Myanmar is calling us!


A phone call from Waterloo Hostel on 22 July 1996… a visit to Bishop Matthias Shwe from Myanmar the next day… an invitation is extended to the Canossian Sisters to give a helping hand to his diocese. Today, five years down the road, the Sisters have a promising group of nine aspirants forming a Christian community in a simple house given by His Grace.		During this providential meeting with Sr. Janet Wang, Sr. Anne Tan, Sr. Marilyn Lim, (Provincial Council) and Sr. Theresa Seow (VOICA co- ordinator), Bishop Matthias shared his hopes for his diocese, Taunggyi and asked us to assist him in the following: To offer theological and faith formation to the seminarians, religious and laity, especially the young evangelizers To offer professional, language and personal development courses for the youth who have no future To conduct workshops to improve healthcare and standards of hygiene of the rural communities.
Our aspirants.	He also shared about a group of evangelizers called Zetamans who are very active especially in the rural regions. Besides helping with the poor and orphaned children, they also offer basic healthcare and human development. Some of them have worked a number of years and desire to consecrate themselves as Zetaman (diocesan) Sisters.
With his encouragement and the help of professional lay persons, we were able to make more than 20 visits, each lasting between two to six weeks. It has been mutually enriching and we have arrived at an important moment. To ensure continuity and long-term effectiveness, we are being challenged to offer a more systematic formation especially for our aspirants and to participate more effectively in the pastoral projects of the diocese which was proclaimed an Archdiocese last year.		Archbishop Matthias and his secretary, Fr. Anthony, with Sr. Marilyn.

Taunggyi, the capital of Shan state has a population of 1.7 million in 25 townships. The majority are Buddhists but all enjoy a peaceful relationship. Some 50,000 Catholics make up more than 2% of the population. Respect for elders and a sense of the sacred prevail among their values. Being an agricultural country, most of the people work in the fields.
		Gospel sharing.
Together with his priests, Religious and the laity the Archbishop continues to “launch out into the deep” in response to the missionary mandate of the Church. The current political situation and government policies prohibit females under 40 yrs. from leaving the country. Instead, it is possible for us to obtain 3-6 months extension of stay when we go in. The aspirants who have been attending English classes are able to communicate with us effectively in English. With the help of the Sisters who have journeyed with them and shared our Canossian spirit and charism, they have come to love St. Magdalene and St. Bakhita. The little seed that we sowed five years ago is bearing much fruit! My recent stay in Taunggyi has given me deeper insights into the life of the Archdiocese, its vitality and centrality of Christ in all its missionary endeavours as it strives towards being a self-reliant Church. The Archbishop is very open, humble and resourceful, continually inviting different experts to help his priests, religious and lay leaders in pastoral management and accountability.		Our aspirants, Assumpta, Mary, Antonia, Cherry, Julia, Evelyn and Brigid are staying together and it was a joy to share community life with them. Catherine is teaching in the village school while Regina is attending University in another town. They maintain a very regular spiritual life, take turns to be the leader of the month and share household chores. I learnt to chop firewood for cooking! The 3 main meals consist of rice and vegetables daily, with meat and eggs once a week. Life is very simple and frugal. They are very focused and centred on Christ. It is very obvious that they have matured as they discover daily the joy of community life with its challenges and need to make adult decisions and choices. The Word of God plays a central role and I enjoyed “breaking the bread” with them both in community and individually. God is very close to his people. The way ahead is filled with many possibilities; the Spirit is urging us to take more concrete steps… we have now decided that we will provide a more systematic formation in view of accepting some of the aspirants as postulants next September, God willing. We ask for your prayers for this mission… While the military regime makes it difficult for the country to move forward, yet the Church in Taunggyi appears to be making headway by providing educational opportunities for the youth in particular. We can contribute significantly to its future to this sister church in Asia!
By: Sr. Marilyn Lim
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