In a festive Christmas Day celebration that underscored family and faith, Bishop Henry Eikhlein of Pathein Diocese confirmed 86 children and presided over a Jubilee for married couples during a pastoral visit to the remote Peinnegone parish in the Ayeyarwady Delta.

The Christmas Mass at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church on December 25 was the culmination of the bishop’s visit to Peinnegone and several surrounding villages, bringing a message of unity and encouragement to the rural Catholic community.

A central moment of the liturgy was the administration of the Sacrament of Confirmation to the 86 young parishioners, a significant step in their spiritual lives that brought visible joy to the congregation.

Integrating the season’s theme of renewal, the celebration also featured a Jubilee for married couples, who stood to reaffirm their wedding vows. The bishop presented this as a powerful sign of the universal Church, noting that the Sacrament of Marriage “is a visible sign that Catholics belong to one Church, united in faith and mission.”

In his homily, Bishop Henry connected the local celebration to the global Catholic family. “The Nativity of Christ is not celebrated in one place alone, but in every Catholic Church throughout the world,” he said, emphasizing the unity of believers under Pope Leo XIV, bishops, and priests.

He also paid tribute to the missionaries and priests of Kanazogone Parish, especially Fr. Joseph Mourier (MEP) and Fr. Raphael Mahn Htun Yin, who first planted the faith in the region. “The seeds of faith they planted have borne fruit in Peinnegone Parish,” he noted.

Addressing parents directly, the bishop urged them to pass on the faith to their children so that future priests and religious might emerge from the community. He closed with a prayer for the peace and joy of Christmas to strengthen all in hope.

Concluding his homily, Bishop Henry prayed that the peace, joy, and happiness brought by Christ at Christmas would dwell in the hearts of all—children, parents, elders, and the entire community, strengthening them in faith and hope.

The visit, which included a Christmas Midnight Mass, reinforced the bishop’s pastoral closeness to the scattered faithful and highlighted the enduring vitality of faith and family in the region’s village churches.

By RVA Pwo Karen Service