7 March 2011

A group of 40 staff and volunteers made our way to the MMR Prayer Centre, a quite, peaceful retreat 10km ouside Ranong, to attend a “Rejuvenation Seminar” under the guidance of Fr John, which revolved around the theme “Listening to ourselves and more importantly, those we serve”.

Fr John opening the seminar

Father John opened the seminar by outlining the difficulties in communications between the various nationalities not only within the MMR team but also among those we help. This has resulted in the common use of a mix of the Thai, Burmese and English languages and this language barrier sometimes poses quite a challenge to the smooth operations of the team and adds to the frustrations of day to day living.

Next we heard sharings by three individuals who in different ways were being helped by MMR. Their circumstances highlighted the diversity of ways that MMR are required to provide assistance, and the enormity of the task ahead of the team. All three presentations were made in Burmese and translations were provided in Thai and English, which graphically underlined the communication problems faced by all parties.

Julie relating her story

First up was Julie, a brave but shy young lady who related a heart-rending account of her life so far.  She wept as she told us her sad tale and there was not a dry eye in the room.  Julie was physically, emotionally and mentally abused in her younger days, and after her mother disappeared, Julie lived with her father in poverty.  Her father wanted her to work to help supplement the family’s income but with MMR’s assistance, she is now enrolled in the Online Programme learning English.  Hopefully Julie will be able to continue with her studies and her success will be a shining example for other young Burmese girls like her who are vulnerable and at risk of being exploited.  It is MMR’s hope that parents of teenagers will realise that education is the road to a brighter future for the whole family.

The next speaker was Aye Doh.  While in Myanmar, Aye Doh was imprisoned for making statements that were not in line with the administration.  While on the inside, he had tattoos done with infected needles and unbeknownst to him, contacted HIV.  On his release, he passed the virus onto his wife and to their third child.  Their fourth and youngest child managed to escape their plight as she was lucky enough to receive retroviral medication at birth.  Aye Doh carries a heavy burden of guilt, knowing that he has infected his family.

Left: Aye Doh with his daughters, Right: Aye Doh's Shanty

Unfortunately, Aye Doh’s story is not unique.  MMR supports many clients like Aye Doh with expensive medication, palliative care and food parcels.

Aung The OO

Last but not least, we hear from Aung The OO. The eldest in his family, this young man works as an unskilled builder’s labourer to help support his family. MMR has given him the opportunity to study English as well as build up his computer skills through the Chanel Community Centre. On completion of his course, he hopes his job prospects will improve and would like a career working with computers or to find work in a photographic shop.  He is a classic example of a person with little or no future, grapsing an opportunity to better himself through education.  He is grateful to MMR for giving him the chance to improve his lot in life and in return volunteers his time and assists with the Mission.

Unfortunately, due to monetary constraints, MMR can only provide a limited number of places in their classes for people like Aung The OO, but it is hoped that the successful candidates will set a good example to other young refugees and their parents.

Finally we concluded the day’s activities with group discussions and Father John suggested pairing up with someone else who spoke a different language. This resulted in much hilarity and light heartedness.

Lunch was served before the MMR staff made their way back to Ranong.

Making our way back to Ranong

Easter Sunday morning in Buddhist Thailand, April 24, 2011.

I was perched ten storeys up in a Bangkok hotel last week while attending a seminar on peace-building.

Looking over the vast city of high-rises, smog and 24/7 traffic, I wondered what the death and resurrection of the Lord could possibly mean to these millions of people, mostly Buddhist.

For most Buddhists in Thailand or Muslims in Indonesia or Hindus in India or non-believers “down-under”, Jesus’ death and resurrection probably means little or nothing.

Yet, I reflected, overlooking sprawling Bangkok, it also means everything – even if unconsciously.

Jesus incarnated a different view of reality. He teaches that I am called to empty myself of my ego so that everyone is my sister and brother – and I am called to be especially fond of my enemies and people that the rest of the world disregards… those hidden from the main-stream.  Self-emptying so that I call nobody my enemy, and there are no strangers.

It’s a call to self-emptying by love so that we are filled with God who is Love.

Jesus’ radical view of the world, the Kingdom he proclaimed, was so different that he challenged the established order. “Naturally” (the law of the cross), he was confronted by the powers-that-be.

He could have run from Gethsemane. “Not my will, but Yours.” He could have fought. “He who lives by the sword dies by the sword”. He was prepared to suffer and die for his vision of the new world where we are all sisters and brothers …whatever the consequences. He would not run away. He would not fight violently. He would empty himself completely until the end.

And so his radical call to the emptying of self by love of everyone, especially the enemy and the stranger who is different, in order to be filled with the God of Love, ended with his ugly death on Golgotha. His belief that the vacuum created by self-emptying would be filled to overflowing by the God of Love bore its fruit in the empty tomb of Easter Sunday.

We Christians, by our Baptism, share in this life of Christ. We commit ourselves to his vision of the Kingdom – self-emptying by love of all people as one family whatever the consequences of this commitment – and we share in the life and death of Christ. We also share in the new life of Easter, God’s love overtaking us.

In these non-Christian lands in Asia we are called to be signs of the life of Christ individually and in our tiny Christian communities. We are small and insignificant here. But we are here. The life and death and resurrection of Christ “saves” these lands where Christ is rarely explicitly known and we quietly witness to this truth.

Whether I am a Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu, or a non-believer, I still need to follow the pattern of self-emptying by love-of-everyone, especially the poor and abandoned, to be filled with Love. I will understand it and express it differently if I am a Buddhist. But the essential truth that Christ taught and lived remains the same. Christians embrace it consciously. But everyone, whether in over-crowded Bangkok or Jakarta or Mumbay, is called to this new life by following this pattern taught and lived by Christ in his life, death and resurrection.

So, in even in Asia, where Christians are a tiny and often disregarded minority, we can say that Jesus, by his teaching and life-giving death and resurrection, saves all people – Christians by participation in Baptism; all people, by living his pattern. So “the world” is saved.

Our little Marist community in Buddhist Ranong is called to be a silent sign of the truth of Jesus’ teaching and the significance of his death and resurrection.

The busy, bustling crowds of Bangkok – and many other cities – go about their business unaware of Easter on this Sunday morning. We Christians celebrate Easter as best we can. All of us, Christian and Buddhist alike, Hindu or Muslim, share in the new life of God’s love this Easter.  By his death and resurrection Jesus has saved all of us. Christians participate in God’s saving grace this Easter more or less consciously.  But everyone is called, in his or her own way, to the walk the same path.

Easter Peace!

My time with MMR has finally come to an end after six months.

The Ranong experience has been a blessing for me personally. I had an awesome time and one that I will cherish for a long time, filled with many happy memories.

The most defining thing for me is that I will miss the MTP students. They were awesome! Their positive attitude and eagerness to learn is something I have never come across in my teaching career.

I will miss sitting in my usual spot at MEC when the students arrive and all greet you with “Good morning Teacher!” followed by a wai. At the beginning and end of every lesson where again the students greet and give their thanks, “All stand up! Say together!”. “Goodbye and thank you Teacher! See you tomorrow!” It’s the little things that make teaching at MTP an enjoyable experience. I could see that the students valued education. In some lessons the students’ minds were broadened and they realized that the opportunities gained in education could allow them to have a better future. There were times where I was humbled by the students in the way they gave respect to teachers including myself, their generosity and when they shared their personal stories.

There are many highlights for me during my time in Ranong. They are (in no particular order):

• MMR Xmas party
• MTP sports day
• Monday Night Mass at Marist House
• Hanging out with the Filipinos
• Teaching MTP level four class
• Friday night dinners at Marist House
• Visiting Peace Andaman Resort at Bang Ben beach
• The birth of Andrew and Nuala’s daughter Felicity
• Hearing Frs. John and Kevin’s inspiring homilies
• Christmas Day and New Years Day with the Marist community
• ‘Shooting the breeze’ with Jason Visscher on our apartment balcony

However, there have also been times when life in Ranong has been both challenging and frustrating. For example, the Thai and Burmese languages are so difficult to learn, although this did not mean that I did not make an effort. Another example is having been told time and again that ‘this is Asia’, meaning that things work differently here – something which I have tried hard to get my head around. All in all, I see this as part of being immersed in another culture.

Ranong was also a humbling experience after seeing first hand the likes of poverty, meeting HIV/AIDS patients and families, child labour and the Burmese learning centres.

I want to thank Fr. John and Fr. Kevin for their prayers and support during my time. You are both an inspiration with the work that you do. The Kingdom of God is well and truly alive and you keep things real! The rest of the Marist community makes a huge difference in establishing what it means to feel a sense of belonging. Without the community I don’t know how I would have survived half the time! Hard out! I thank Fr. Kevin and Khru Prasit for allowing me to do what I do best, to teach and for the opportunities that gave me while at MTP. I am grateful to the whole MMR staff for accepting me for who I am and more importantly, for their kindness and patience.

I will pray for the continued success of Marist Mission Ranong. To Mary our Mother, our role model and guide, may MMR look for strength, courage, patience and love for those that they serve.

Korp Khun Khrap, Jesu dem ba de, Fa’afetai tele lava,

Mike Savali