ASHGABAT (UCAN) -- The head of the Church in Turkmenistan says the local Catholic community is seeking official registration because this is "the right of all people" and legal standing will allow them to do more things.

Oblate Father Andrzej Madej, superior of the "sui iuris" (self-governing) mission of Turkmenistan, spoke with UCA News recently about the situation of the Church in the country, one of the five Central Asian Republics that gained their independence in 1991 with the breakup of the Soviet Union.

Turkmenistan proclaimed itself a secular state and set rigid requirements for the recognition of religious communities, including a minimum number of followers. The only officially recognized religious communities in the country are Muslims, who make up 87 percent of the 5 million people, and the Russian Orthodox Church, to which 2 percent of the people belong. Other religious communities form about 1 percent, with the remaining 10 percent of the people identifying themselves as atheists or agnostics. Saparmurat Niyazov, who has been in power since 1985 and retained control after the fall of the Soviet Union, is president for life.

Turkmenistan was the last of the Central Asian Republics to establish diplomatic relations with the Holy See, in 1996. Before that it maintained that ties were not necessary since no Catholics lived in the country.

The late Pope John Paul II erected the "sui iuris" mission of Turkmenistan on Sept. 29, 1997, and entrusted local Catholics to the care of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. In April that year the apostolic nuncio to Turkey was also appointed nuncio to Turkmenistan, and this has been the case with his successors as well.

The mission runs a parish based at the Apostolic Nunciature in Ashgabat, where up to 50 Catholics attend Sunday Mass in the chapel.

According to Father Madej, the Holy See and the government of Turkmenistan are in the process of reviewing the statutes of the parish, which is necessary for state approval.

The 2005 Annuario Pontificio, the Vatican yearbook, puts the Catholic population in Turkmenistan at 500, the same figure it has used for several years. But the Catholic Church presence in Turkmenistan goes back to the late 19th century, when Russia annexed Central Asia, then known as Turkistan. In 1904, local Catholics contributed to the building of a church, which was torn down in 1932, during the campaign against religion in the Soviet Union.

Father Madej was born in 1951, in Kazimierz Dolny, Poland. In 1977 he was ordained an Oblate priest. He has been superior of the Turkmenistan mission since its formal erection. The interview follows:

UCA News: What would the Catholic Church gain with official registration?

FATHER ANDRZEJ MADEJ: Registration is the right of all people. We want to live as good citizens of Turkmenistan and work here in compliance with the laws. So official approval would be a sign of respect to the Catholic Church, and it also would bring respect to the authorities in the eyes of the international community. When we come to a new culture or nation, we bring goodness and solidarity. We have no hidden agenda.

Official registration would let us appeal for a site to build our future church. We would like it to be separate from the Apostolic Nunciature.

Why is the nuncio to Turkmenistan based in Turkey while the nuncio in Kazakhstan handles relations with all the other Central Asian countries?

Although we are not in the administrative area of the Apostolic Nunciature in Kazakhstan, we have close ties with local Churches in other Central Asian countries. At the same time I respect the initiative of our government to (conduct relations through) the nunciature in Ankara, as Turkmenistan has declared itself to be neutral.

It has also declared itself to be secular. Is this a problem for the Church?

I don't think secularity is a problem. Catholics can pay taxes and comply with the laws like all others.

Will the Catholic Church evangelize in Turkmenistan?

First of all, we are going to evangelize ourselves. By doing this we will be witnesses to the light of our faith, which I hope will attract others. This light is for everybody.

How did your apostolate start here?

We did not know who the Lord would call in Turkmenistan. We had addresses of some ethnic Poles here and hoped to find some baptized Catholics, but we came here for all people, not only the Poles.

First there were only two of us at Mass. We had large churches and monasteries in Poland, so it was difficult to live and confess to each other, only two of us. We ran discussions for catechumens but there was no Eucharist for the people. The first years it was hard to work and we saw no fruit. It was only after 2000, when we first baptized people here, that we started Masses in full.

Do good prospects for ecumenical dialogue exist in Turkmenistan?

We have always had more that unites us with other Christians than what makes us different. I am sure we can pray together and help those in need. We can also celebrate common holidays and seek to be Christ's disciples in the modern world.

You have visited the Taize ecumenical community in France. When was that?

I first went there in 1975. I was surprised to see so many young people gathered in one place. It was the times of communism in Poland. I was lucky to be allowed to leave Poland. What struck me was that people spoke many different languages but believed in one God. After that I went there about 10 more times.

What insights did you gain from your time there?

I learned that we need to look for God. The chanting had a strong impression on me. I saw young people seeking people with authority on religion. I was also young, and looked for people with authority like (Pope) John Paul II, (Blessed) Mother Teresa of Calcutta (Kolkata) and now Brother Roger. I listened intently to what he said. It might have been only a few words, but they came across like an electric charge. The Taize community always had meetings, prayers and sharing. Even in our parish, we read and meditate on extracts from (Brother Roger's) letters once a week.

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(Accompanying photos available at here)