Thirty years following the Holy See established diplomatic relations with the Mongolian government, a delegation of Mongolian Buddhists is visiting the Vatican for the first time. Taking this opportunity, Vatican News interviewed Bishop Marengo of the Pontifical Priest of Ulaanbaatar. He emphasized that in this vast prairie country, we must bear witness to the gospel with life witness, courage and humility.
(Vatican News Network)Thirty years following the Holy See established diplomatic relations with the Mongolian government, a delegation of Mongolian Buddhists officially visited the Vatican from 27 to 28 May. On this occasion, Vatican News interviewed Bishop Giorgio Marengo, Apostolic Vicar of Ulaanbaatar. In Mongolia, there are regarding 1,400 Catholics spread across 8 parishes under the care of the Apostolic Priest of Ulaanbaatar.
ask:Mongolian Buddhist delegation visits Vatican for the first time on May 27-28, another step in interreligious dialogue?
answer:Yes, exactly, we are very happy regarding this event. We have been working on this for almost two years, with the active cooperation and strong support of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Interaction (PCID). In fact, other eminent figures of Mongolian Buddhism have also visited the Vatican, but only on an unofficial basis, and this is the first time an official delegation has visited and expressed a clear desire to meet the Pope. As such, it is an important chapter in interreligious dialogue, which the Mongolian local church takes very seriously.
ask:The official visit of the Buddhist delegation to the Vatican takes place on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Catholic Church’s presence in this country. How can we connect these three decades of Church life through words and images?
answer:It was a very beautiful and interesting adventure, guided by the Holy Spirit, just like in the early Church. We like this image of the Church, which is similar to the Apostolic period, with only the first or second generation of believers in our community, which is rare in any country in the world. It was an adventure of extraordinary missionary zeal led by the Holy Spirit, the late Bishop Wenceslao Selga Padilla who was the true founder of this Church, and his fellow congregants, for at least two decades. Brethren, plus other missionary work and strength later on. I would say that the first decade was characterized by this great pioneer among the first missionaries, who started evangelizing immediately following the end of the communist regime; the first decade was characterized by small but very important steps , especially in the promotion of human development. The second decade can be said to be the birth and rooting of the first Christian communities, and the beginning of a journey of faith for some local people. The third decade is marked by the ordination of the first young Mongolian priest in 2016, an image we see as a great gift from the Holy Spirit. Now, besides him, we have a second Mongol priest who was ordained a priest last October. The two young Mongolian priests also came to the Vatican for the first time with a Buddhist delegation.
ask:Today, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Mongolia, what are the important aspects of the relationship between the two sides?
answer:The first is to strengthen positive relations of dialogue and cooperation, which we hope will develop into concrete steps that will help to confirm the status of the Mongolian Catholic Church as a legal person, and to confirm and strengthen the mutual cooperation between the two parties over the years.
ask:Mongolia is a country between the towering mountains in the north and the arid region in the south. 30% of the population is nomadic and there are regarding 1,400 baptized people out of a total population of over 3 million. What are the pastoral challenges?
answer:In the letters I share with missionaries and faithful in Mongolia, I try to outline pastoral priorities. The first challenge, depth, is to help the faithful deepen their faith and connect it more and more closely with their daily lives, which means that a part of our community needs to be given great attention and company. The second aspect is the challenge of communion and fraternity, both among the missionaries of the various institutes and among the Christian communities, precisely because of the very small numbers, we are becoming more and more aware of the need for evangelism Coordinate. The third aspect is proclaiming and witnessing the Gospel, as a small church community: never forget that we cannot stop and look out for ourselves, because the Gospel is to be lived, witnessed and given with courage and humility.
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