The Burmese military set fire to a century-old Catholic church in the archdiocese of Mandalay, but the Chapel of the Eucharist survived.
(Vatican News Network)The Burmese military set fire to the Church of the Assumption in Chan Thar, a village within the archdiocese of Mandalay in the country. The cathedral was built in 1894 and has now been razed to the ground. The attack took place on January 15 when soldiers also set fire to the convent of the Franciscan Missionary Sisters next door.
The nuns were forced to flee with about 3,000 villagers. Around 500 homes were also destroyed. The village is now nothing but ruins. Local sources told Agenzia Fides that the area is considered a stronghold of the People’s Defense Forces rebelling against the junta and that the campaign against it continues.
For the archbishop of Mandalay, Tin Win, the country’s people are “going through a period of great tribulation”. “Half the archdiocese of Mandalay has been affected by the crackdown, which worries us very much. We are helping thousands of internally displaced people, opening five centers in five Catholic parishes: we are doing what we can to help. “
“Violence rages especially in some places. We have not lost hope because we know that we have the Lord with us,” said the archbishop, noting that the faithful have faith in God. “In fact, in the churches that were destroyed by consecration, the chapel of the Eucharist was spared. This symbolic fact is a source of comfort to the faithful, reminding them that only the Lord is our refuge.”
Sister Rita, who fled her village, told Agenzia Fides that she and her fellow sisters urged the villagers to leave their homes and “not to resist, not to resist, to avoid killing and atrocities” in front of the soldiers. “The soldiers wanted to destroy any resistance among the people,” said the nun. “They entered the villages, occupied buildings such as schools and churches, and stationed themselves there. Then they set out from there and raided the rebels from house to house. They lived in In our church for three days, he set fire to the church and our synagogue when he left.”
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