The Prophet Elijah's story and its fulfillment in John the Baptist illuminate the path of every witness who prepares the world for Christ—a path that often leads through the fire of suffering but always radiates with the light of truth.
Bishop Henry paid tribute to the forebears who built the community. “Our ancestors were visionaries,” he said. “They made a difficult decision at a difficult time. They bravely did a difficult job at a difficult time.”
In a special jubilee Mass celebrating choir ministries, Archbishop Marco Tin Win of Mandalay Archdiocese issued a clear reminder: the choir’s role is to serve prayer, not to perform.
The Church gives us scriptures that reveal a profound contrast: the faithful, teaching love of God, versus the fickle rejection of a distracted world. In the midst of this tension, Our Lady appears as the perfect disciple who shows us the path of blessedness.
Bishop Henry Eikhlein issued a call for unity and expansion. He urged prayer and diligent work “so that by the year 2030, we may have at least 5,000 committed members serving under the Marian banner” across the Pathein, Myaungmya, and Hinthada zones.
“Some asked me if it was worth it to come back after living in the United States for over 26 years with an incurable disease,” Fr. Vincent Mahn Thu Hlaing shared with the congregation. “I said that it was worth it because I was returning to my community.”
Today’s scriptures reveal the breathtaking truth that the same God who sustains the cosmos with infinite power chose to make His home in a virgin’s womb and now offers to make His home in our weary hearts.
Cardinal Bo delved into the theological and personal significance of the feast, which commemorates the belief that Mary was conceived without original sin. He framed it not as a distant doctrine, but as a revelation of “God’s eternal plan for humanity.”
“From the beginning to now, 1,037 students have been taught at the orphanage school,” organizers shared, highlighting a legacy of transformative care. The school was formally established between 2000 and 2003 by Father John Galang La Raw to serve children from the dioceses of Myitkyina, Banmaw, and Lashio.
Bishop Henry Eikhlein acknowledged that the church was not built in easy times, but stood as “a testimony to God’s plan… because our ancestors were good, honest, God-fearing, and religious.”
Fr. John Aye Kyaw challenged the faithful to move beyond hypocrisy, stating that true cleanliness of heart is shown in love and support for the needy. “That is the Christian belief; that is the Christian way of life,” he said.
The Word of God today speaks a word of unimaginable comfort. It reveals a God whose might is not expressed in crushing power, but in a shepherd’s tender, relentless love.
We honor the moment Mary herself was conceived in the womb of her mother, Saint Anne, free from the stain of original sin by the singular grace and foreseen merits of her Son, Jesus Christ.