastoral life; Battambang has people who are mainly working in a rural setting. Mostly farmers, the women in this region are already facing the harsh realities of Climate Change. It would be a good place to feel on our skin and in our hearts the challenges these poor families and women in particular are facing. Why this topic? Women and the Impact of Climate Change! The Church and the United Nations has a special concern for women, especially those who are dependent on farming, who are the first to experience the hardship brought on by weather extremes which undermines their agricultural rhythms and food security. They are the ones who have to cope with increasing work but diminishing production as the land yields less and less. They are the first to suffer the impact of poverty brought on by disasters. When there is less food, women are most likely to do without while men and children are fed. When there is pressure on income, the girls are kept back from school and not the boys. The impact of climate change is to erode even 180 year old grandma sold her farm to pay for treatment for sick daughter but still lost her and her husband. further the rights and dignity of women and the girl child in situations where women are already discriminated and exploited. Forced migrations, Human trafficking, increased prostitution, domestic violence are exacerbated by poverty and climate change is one major cause of increasing poverty today. There are other causes like wars, corruption and poor governance but Climate Change looms larger than all the rest. For the six countries of SE Asia represented in the Seminar from March 7 to 11 March, all could resonate with the topic and found many examples where women are already experiencing the negative impact of unpredictable weather systems and a weak social and political response. Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines were represented by lay and religious women from their national 4
Women s Desk Women s Commissions. Two Bishops accompanied the process. Indonesian Archbishop Nicholaus Seputra of Merauke Diocese (West Papua) and host Bishop Kike Figaredo. There was a total of 32 participants. Resource person and co-organiser was Sr Siphim Xavier osu from the Thai Catholic Bishops Conference, Women s Commission. Keynote speaker was Fr Pichet SaengThien SJ from Thailand who helped the participants understand some key points from the Pope s document on Care for our Common Home (Laudato Si LS) and Fr Allwyn D Silva, Executive Secretary of the Climate Change Desk of FABC who helped us understand the background to Climate Change and Global Warming and gave us guidelines for planning. Participants from Battambang s Pastoral and Educational Outreach team Seated with a hat and standing with sister are women who kept the faith in isolation and are the key evangelizer in this community of Nikom Very important learning came from our exchange and reporting on our different country situations and listening to each other carefully. One of the most commonly repeated points was that there is a lack of awareness of the connection between climate change and poverty and the subsequent impact on women. It was very heartening to hear that many countries are doing a great deal already towards supporting women who have their own methods and wisdom to mitigate and adapt to Climate Change challenges. The big obstacle is very often that the domination of men and exclusion of women in many decision making mechanisms makes it less likely that solutions provided will succeed. Also many participants were deeply moved by their experience of visiting families, kindergartens and institutions in the five parishes in the Battambang area. In one parish the shelter for women rescued from domestic violence and trafficking provided an actual example of women and how they are coping once rescued. There is a desperate need for education so that families do not allow their girls to be sold into slavery or trafficked for a pittance. The real challenge in these days was to keep the focus on the Impact on Women. The tendency was to get carried away with just doing many little things for protection of the environment but the important thing for our meeting was to see how we can support women who are facing the ongoing hardships in 3 groups at work 5
Women s Desk the various countries. Most participants could see clearly the connection between the deteriorating conditions for women and girls and climate change. There are many connections of course with the poor and other vulnerable groups but in a three day meeting it was not possible to address all the concerns. Fr Pichet pointed out that Pope Francis in Laudato Si emphasises relentlessly the need to have our focus on the human person and her/his place in creation. There is no solution to Climate Change that does not also reduce poverty and eradicate discrimination. Gender equality is a non-negotiable if we are to achieve any significant progress in these matters. In the Panel discussion on the third day, Fr Pichet explained that it is not enough to work against Climate Change as there are many agencies engaged already. For us, we have to work from within as the human person is central, starting with ourselves, with the human person and then going beyond the human being to creation. On a similar note, Fr Allwyn called for a deeper reflection to be made, following the three step See Judge Act Method. There is a need for actions to be based on a solid foundation. The three day meeting ended with a much greater determination and conviction that we must act and we must act together. While each country or region made their own plans for action, the countries present agreed to provide recommendations which will be crafted into a message that will be from the Seminar and for the Region. This is a work in progress and will be available within a few days. Laity & Family EXTRACTS FROM THE FINAL STATEMENT OF THE 32ND PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE CATHOLIC BISHOPS CONFERENCE OF INDIA (CBCI), HELD AT ST. JOHN S, BANGALORE, FROM 2ND TO 9TH MARCH, 2016 1.0 PREAMBLE - iv. Insensitivity regarding gender, caste, language,...as leaders of the Church, 182 Bishops from 170 Dioceses creed, status and region. of the Church in India are gathered at St. John s National v. Lack of commitment to Ecumenical unity Academy of Health Sciences, Bangalore, from 02 to 09 vi. Excessive preoccupation with institutionalization. March 2016 to deliberate on The Response of the Church vii. Insufficient zeal and fear of proclaiming Christ as in India to the Present Day Challenges during the 32nd unique Saviour. Plenary Assembly of the Catholic Bishops Conference of viii. Large scale migration of families affecting community India (CBCI). The Church in India is a vibrant community life. making significant contribution to nation building through education, social development, health care and 2.2 CHALLENGES WITHIN THE COUNTRY service, especially to the poor The Bishops have resolved i. Large scale poverty and growing gap between the to respond to the challenges facing the Church in India, rich and the poor identifying the following: ii. 2.0 CHALLENGES WITHIN THE CHURCH AND WITHIN THE COUNTRY 2.1 CHALLENGES WITHIN THE CHURCH i. Declining family values tensions and break ups in families, an increasing number of divorces, abortions and a lack of understanding of marriage as a ii. sacrament. Growing materialism, consumerism and addiction to social media, due to decline of spiritual and moral values. iii. Growing indifference and lack of commitment to the Christian vocation. 6 Corruption, illiteracy, child labour, increasing unemployment, growing addiction to alcohol and drugs. iii. Atheistic Secularism (and practical atheism) iv. Narrow unitary cultural Nationalism v. Sensationalism and dictatorship of a section of the media. vi. Systematic concerted effort to manipulate the education system vii. Opposition to the fundamental human right of every person to convert. viii. Widespread intolerance, religious fanaticism and fundamentalism, attacks and atrocities against intellectuals, social activists, religious personnel and institutions.
Laity & Family ix. Violation of Fundamental Rights enshrined in the Constitution, esp. minority rights x. Growing criminalization and terrorism. xi. Denial of SC status to Christian Dalits. 3.0 Restating the Vision and Mission 3.1. VISION: As a community of Christ s disciples, the Church is at the service of the Kingdom of God. As an inclusive and welcoming community, the Church which is a continued presence of Christ, actualizes the values of love, justice, equality, mercy and peace. As light, salt and leaven of society, she lives in total solidarity with people, especially the poor. 3.2. MISSION: The Church is called to lead people to an encounter with Christ, practising the Gospel values and living for the wellbeing of people without fear and discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, gender, language, culture or status in society. 4.0 The Response of the Church in India to the Present Day Challenges - The following areas were chosen by the Bishops for review and for an appropriate response: i) Family Life Today ii) Renewal of Consecrated Life iii) The Lay Faithful and the Mission of the Church iv) Ecumenism v) Inter-religious Dialogue vi) The Education Apostolate and vii) Care of the Earth, our Common Home and viii) A New Way of Being Church for an effective response 4.1. FAMILY LIFE - The well-being of the Church and the society at large are intimately linked with the nurturing of the family. It is the lifeline of the Church and society (Instrumentum Laboris, nos. 32, 38). However, married love is too often dishonoured by selfishness, hedonism and unlawful contraceptive practices (Gaudium et Spes, no. 47). The two recent Synods on the Family, held in Rome, have drawn attention to the urgency of providing sustained pastoral care to families. Proposals: 1. Frequent visits of Parish Priests to the families 2. Organizing Marriage Encounter and Marriage Enrichment Programmes. 3. Educating families to live in unity and to reach out to others. 4. Responding to the challenges, the media and society pose for family life. e.g. prolife issues, issues in human sexuality, pornography and marital fidelity. 5. Promoting Family counselling centres and Diocesan Family Commissions, training seminarians and priests to be family counsellors, accompanying them constantly. 6. Promoting family values, family prayer, family meals, family outings and use of bible sharing methods through SCC s. 7. Creating facilities for care of the elderly, respecting them and learning from them. 4.3 THE LAY FAITHFUL AND THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH - The lay faithful have a distinct role in the spreading of the Gospel, which the Church really needs them to carry out with the authority, creativity, and power that the Holy Spirit has given them in Baptism. Lumen Gentium no. 31 states: the laity, by their very vocation, seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and by ordering them according to the plan of God. They live in the world, that is, in each and in all of the secular professions and occupations. They are called there by God that by exercising their proper function and led by the spirit of the Gospel they may work for the sanctification of the world from within as a leaven. The laity likewise share in the priestly, prophetic, and royal office of Christ (Apostolicam Actuositatem, no. 2). Proposals: 1. Accepting the dignity, role and importance of the role of the lay faithful in the Church 2. Encouraging the laity to involve themselves in the Church and temporal order, through the Small Christian Communities (SCC s). 3. Undertaking faith formation and professional training programmes. 4. Encouraging our laity to take up important leadership positions in the Parliament, Assemblies, Civil Services, Entrepreneurship in business and in the judiciary. 5. Recognizing the dignity of labour by providing just wages and social security. 6. Helping and encouraging lay faithful by providing them with scholarships and facilities and promoting lay participation in the life and mission of the Church. 4.3.2. YOUTH APOSTOLATE: Recognizing that India is predominantly young, so is the Church in India, there is an urgent need to prepare tomorrow s leaders today. Proposals: 1. Promoting youth apostolate at all levels, such as the Jesus Youth, YCS/YSM, ICYM and AICUF and Youth Associations of the Sui Iuris Churches (SMYM and MCYM) in all parishes and institutions. 2. Encouraging faith formation for youth through YOUCAT, DOCAT and Youth Bible, fostering ethical and moral values, enhancing critical thinking and problem solving. 3. Promoting young talents for leadership roles in the Church and society, particularly in political life and civil service. A Blessed Easter 7