«The Catholic Church in my country is progressing in every aspect, and especially in the field of vocations,» Bishop Nicholas Mang Thang, of Hakha, near the Indian border, said during a visit this week to the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need.
«There are 70 major seminarians alone in my diocese, and I have already founded two local religious congregations,» said the 61-year-old prelate.
The Hakha Diocese, established in 1992, has 75,000 Catholics, in a population of 970,000. Burma, also known as Myanmar, has 42 million people.
«The sound and solid formation of priests and seminarians is, therefore, my first priority,» said Bishop Mang Thang. «And we are also training priests to be sent as missionaries to other dioceses in Myanmar [Burma] and abroad, for example, to Central Asian countries.»
He added: «The Church is pursuing more ecumenical and interreligious contacts. A joint committee with several Protestant denominations has already been set up and a conference with representatives of Buddhism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism is planned for next year.»
