Myanmar Cardinal insisted that the bishop must be a beacon of hope at the Episcopal Ordination of Msgr. Raymond Wai Lin Htun on March 19.

His Eminence Charles Cardinal Bo highlighted, “In the face of despair, he must remind his people that God’s justice and peace will prevail, even if we do not yet see it and bishop must also be a “beacon of hope”, inspiring his people to look beyond their suffering to the future that God is preparing.”

Cardinal Bo expressed the situation in Myanmar as “political turmoil, displacement, and social suffering” and encouraged the new bishop to stand firm in the faith.

Citing 2 Cor 5:1, Cardinal Bo of Yangon Archdiocese encouraged the new bishop to be the steward of a kingdom “not made with hands”. But to build peace, unity, and hope especially in this Jubilee Year and to create healing hope for the wounded people.

“Where there is corruption, injustice, and fear dominate, a bishop must be a moral compass, standing for truth, justice, and compassion. His life must inspire others to walk the path of righteousness—choosing integrity over self-interest, service over power, and love over hatred,” added the Cardinal.  

Episcopal Ordination of Msgr. Raymond Wai Lin Tun took place in St. Mary’s Cathedral, Yangon, Myanmar, on March 19, the Solemnity of St. Joseph the Husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, at 9:00 AM, Myanmar time.

“We require all the qualities of St Joseph today, and we invite St Joseph to intercede for the people of Myanmar who was a poor man and an internally displaced refugee who fled with his family. Like him, thousands in our country grappling with anxiety about their sons and daughters who have fled their homes, refugees facing starvation, and those crushed by despair. We pray to the silent saint Joseph for peace,” said Cardinal Bo.  

The newly ordained bishop is known to be a quiet worker, embodying the virtues of humility and steadfast faith. His family background has instilled in him the values of faith, unity, and humility.

Bishop Raymond was raised in a hard-working and devout farming family, embodies industrious, hard work, discipline, and faith, and there is no ambiguity in him.  

Cardinal Bo said that like St. Joseph, a bishop is called to protect and nurture Christ’s presence in His Church. His role is to ensure Christ lives in the faithful. He is to be a man of deep prayer, silent listening, and courageous action. He must hear the consoling angel: “Don’t be afraid.”

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Citing Galatians 3:28, the cardinal speaks about the bishop as a Servant of Unity.

As the world is divided by war, and conflicts based on religion and tribes, what we need is unity. Divisions are anti-God, anti-Christian, and anti-human.  The only war we need to wage is a war against hatred and division, emphasized Cardinal Bo.  

Msgr. Raymond Wai Lin Htun is the first Tamil Bishop to be elected from the Tamil Community in the Yangon Archdiocese, Myanmar.

In his homily, the cardinal strongly admonished all the faithful to acknowledge that the caste system and other divisions are an insult to Christ.

“When we, who claim to follow Christ, look down upon another because of caste, tribe, or background, we commit the same blasphemy. We abuse Emmanuel, God-with-us, who dwells in every person. To despise any human being is to despise God’s own image,” Cardinal Bo underlined. 

“The caste system, and every form of discrimination, is a direct insult to the Gospel. It is an evil that crucifies Christ anew, rejecting His call for a kingdom where all are equal before God,” he added.  

“Let discrimination based on cultural identities like caste and tribe die at the foot of the Cross, and let Christ alone reign in our hearts. Let there be a resurrection of hope,” continued Cardinal Bo.

Since Episcopal Ordination took place in the Lenten season, the Myanmar Cardinal prays that “this Lent may lead us to the hope of Easter Morning of eternal hope.”

The Motto of the newly ordained bishop is “In That Hope, we are saved”.

Msgr. Andrea Ferrante, Charge d’ Affaires, said that the new Auxiliary Bishop is the blessing of God to Myanmar especially to the Archdiocese of Yangon.

Msgr. Andrea insisted that the jubilee calls us to be the pilgrims of hope and the bishop is the one who watches over his people. Watching requires meekness and constancy of charity. We are to believe, to hope, and to love.

Pope Francis appointed Most. Rev. Msgr. Raymond Wai Lin Htun to be the auxiliary bishop of Yangon Archdiocese in Myanmar on December 27.

49 years old, Msgr. Raymond Wai Lin Tun is the third Auxiliary Bishop of Yangon Archdiocese.

The principal consecrator was His Eminence Charles Cardinal Bo. The two auxiliary bishops of Yangon Archdiocese, His Excellency Bishop Noel Saw Naw Aye and His Excellency Bishop Francis Than Tun were the co-consecrators.

Msgr. Raymond was born in Hton-Bo-Quay village, in the diocese of Hpa-An on September 22, 1976.

Bishop Raymond was ordained priest on March 18, 2007.

He studied in Rome from 2011 to 2014 and held a Licentiate in Canon Law.

Since 2015, Msgr. Raymond was a professor at St. Joseph Catholic Major Seminary in Yangon, Myanmar.

Bishop Raymond has been the Defender of the Bond at the Inter-diocesan Ecclesiastical Tribunal in the Archdiocese of Yangon since 2020.

Thousands of audiences in different countries followed the ceremony of episcopal ordination through the CBCM-OSC Facebook channel.

By Fr. Saw Hubert