In a country racked by poverty, civil war and military dictatorship, Columban missionaries like Deacon Francis Xavier help shine small lights of hope.
It is often said that Columbans stride into places where others fear to tread. Nowhere is this truer than in the case of Myanmar (formerly Burma). Ever since the Columbans began their mission there in 1936 this Southeast Asian nation has faced a catalogue of evils, including foreign occupation, World War, military coups, devastating cyclones, chronic misgovernment and civil conflicts, reducing what was one of the region’s richest countries to the status of economic basket case and international pariah. Fainter hearts would have given up on the mission long ago, but not the Columbans. We are still there, trying to be a beacon of hope to a suffering people.
Nbwi La Aung, who took the baptismal name of Francis Xavier, is from Myanmar. He is a deacon approaching ordination to the priesthood and, as part of his preordination preparation, has returned to his native land to undertake pastoral work close to the town of Myitkyina in Kachin State, a part of the country which has been particularly affected by violence and economic collapse. However, it would appear that adversity has only served to strengthen his resolve. Witness his testimony that follows.
“The parish where I am serving is called ‘Edin,’ and it was newly established in 2021. It is a small parish with around 300 Catholic families, most of whom are not educated and are struggling with poverty. Only a few families have a regular income, while others rely on support from family members abroad. I was assigned to the parish starting in October 2023. Currently, I am serving as both as a parish office staff member and a Eucharistic minister. I conduct funeral services, celebrate baptisms and provide spiritual care to the sick and elderly.”
So far, this all might seem pretty routine — until you realize that this area has been in the eye of the storm of violence currently sweeping Myanmar.
The storm had been brewing for a long time, brewing, in fact, for just about as long as the Columbans had been in the country. We’d established our mission amongst the Kachin people, located in the northernmost extremity of Burma as it was known then in a sector wedged between India and China.
Just six years after we arrived, the Japanese invaded. The Kachin pledged their allegiance to the Allies, and for three bloody years assisted the fabled guerrilla forces of British Army Brigadier Orde Wingate’s Chindits until the liberation in 1945. Burma’s loyalty was rewarded by independence from Britain in 1947, and the future looked bright, with Burma wealthy from exports of timber, rice, jade, gold and rubber. However, the dream ended swiftly, with General Ne Win’s coup of 1962. The military proceeded to ransack the country, living off the fat of the land as they led Burma into ruination, all while trying to paper over the cracks by cynically renaming the nation “Myanmar” (peoples together) in 1989. The population, and especially the ethnic minorities (such as the Kachin) resisted, prompting brutal crackdowns. All Christian missionaries were expelled with the last Columbans being forced out in 1979.
Internal and external pressure eventually forced the military to grudgingly grant partial authority to an elected administration, with Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi’s party assuming control after 2011 amidst a wave of optimism, and the Columbans were able to return to Myitkyina and Kachin State in 2015. However, it was too good to last. On February 1, 2021, the military took power again. The population protested, and the Kachin and other ethnic groups renewed the armed struggle. After eighteen months the economy had collapsed and over 23,000 lives had been lost.
But the Columban missionaries stayed on. We recognized that we couldn’t solve the problems of the world, nor of Myanmar, nor of Kachin State, but maybe we could help bring the light of Jesus into some individual lives. This is how Francis Xavier sees his mission.
“During one of my pastoral experiences, while ministering at a community, I met an elderly woman over sixty years old who used to be very active in the Church before she fell ill. She told me she couldn’t attend church anymore and had not received Communion for a long time. She felt abandoned by the church and forgotten due to her old age. When I visited her that day, she was overjoyed and even cried tears of happiness. She felt that Jesus had visited her through the Eucharist at her time of suffering and that my visit meant a lot to her. I was moved by her words and although I didn’t know how to respond to her sadness, I was grateful to see her joy in taking Communion. I thanked God for giving me the opportunity to serve in His ministry.
During the visit of our Superior to Myitkyina, I had the opportunity to take him to my place of pastoral work. We visited a community chapel called St. John Paul and, later that evening, we met a very generous family. The family lived in a state of poverty, and even in a short visit, I could feel their struggle to put food on the table. However, at the end of our conversation, I was surprised when an elderly woman named Udi Lu came out with some native chicken eggs in her hands. It was a simple gift, but it came straight from her heart. It might have been all that she had, but she shared it with us. We could see her love and gratitude towards the Columban Fathers. Udi Lu is now around seventy and living with one of her granddaughters, but she remains a very generous woman.
Looking back at my experiences as a pastor in the Parish, I feel abundantly blessed. It has been an incredible opportunity for me to explore myself through the lives of others, listening attentively to their unique stories and helping them along their faith journey. I am filled with joy as I continue to serve in this parish. I thank God for this.”
Modest episodes, you might think. But perhaps this IS how the Light will come into the world. Not with momentous deeds, but with little sparks of light, like those being lit by Columban missionaries such as Francis Xavier in the darkness that is present-day Myanmar.
Columban Fr. Alvaro Martinez recently ended his tenure on the Society’s General Council in Hong Kong.
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