Father Raffaele Sandonà, a “fidei donum” priest from Italy’s Padua Diocese, has been working in Thailand for 10 years, speaks to Vatican Radio that the Pope’s visit will serve to confirm the faith of the Catholics of the land and will promote interreligious dialogue with the Buddhist world.
Fr. Sandonà said, “Coming after 35 years after Pope John Paul II's visit, there is great expectation and joy for the visit of Pope Francis who is a “reference point of the Church’s unity. This is why it is an important event for the country’s tiny Catholic community.”
The priest pointed out that there is no formal relationship between Christians and the country’s Buddhist majority. However, interactions with Buddhists take place in daily life and evokes a “serene and peaceful coexistence” between the tiny Christian community and the majority Buddhists. At times, he said, there is also some constructive collaboration on joint projects.
Speaking about the papal visit, Fr. Sandonà said, it is important because, besides his meetings and events, Pope Francis will also offer some of his characteristic gestures that have marked his pontificate.
In a country where people spoke little about the pope, the Vatican and Catholic Church, there is now more interest in them because of the “gestures” of Pope Francis, such as humility and peace.
Thus, the papal visit will be a “good step forward” in terms of inter-religious dialogue and in providing an impetus to the Thai Church in its “witness to peace and love”.
In this regard, Fr. Sondonà pointed out, the anthem composed for the papal visit speaks about love as a bridge to others.
Pope Francis is scheduled to visit Thailand from 20 to 23 November, after which he proceeds to Japan, 23 to 26 November. This will be his 4th pastoral visit to Asia and 32nd Apostolic Journey,
Catholics are a tiny minority of some 0.5% of Thailand’s over 68 million population, over 90% of which is Buddhist. Muslims form a little over 4% and Christians together make up only 1 %. Through the past 350 years, the Church has grown into 11 dioceses with about 390,000 Catholics.
Fr. Bernard Dashi Tang
Photo credit:
Vatican News
