austraLasia #3374
MANDALAY: 20 February 2014 -- A thanksgiving Mass to mark 75 years of the Salesians in Myanmar was held on 15 February 2014 at St. Joseph’s parish (Lafon) Mandalay. It was a simple celebration of the Eucharist at which Archbishop Paul Zing Htun Grawng of Mandaaly presided with Archbishop Charles Bo, SDB of Yangon and 23 priests concelebrating. The homily was delivered by Fr Edward Sein Myint, SDB.
Archbishop Charles Bo offered a word of thanks in the name of the Salesian Family to the Archbishop of Mandalay, the parish priest and the parish pastoral council for not only giving them all a chance to celebrate but also for being present personally. He also thanked the priests and religious and especially the parishioners and past-pupils. The parish church was too small to hold everyone.
Archbishop Bo also recalled his experiences at the Lafon Memorial School where he was when he was just 8 years old. He reiterated his appeal in an earlier homily to the Government to return the schools to the Church to prove that democratization of the nation is genuine. Fr Francis Dass, Vicar of the Superior of the Vice province thanked those who were there, in the name of the superior and the whole Salesian family.
Soon after Mass Frs Edward Sein Myint, Francis Dass and Mariano Soe Naing offered some thoughts on the missionary dream of Don Bosco, Don Bosco's spirituality for young people, and an historical reflection on the 75 years of the Salesians, respectively. An hour-long drama on the life of Don Bosco was presented by the novices and the postnovices under the direction of Fr Bosco Zeya Aung, the Novice Master.
Older participants at the celebration recalled their experiences of the early Salesians and their nostalgic narrative of past years was most touching. They wished to see a better and bigger celebration of the history of 75 years; they found the present celebration too small for the immense good that God has wrought through the Salesians.
A Brief History
In 1842, Don Bosco was actually thinking of being a missionary to Burma, which was then known as the Kingdom of Ava and Pegu, and is now called Myanmar (Cf. John Baptist Lemoyne, Biographical Memoirs, Vol. II, New Rochele, New York, 1965, 160).
This dream of Don Bosco was fulfilled when his sons took over the orphanage of the aging MEP missionary, Fr. Leo Lafon, on 31 January, 1939. The team of six confreres gave their all to plant the charism of Don Bosco in the heart of country, the city of Mandalay, which was the capital of the Kings untill British colonial occupation in 1886. The pioneers were Frs Antonio Alessi (the leader) and Urbano Bordin, Clerics Anthony Del Col and Denis Cavanah, and Coadjutor Brothers Charles Dell'Acqua and Angelo Bongiorno.
Initially, the pioneers encountered countless hindrances. At the arrival of the Salesians in Burma, all the schools in the country were closed because the pupils had gone on strike for political reasons against the colonial rule of the British and in demand of absolute independence. A few months after their arrival the Second World War broke out. Burma turned into a battle field. The school could not actually start till 1946, after the War had ended.
From then on the school grew rapidly. It flourished, with student numbers reaching 1200 in less than a decade, and numbers peaked at 1800 in 1962. The Salesians seized every opportunity to expand their works. In 1954 a new parish and school were opened in Rangoon (Yangon) with government recognition and the agreement of the Bishop of the Diocese. In 1957 an aspirantate was initiated to recruit local vocations. It was so successful that in 1964 the Novitiate opened with 12 Novices. On April 28, 1965 there were 12 newly professed.
This flourishing work came to an abrupt end with the nationalization of the schools on 1 April, 1964 and the expulsion of the foreign missionaries in November 1966 by General Ne Win, a notorious dictator.
After all these experiences the Salesians in Myanmar were paralyzed. But the deadliest blow was yet to come. In 1974 the Archdiocese of Mandalay asked the Salesians to leave the Lafon parish, despite it being given to the Salesians "in perpetuum". Following that disaster the Bishop of Rangoon also asked the Salesians to return the parish they had founded in 1954.
The Salesians were now without schools, parishes. But Divine Providence opened another door where others had been closed. In 1976 the Holy See entrusted the Mission of northern Shan State to the Salesians. Suddenly, young native Salesians found themselves to be missionaries on those mountains ranges. They have been faithful to the task. The region was turned into a diocese in 1990 with a Salesian, Charles Mg Bo, as the first prelate. He is now Archbishop of Yangon.
The Salesians received a landmark recognition when they became a Vice province in 2004. At the moment there are 32 priests, 1 perpetually professed Salesian Brother and 39 clerics and Salesian Brothers in various stages of initial formation.
MANDALAY: 20 February 2014 -- A thanksgiving Mass to mark 75 years of the Salesians in Myanmar was held on 15 February 2014 at St. Joseph’s parish (Lafon) Mandalay. It was a simple celebration of the Eucharist at which Archbishop Paul Zing Htun Grawng of Mandaaly presided with Archbishop Charles Bo, SDB of Yangon and 23 priests concelebrating. The homily was delivered by Fr Edward Sein Myint, SDB.
Archbishop Charles Bo offered a word of thanks in the name of the Salesian Family to the Archbishop of Mandalay, the parish priest and the parish pastoral council for not only giving them all a chance to celebrate but also for being present personally. He also thanked the priests and religious and especially the parishioners and past-pupils. The parish church was too small to hold everyone.
Archbishop Bo also recalled his experiences at the Lafon Memorial School where he was when he was just 8 years old. He reiterated his appeal in an earlier homily to the Government to return the schools to the Church to prove that democratization of the nation is genuine. Fr Francis Dass, Vicar of the Superior of the Vice province thanked those who were there, in the name of the superior and the whole Salesian family.
Soon after Mass Frs Edward Sein Myint, Francis Dass and Mariano Soe Naing offered some thoughts on the missionary dream of Don Bosco, Don Bosco's spirituality for young people, and an historical reflection on the 75 years of the Salesians, respectively. An hour-long drama on the life of Don Bosco was presented by the novices and the postnovices under the direction of Fr Bosco Zeya Aung, the Novice Master.
Older participants at the celebration recalled their experiences of the early Salesians and their nostalgic narrative of past years was most touching. They wished to see a better and bigger celebration of the history of 75 years; they found the present celebration too small for the immense good that God has wrought through the Salesians.
A Brief History
In 1842, Don Bosco was actually thinking of being a missionary to Burma, which was then known as the Kingdom of Ava and Pegu, and is now called Myanmar (Cf. John Baptist Lemoyne, Biographical Memoirs, Vol. II, New Rochele, New York, 1965, 160).
This dream of Don Bosco was fulfilled when his sons took over the orphanage of the aging MEP missionary, Fr. Leo Lafon, on 31 January, 1939. The team of six confreres gave their all to plant the charism of Don Bosco in the heart of country, the city of Mandalay, which was the capital of the Kings untill British colonial occupation in 1886. The pioneers were Frs Antonio Alessi (the leader) and Urbano Bordin, Clerics Anthony Del Col and Denis Cavanah, and Coadjutor Brothers Charles Dell'Acqua and Angelo Bongiorno.
Initially, the pioneers encountered countless hindrances. At the arrival of the Salesians in Burma, all the schools in the country were closed because the pupils had gone on strike for political reasons against the colonial rule of the British and in demand of absolute independence. A few months after their arrival the Second World War broke out. Burma turned into a battle field. The school could not actually start till 1946, after the War had ended.
From then on the school grew rapidly. It flourished, with student numbers reaching 1200 in less than a decade, and numbers peaked at 1800 in 1962. The Salesians seized every opportunity to expand their works. In 1954 a new parish and school were opened in Rangoon (Yangon) with government recognition and the agreement of the Bishop of the Diocese. In 1957 an aspirantate was initiated to recruit local vocations. It was so successful that in 1964 the Novitiate opened with 12 Novices. On April 28, 1965 there were 12 newly professed.
This flourishing work came to an abrupt end with the nationalization of the schools on 1 April, 1964 and the expulsion of the foreign missionaries in November 1966 by General Ne Win, a notorious dictator.
After all these experiences the Salesians in Myanmar were paralyzed. But the deadliest blow was yet to come. In 1974 the Archdiocese of Mandalay asked the Salesians to leave the Lafon parish, despite it being given to the Salesians "in perpetuum". Following that disaster the Bishop of Rangoon also asked the Salesians to return the parish they had founded in 1954.
The Salesians were now without schools, parishes. But Divine Providence opened another door where others had been closed. In 1976 the Holy See entrusted the Mission of northern Shan State to the Salesians. Suddenly, young native Salesians found themselves to be missionaries on those mountains ranges. They have been faithful to the task. The region was turned into a diocese in 1990 with a Salesian, Charles Mg Bo, as the first prelate. He is now Archbishop of Yangon.
The Salesians received a landmark recognition when they became a Vice province in 2004. At the moment there are 32 priests, 1 perpetually professed Salesian Brother and 39 clerics and Salesian Brothers in various stages of initial formation.
