Takeaways from Pope Francis’ visit to Bangladesh

Tens of thousands of Christians from all over Bangladesh attend a Holy Mass offered by Pope Francis at Suhrawardy Udyan Park in Dhaka on Dec. 1, 2017 (Photo: Rock Ronald Rozario)

Pope Francis’s apostolic journey to Bangladesh on Nov. 30—Dec. 2 was welcoming, peaceful and meaningful as expected.

In some counts, the pontiff’s Bangladesh trip made more buzz than it made in Myanmar, and it was due to the politically sensitive issue he avoided in Myanmar—Rohingya.   

Francis’ three-day interactions with broader sections of Bangladeshi society have touched the lives of people cutting across caste, creed and social status not to mention country’s minority Christians.

What can Pope Francis and Bangladesh achieve from upcoming trip?

Pope Francis’s apostolic journey to Bangladesh (Nov. 30-Dec. 2) is highly expected to be welcoming, joyful and peaceful, unlike his somewhat prickly trip to ethnically and religiously divided Myanmar days before.

Francis will be the third pontiff to visit the Muslim-majority nation. 

A practising Catholic's simple wish

Pope Francis needs to ensure power of the Church handed down to people

In many ways, the new pope is full of surprises -- the first Jesuit, first Latin-American and also the first non-European pope in about 1,300 years.

He is the first Pope Francis and the first to ditch the red papal mozzetta and to wear a simple wooden cross as he emerged onto the balcony of St Peter’s basilica.

The very way Pope Francis presented himself is in contrast to his predecessor Benedict XVI. Does it send a powerful message to local bishops, clergy and religious? Will it change those ‘line breaks’ in the local churches like ours?

I would like to believe these ‘firsts’ are signs of better things to come in the Church.

I take pride in my Catholic faith not for what the Church can do or cannot, but because I’m a member of the world’s largest faith organization. Because I believe that no matter how rich or poor, my joys and hopes, grievances and anxieties count, and there is someone with authority to listen to me.

I am among those faithful whose tiny local Church had no hand in choosing their supreme spiritual leader.

Catholics here are a tiny minority – about 350,000 people in a Muslim-majority country of more than 150 million. In 1986, on the only papal visit to Bangladesh, the late Pope John Paul II called us 'God’s little flock,’ whose life of faith is influenced by a multi-religious culture, a common reality in churches in Asia.

Most of the ‘little flock’ considers the pope no less than a demigod.

Most of us are devout and listen to what the pope says and does, rather than caring who he is or where he comes from. They care little (actually they know little) about the clerical abuses and financial scandals, or the dysfunctional Vatican bureaucracy haunting the Church at the moment.

They see the new pope as ‘a source of hope and joy’ as he comes from a developing country which they too live in, because like the Vatican, the local Church also needs changes.

All these years, the local Church has been a ‘light of hope’ in the ‘vast sea of Islam,' making significant contributions to education, health and development sectors, especially to the poor.

Besides spiritual nourishment, by improving their socio-economic status the Church has developed a small but devout community of faithful. Thus, the laypeople have grown up.

But sadly, they have failed to find a sturdy position in the Church -- either nationally and locally. From episcopal commissions to parish level or at Church programs, with few exceptions, laypeople are merely participants, not decision-makers.

With due respect to the bishops, clergy and Religious who are close to the people, many of their colleagues think that by the virtue of ordination or religious vows they are the be-all and end-all when it comes to the Church.

It’s not that laypeople are less educated than the clergy or Religious, or they have too little theological and apostolic training opportunities. Not because they know little about Vatican II and changes in the Church it was intended to bring.

There is a fear among many clergy and Religious that empowerment of the laity will decline their power to rule them. Also, they are afraid that laypeople might rise against things that are not going well in many places, like what happened in Europe and America?

I guess this tendency is a legacy of Eurocentric Vatican bureaucracy as well.

But in his sermon during the installation Mass, Pope Francis emphasized the Church’s role as the "protector of the poorest, weakest and vulnerable" and reminded people that "authentic power is service."

Does this signify real hope for the laity in the near future?

With each passing day, the pope's style, words and actions ignite hope and joy in 1.2 billion Catholics around the world.

We have seen some signs of hope, but real change and reform are yet to happen. Our leaders need to realize that authentic power comes from God and lies with people and empowering people they empower themselves.

If that happens during Pope Francis' time, the Church will become not only ‘of and for the poor’ but also ‘for the poor’ in the real sense.

Third World View is the pseudonym of a commentator based in Dhaka

Read original post here- A practising Catholic's simple wish

Few Christians but big contribution

 

Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran presents keynote speech during the conference (photo: Chandan Robert Rebeiro)

Visiting Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID), said yesterday that even though Christians are tiny in number nationally, their tremendous contribution in the country is much appreciated. 

“No need for an inferiority complex because you are small in number, you’ve won respect from your country,” the Vatican envoy said. The French-born Cardinal, on the fourth day of his first official tour in Bangladesh, was addressing bishops, Episcopal commission secretaries, major religious superiors and Episcopal Commission for Christian Unity and Interreligious Dialogue (EC-CUIRD) members in the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh center. 

Earlier on April 26 the International Conference on Interreligious Dialogue and Harmony Cardinal Tauran said that Bangladesh must be considered as a model for interreligious harmony. The Cardinal strongly reminded his audience that purpose of interreligious dialogue is not conversion but an ‘encounter of freedom’ between God and man. 

“No matter how poor you are, you are enriching your country. Don’t be afraid to live for Christ, who has risen from death for us,” the prelate told the gathering. During his short visit the Cardinal received a hearty welcome from Church leaders and laypeople. He also visited EC-CUIRD office in the building. 

Bangladesh praised as interfaith leader

Cardinal Jean Luis Tauran visits Bangladesh (Photo: Chandan Robert Rebeiro)

Bangladesh is a model of interreligious harmony, visiting Pontifical Commission for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) president Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran said during an official tour of the country. 

“I’ve said a number of times during my stay here that Bangladesh is considered as an example, a model for interreligious dialogue and harmony. It can be placed at the services of world today,” said Cardinal Tauran, 68 who today completes a three-day tour of Bangladesh - his first to the country. Among other engagements, the French cardinal, a former Vatican foreign minister, addressed a crowd at a Conference on Interreligious Dialogue and Harmony in Dhaka yesterday. 

“Bangladesh has shown how it is possible for people in a multi-religious society live in peace and harmony. I think it was possible because from the beginning Bangladeshi society was all inclusive and tolerant to other faiths,” asserted the prelate in his keynote speech. More than 500 religious leaders, dignitaries and representatives from various religions and Christian denominations including Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Joseph Marino, Bangladesh state minister for religious affairs Shajahan Mian, Catholic state minister for cultural affairs Promod Mankin and all the Catholic bishop of the country attended the half day program. 

The event organized by Catholic bishops’ Episcopal Commission for Christian Unity and Interreligious Dialogue (EC-CUIRD) included readings from Holy Scriptures Qur’an, Gita, Tripitaka and Bible, speeches from the guests and religious representatives, devotional songs and unveiling of a special souvenir titled ‘Harmony bring peace’. Cardinal Tauran said discussions between faiths was more important than ever today when there is "a tendency to see religion as a problem." "When religious leaders speak together the society as a whole benefits." 

Apostolic Nuncio Joseph Marino said that Bangladesh has worked in line with Holy Father Benedict XVI’s message in London in Sept. 2010, “Dialogue is a truce side by side, face to face.” 

David Das, a Protestant pastor and secretary of ecumenical national Council of Churches in Bangladesh said that the "time has come to utilize the fruits of harmony with better and broader cooperation.” 

Bangladesh state minister for religious affairs Shajahan Mian said the visit of Cardinal Tauran would reinvigorate inter-faith dialogue and harmony. “This conference will build a strong and sustainable network between all faiths in Bangladesh,” he told the gathering. 

EC-CUIRD chairman Bishop Bejoy D’Cruze of Khulna said that it’s high time to ‘master evil by good’. “Through dialogue we can witness our faith and values. We know a little about God and by knowing about God from other faiths we can rediscover our God better.” 

Cardinal Tauran this morning  will attend a meeting with all Catholic bishops, episcopal commission members and religious superiors. He will offer a grand con-celebrated mass this evening followed by a reception. 

END

Original Article:

Bangladesh praised as interfaith leader