Bhutan's only Buddhist convert yearns to bring Catholicism to homeland (REPRODUCTION)
DARJEELING, India: Bhutan's first Buddhist convert to Catholicism is waiting for democracy to be established in the Himalayan kingdom so that he can begin his priestly ministry there.
Jesuit Father Kinley Tshering currently serves as rector and principal of St. Joseph's School in India's Darjeeling town. "When my term (here) expires, I hope to go back to Bhutan," the 49-year-old priest told UCA News on April 22. By 2008, he hopes Bhutan will become a democratic nation.
What will he do then? "I have no plans," says the priest, who is related to Bhutan's royal family. "The priestly presence will be there (and) I will discern what the Lord wants me to do," he added.
Father Tshering says he can "literally count" the number of Christians in Bhutan. "They are mostly Indians and Nepalese, and are considered outsiders." Protestants outnumber Catholics. Bhutan has no Catholic institution, although the country falls under Darjeeling diocese in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal.
Buddhism is Bhutan's state religion and its government does not tolerate other religions. Buddhism and Bhutan's culture "are mixed," Father Tshering explains. The 46,500-square-kilometer kingdom has about 2 million people.
Religious tolerance exists in Thimpu, the capital city. But until five years ago, the police harassed people of other religions in other places. "I never suffered due to my background, but other Christians have suffered," the Jesuit priest said.
Over the past decade, the tall and sturdy priest has seen "a lot of change" in Bhutan. "From a very anti-Christian phobia, there is a sign of change for the future," he added. The new constitution guarantees freedom of conscience, but does not allow for churches.
Nevertheless, Christ is present in Bhutan, in a house in Father Tshering's name in Thimpu. A Jesuit cannot legally own personal property, but in Bhutan outsiders cannot own property.
The house has a sanctuary where the Blessed Sacrament is kept. About 60 Catholics, mostly Indians, pray there on Sundays. Besides Father Tshering, priests from India visit the country occasionally to attend to these Catholics' pastoral needs. No Catholic priest from outside Bhutan is permitted to stay in Bhutan permanently, he added.
The Bhutanese priest says his country's royal family "is very tolerant toward Christianity. The present king and all the queens studied in our schools."
Father Tshering's school now serves many "elite" boys from Bhutan and Nepal, besides India. Some are from royal families. Father Tshering is also an alumnus of the school.
How did he become a Catholic? Father Tshering said he learned about Christianity at the school and the Jesuits influenced him. He wanted to become a Catholic, but the Jesuits had refused.
A Salesian priest, however, baptized him in 1974 when he was in the ninth grade. He recalled that his father was "very upset" about his conversion. However, no one in his community persecuted him as he belongs to a high caste. But "nobody approved of me" either, he remarked.
After becoming the first Bhutanese to earn a Master's degree in Business Administration, he worked in some prestigious Indian firms for three years. He wanted to become a Catholic priest, but some missioners dissuaded him saying he could serve the Church better as a married layman in Bhutan.
All this changed after a chance meeting with Blessed Teresa of Kolkata during a flight in 1985. The young Bhutanese executive sat next to the founder of the Missionaries of Charity. "She convinced me that I had a religious vocation. Then nobody could stop me."
He joined the Jesuits when he was 26 and was ordained a priest in 1995. His father opposed his vocation. "Until his death, he thought it was a scandal." However, the young priest found solace in his mother. "She always supported me as long as I remain good."
Father Tshering says his faith in Christ has never wavered. However "so many dissenting voices in the Catholic Church" worry him.
At the time of his conversion, he wanted to preach the Gospel in his country. "After so much training, we get confused," he said, adding that "only Christ" remains unchanged. "It is a real challenge to be a Catholic. It is one's basic conviction in Jesus that keeps one's faith (alive)," he added.
Source: UCAN, May 30, 2007