TAUNGGYI, Myanmar (UCAN) -- Auxiliary Bishop Basilio Athai of Taunggyi archdiocese says the biggest challenge he faces is evangelizing among people of other religions and various tribal groups in this underdeveloped region.

Auxiliary Bishop Basilio Athai of Taunggyi (center) at St. Joseph's Cathedral on Nov. 18 in Taunggyi, Myanmar, during his episcopal installation.

The 52-year-old bishop was installed on Nov. 18 during a ceremony on the grounds of St. Joseph's Cathedral in Taunggyi city, 450 kilometers north of Yangon.

Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio, Bangkok-based apostolic delegate to Myanmar, led the Mass. Archbishops Matthias U Shwe of Taunggyi, Paul Zinghtung Grawng of Mandalay and Charles Bo of Yangon, 13 other prelates including two auxiliary bishops and about 220 priests concelebrated. About 150 nuns and brothers and more than 2,500 laypeople participated in the ceremony.

Bishop Athai's motto is Koinonia, the biblical term for communion that Saint Luke portrays in Acts of the Apostles as an ideal of community life during the period of the early Church.

The new auxiliary bishop, who will take over many of the duties of ailing 64-year-old Archbishop Shwe, said it is tough traveling the hilly terrain to visit parishes and the Church lacks manpower.

Taunggyi archdiocese is situated in the south of Shan State, where Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) missioners began evangelization work among the Kayan people in the early 19th century. The Shan and Pa-O are the predominant ethnic groups in the archdiocesan area.

"It is very hard to spread the Good News with different cultures as we are the minority, surrounded by strong Buddhists, and the only way is through dialogue," he told UCA News.

"Firstly, my intention is to develop strong faith in our community and then with our good example, they will know the Good News of Jesus," the bishop said.

Archbishop Shwe told UCA News God has given him a successor and he looks forward to working with his auxiliary.

"The responsibility of auxiliary bishop is to help me with pastoral care, giving confirmation and other missionary work, as I am in poor health and unable to visit all the faithful in the archdiocese," he said.

Prelates during the episcopal installation of Auxiliary Bishop Basilio Athai of Taunggyi at St. Joseph's Cathedral on Nov. 18 in Taunggyi.

Father Pio Hkun Shwe Tha, parish priest of St. Joseph's Cathedral in Taunggyi, pointed out that Catholics are a small minority in the area and very poor. "Most of them are living hand to mouth, cultivating vegetables on the hillsides, and communications and transportation are difficult," he said.

Sister Dominic Phan of the Zetaman Sisters of St. Theresa expressed hope the new auxiliary would boost evangelization. Her congregation developed from the zetaman, volunteer lay evangelizers established with the help of the archbishop to help the Church reach out to remote areas.

Bishop Athai was born in Kyekado, Taungngu diocese, south of Taunggyi, on July 22, 1956. He was ordained a priest on April 1, 1984, by then-Bishop Shwe. After serving as assistant parish priest of Hwarikhu (now in Pekhon diocese) 1984-86 and at the cathedral in Taunggyi 1986-88, he was appointed professor of philosophy at the major seminary in Pyin-Oo-Lwin in 1988. Later he did higher studies in Rome. On his return, he was appointed parish priest of Nanattaw in Loikaw diocese. Since 2005, he has been rector of St. Michael's Major Seminary in Taunggyi.

According to the 2008 Catholic Directory, Taunggyi archdiocese has 7,350 Catholics in a population of 1.5 million. Its 11 parishes and seven sub-parishes are looked after by 29 priests, 66 Religious sisters and 22 Religious brothers, 27 catechists and 33 zetaman.

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