In Myanmar, thousands of people are living in makeshift camps after fleeing violent fighting. Among the displaced are Bishop Celso Ba Shwe and the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Blessed Sacrament. 

Gunshots echo through the streets, bombs fall, and smoke thickens over the city of Loikaw. Bishop Ba Shwe has opened the gates of the cathedral to offer shelter to hundreds of people seeking protection. But even there, people were not safe. Outside, fierce fighting was raging between the government army and resistance fighters.

After days of fighting, the bishop and everyone else were forced to flee. Since then, soldiers of the military junta have occupied the cathedral. Since the military coup in 2021, Myanmar, a predominantly Buddhist country, has been embroiled in a bloody civil war. Christians represent only 6% of the population and belong mostly to ethnic minorities. The military junta is battling various resistance groups, including ethnic minority armies and youth militias. In some regions, violence is specifically directed against Christian villages. Churches, schools, and hospitals are being bombed.

In November 2023, Loikaw was hit by crossfire. The population had to flee. Since then, Bishop Ba Shwe has been living with the displaced in the jungle, in temporary camps made of bamboo poles and tarpaulins, with clay and stone stoves. But these camps have also been bombed. “Many have advised me to go where there is no fighting,” says the 61-year-old prelate. “But how can I abandon my people?” Bishop Ba Shwe travels from camp to camp to meet the people. He is constantly called upon to intervene when food runs out or when there is a medical emergency. Sometimes it seems like there is no solution. “But then someone comes and helps me,” he says.

Like the residents of Loikaw, many people in Myanmar find themselves in the same situation. More than three million people are displaced within the country, and over a million Rohingya Muslims have taken refuge in Bangladesh. Thousands of them have sought refuge in Thailand. In Myanmar, members of the Church are caring for refugees in many places. Bishop Ba Shwe is particularly concerned about the future of the children.

Many children have been unable to attend school for years. The Church tries to provide basic education through informal courses. However, it is not possible to obtain recognized diplomas. Furthermore, there is the constant threat of attacks. “Those who live in fear cannot learn,” says the bishop. 

Despite everything, he remains hopeful: “I have learned that we must transform difficulties into opportunities. This is the moment when God calls us to unite. We feel that God is with us.” Sometimes, as Bishop Ba Shwe explains, the faithful ask him when they will be able to return to their cathedral. “Then I reply: the Church is not a building. When we pray together, when we are united and take care of each other, then the Church is present.” Now it is present with the displaced people in the jungle.

The Missionary Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament ran a boarding school for 60 girls in the city of Loikaw. Some were orphans, others came from families in difficult situations. “We decided to flee. The Church helped us get a car,” says one nun. 

She continues: “Thousands of people fled the city, many on foot. It was chaos. Fighter planes were flying over us, and bombs were falling next to us. The driver accelerated. The car, with all the children sitting in the back, was swaying. I thought it was the end.” But they survived. “We hid in the jungle for two months before arriving at this place. First, we stayed in another house. Today we moved to this house with an internal courtyard. The girls are happy,” says Sister Benedetta. “Now they can finally be children again.” 

The nuns and girls from the boarding school are now in Nyaung Shwe, in southern Shan State, in a rented house that has become their new home. Sister Agatha Emi currently manages the house where she, her colleagues, and 30 girls from her former boarding school live. Many of these children are orphans or come from families affected by poverty, violence, or the loss of a loved one.

“My life belongs to God and my neighbour,” says Sister Emi, “I learned this since I was little.” Since 2015, she has supported girls in need, overseeing their education, giving them love and hope. Together with her fellow nuns, the thirty-nine-year-old nun cares for their intellectual, physical, and spiritual needs, offering them support in a time marked by uncertainty and fear.

The challenges are enormous: poverty, the collapse of the education and healthcare systems, lack of housing, and uncertainty following the 2021 military coup. Churches and monasteries have been destroyed, including the convent of the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Blessed Sacrament and the college. But Sister Emi does not stop there. She visits families, strengthens the faith of children and young people, organizes psychosocial support seminars, and promotes dialogue between Christians and Buddhists. “There are so many good people who dedicate their lives to giving hope to others,” she says.

What gives Sister Emi strength is her unshakeable faith in God’s love and providence. “Hope does not disappoint”: this passage from the Letter to the Romans is for her a promise that sustains her in the darkest moments. “After the night comes a new morning – she says -, death is not the end.” 

For Sister Emi, it is the little things that make the difference: a kind word, a piece of bread shared, a smile that gives courage. She knows that what she does is small, but God sees and blesses. It is in this attitude that lies the silent strength with which she gives hope to children and her community. (Bettina Tiburzy) – Photo: File swm)