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Eastern Myanmar gets new bishop

John Saw Yaw Han, auxiliary bishop of Yangon, is named bishop of Kengtung diocese in Shan state
Bishop John Saw Yaw Han was appointed ordinary of Kengtung diocese in Myanmar's eastern Shan state on Nov. 4

Bishop John Saw Yaw Han was appointed ordinary of Kengtung diocese in Myanmar's eastern Shan state on Nov. 4. (Photo: UCA News)

Published: November 07, 2022 06:23 AM GMT
Updated: November 07, 2022 10:07 AM GMT

Pope Francis has named Monsignor John Saw Yaw Han, auxiliary bishop of Yangon, as the bishop of Kengtung diocese which covers Myanmar’s eastern Shan state.

The official announcement of the appointment was made on Nov. 4. He succeeds Bishop Peter Louis Caku, who died in 2020.

The 54-year-old prelate currently serves as secretary-general and treasurer of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Myanmar as well as president of the Episcopal Commission for Ecumenism.

“I pray for the new responsibilities and new challenges that lie ahead and the new bishop will be able to continue the mission in collaboration with the priests, religious and lay people from Kengtung diocese,” a priest from Yangon archdiocese said.

Church officials in Kengtung diocese said they welcomed the new bishop and urged Catholics to pray for him to continue his mission.

He was born on May 5, 1968 in Homalim village, Sagaing division and studied philosophy and theology at the National Major Seminary of St. Joseph in Mandalay.

Following his ordination on March 18, 1995, he was a parish priest and a missionary until 1998, when he joined the Philosophy Major Seminary to teach.

In 2002 he left to study at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, New York and when he returned in 2004 he joined the National Major Seminary (Theology) in Yangon as a professor. In 2008 he was appointed its rector, a post he held until appointed auxiliary bishop.

Pope Francis on Dec. 30, 2014 appointed Father John Saw Yaw Han auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Yangon just four days before Charles Bo was named Myanmar’s first Cardinal.

Some 37 priests and more than hundreds of religious serve the Catholic community of 50,000 in the predominantly Buddhist country, according to the 2020 Catholic Directory.

Kengtung diocese has not been severely affected by ongoing conflicts unlike Loikaw, Pekhon, Hakha, Kalay and Mandalay dioceses, where thousands of Catholics have been displaced.

Myanmar’s military has used air strikes and heavy weapons against ethnic armed groups and newly emerged people’s defense forces in predominantly Christian Kayah, Shan, Chin, Karen and Kachin states.

Pope Francis has spoken several times about the crisis in Myanmar, praying for peace and reconciliation in the conflict-torn nation which he regards with much affection after visiting the country in November 2017.

He has repeatedly called for the military leaders to stop the violence, release all detained people and pursue dialogue to seek peace and reconciliation.

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