Scottish Catholic Observer

As the Year of Faith comes to an end, the good news of the work of the Church around the world shows that the faith is alive and well, growing and flourishing in unexpected places in some of the most remote parts of the planet. The story of Bishop Wenceslao Padilla and his work in Mongolia demonstrates the continued mission of the Church to take Christ’s message to people wherever they live.

It was only just over 20 years ago, in 1992, after the fall of Communism, that the very first Catholic missionary priests were able to enter Mongolia to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and build the world’s youngest Catholic Church. One of those first three priests, and today Mongolia’s first and only bishop—Bishop Wenceslao (Wens) Padilla, visited Australia in September to promote Catholic Mission’s 2013 World Mission Appeal. This was the bishop’s first visit to Australia.

Bishop Padilla is a Filipino missionary priest from the Italian Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and his incredibly inspiring journey of faith in Mongolia, was the focus of Catholic Mission’s 2013 appeal entitled ‘I will build my Church’ (Matthew 16:18).

During his visit, the bishop travelled throughout the country to share at parishes, schools and donor events, his story of the joys and challenges of building the church ‘from scratch’ in a country known to other missionaries as the ‘hardship country.’ He recalled that when he first arrived, the country, which was mostly comprised of nomadic herders, had no knowledge of Christianity, and was struggling with alcoholism, domestic abuse, minimal government social services and extreme poverty.

Today, throughout the vast and remote country of Mongolia with less than three million people, proudly stand six Catholic churches.

“Jesus said to St Peter, ‘Upon this rock, I will build my Church,’ and I’m thinking that was also addressed to me when I came to Mongolia,” Bishop Padilla said.

Along with his congregation, Catholic Mission—through its generous and faithful donors—has supported the Mongolian Catholic Church since day one, and helped build the very first church in Mongolia just three years after Bishop Padilla arrived.

“Without the Church, without the congregation, sending me to come to the mission, I could not be in Mongolia,” the bishop said. “And without the support of funding institutions, without their collaboration, without their partnership, we could not have this mission. There was nothing. There was no church structure. There was no Catholic—no Mongolian Catholic. We really started from zero.”

Bishop Padilla recalled his 1992 arrival as leader of a team of the first three missionary priests in that far-off country, slightly smaller than Alaska and encircled by China and Russia.

The bishop explained that the Russians, who originally helped the Mongolians drive out their Chinese rulers, stayed on then to control what became the state of Outer Mongolia for another 70 years.

“It was only in 1989 that it was liberated from these Communist regimes,” the bishop said, noting that the newly independent Mongolia immediately began initiating diplomatic relations with other countries, including Vatican City.  Born in the Philippines in 1949 and ordained in 1976, Bishop Padilla worked for 15 years as part of the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Taiwan. While completing the end of his second term as a provincial superior there, the call for missionaries to Mongolia went out.

“Since at the time I was finishing my term,” he said. “I said: ‘I am also available—let the Spirit blow where it wills.’

“We really had to start from scratch, from zero,” he said. “When we arrived, there was no church, no convent, to welcome us.”

The trio stayed first in a hotel in the capital city, Ulaanbaatar, before finding an apartment to use as their headquarters for the next three years until the first church building could be erected.

First, they held Masses for just the three of them. Then, as the expatriate community became aware of their presence, these Catholics in a foreign land began attending the priests’ Masses.

Eventually they brought along their Mongolian friends. During his first years in Mongolia, Bishop Padilla worked hard to understand the needs of the people, which led to the establishment of several initiatives to help the less fortunate.

These included a care centre for children who were homeless, schools, medical clinics, libraries plus vocational skills and income generation training centres.

“All cater to the very poor,” the bishop said. “Those who have no clothes to wear, no food, no family.”

Bishop Padilla notes there have been many obstacles to overcome and challenges to face in their missionary work, including the difficulty of learning the language, the harsh climate and the predominance of the major religions there — Tibetan Buddhism, Shamanism and the Muslim religion.

“Also, the poverty of the people is a big challenge, because we don’t have any local income,” he said. “It’s all coming from outside.”

Although Bishop Padilla was elevated from Apostolic Prefect to Bishop in 2003, he still presides over Ulaanbaatar as an Apostolic Prefecture. It has not yet reached the requirements for being declared a diocese. Blessed  Pope John Paul II was originally scheduled to perform Bishop Padilla’s Episcopal ordination, but was unable to due to his declining health at that time.

However, Bishop Padilla (above) was honoured to have met with His Holiness for two ad limina visits.

“I really thank the people who sustain the mission,” he said. “I consider them as partners of the mission. Either by their donation or by their prayers, they’re all partners of the mission. They are journeyers with us.”

Speaking of the phenomenal growth of the Church in Mongolia from a base of zero, he added: “It’s all the work of God. I know He was already there—we just had to hook up where He was working.”

Martin Teulan, national director of Catholic Mission, said: “We were very excited to be bringing Bishop Padilla to Australia in the lead up to World Mission Month in October 2013, and for Australian Catholics to hear the inspirational journey of the world’s youngest Catholic Church.”

In this year’s appeal, Catholic Mission Australia invited parishioners to reach out and help the people of Mongolia to build their Church, the world’s youngest Catholic Church, and to support similar mission work around the world.

The fruits of the work of Bishop Padilla and his priests are evident in the story of Gantulga, his wife Uurtsaikh, and Otgonerdene and Sainzaya, two of their children, who live in the rural town of Arvaiheer, 440 km from Mongolia’s capital of Ulaanbaatar. Thanks to the spiritual and practical outreach of faithful missionaries, the lives of Gantulga and his family have been dramatically transformed after accepting Jesus into their hearts.

Gantulga, Uurtsaikh and their children first learned about the Catholic Church, one of only six Catholic churches in Mongolia, when they moved to Arvaiheer ten years ago. The family was seeking refuge after tragically losing all their livestock in a natural disaster. They were not only fortunate enough to experience God’s love in this non-Christian country, they were also one of a very few families that were given a new home by the Catholic Church; a traditional Mongolian ger.

Having just lost his livelihood, Gantulga’s life spiralled out of control; he was haunted by his alcohol addiction and his aggressive and violent behaviour. Sadly in Mongolia, alcoholism, domestic abuse and extreme poverty are widespread. Seeking a change and a new meaning in her life, Uurtsaikh started attending the activities run by the local Catholic Church together with her children. Seeing the changes in his wife’s behaviour and mood, Gantulga too was inspired to learn about the Catholic Faith. Gantulga only received Baptism this Easter (2013), but ever since he started coming to church with Uurtsaikh and their children, he has seen drastic changes in his life.

Today Gantulga is not only a better father and husband, he has also emerged as a leader in the community, reaching out to others in need.

“I can tell you that I see a difference between my life before receiving Baptism and after,” Gantulga said. “It’s true and a concrete example of how life can change when we meet with Jesus because before in my life, I made a lot of mistakes. I was addicted to alcohol and I also had some problems with violence. When I started going to church and feeling how God’s mercy reaches me, I felt that I had to receive Baptism.  Now I can say I am a better father and a better husband because I have received God’s mercy and can be merciful to others.

“There is a positive influence of the Church here in this whole community. Their lives have been changing for the better.  And you can feel that there is a change. There is more joy and happiness around us and there has been a big change in the lives of many people.”

It is thanks to the generosity of supporters in Australia and the holistic work of the missionaries, that Gantulga and his family have come to know the grace, joy, peace and hope of our loving God.

The cathedral in Mongolia’s capital of Ulaanbaatar, shaped as a traditional Mongolian ger; a round tent dwelling, stands as a symbol of how the Catholic Faith is already being enculturated in a sensitive and gentle manner into the Mongolian way of life.  For Mongolians, the ger shaped church is a comfortable place of worship as it signifies unity, community and harmony.

Over the last 20 years, the number of Catholic Faith communities has continued to grow across Mongolia. Today, Bishop Padilla is still committed to reach out and over practical and spiritual support to those in need.

“I like the motto of Catholic Mission Australia: ‘Reach out, give life,’” Bishop Padilla said. “It summarises everything that I want to do as a priest, as a bishop, and as a Christian—to reach out to others. And the new Holy Father is very strong on this: ‘Go out, go there and do something for the people especially the poor.’ Because that’s what I wanted to do, reaching out to people, to the poor, give life.”

With no local priests or sisters, nor any local income to sustain the outreach due to the extreme and widespread poverty, people in many parts of the world urgently need help.  Sadly, countless communities in Mongolia and across the world are still to hear the Good News.

The Mongolian Catholic Church, the world’s youngest Catholic Church, and other churches all around the world urgently needs us to reach out to them with our financial help and prayers to help them continue their outreach. They need our help to build new churches and schools, train Catechists, run medical centres, English and skill training classes, and homes for children with disabilities and who are homeless.

By being true Disciples of Christ reaching out today, we are helping the people of Mongolia build their Church, the world’s youngest Catholic Church, and we can grow the Kingdom of God in the some of the remotest areas in the world.

— Mission Matters Scotland is the working name of MISSIO

Scotland. It represents the Pontifical Mission Societies and is

the only organisation to guarantee support for every one of the

1100 mission dioceses in the world. To support Mission Matters

Scotland call: 01236 449774 or e-mail: national.office@

missionmattersscotland .org

— www.missionmattersscotland.org