At the end of November, Pope Francis will travel to Myanmar. The trip's slogan is “Love and peace,” which is also what the country hopes to receive from his visit.
FR. MARIANO SOE NAING
Spokesman, Catholic Bishops' Conference of Myanmar
“Love is very much precious for us here in our country, as we live together with Buddhist friends. Peace is something that we really need in this country. This love and peace is something we expect the Holy Father will bring to this land of Myanmar.”
Mariano Naing is the trip's spokesman and one of three composers of the song that will accompany the pope during his time in Myanmar. He has called it “Master of love and peace” because he says it represents what they want to obtain for the country.
Pope Francis' visit takes place at a time of fierce internal tensions due to the persecution of the Rohingya people, the Muslim minority in the Rakhine region. However, other groups of the Burmese population are also at risk, such as refugees of the civil war – who are mostly Catholic.
Myanmar is a meeting point of different religions, ethnicities and cultures. This image of unity is one the society dreams of recovering.
Nicodemus Aye, who composed the music, says he hopes the pope's visit will make people reflect on the attitudes that are making the situation worse.
FR. NICODEMUS AUNG THAN AYE
Priest and musician in Mandalay (Myanmar)
“Music is a universal language, so music can touch the heart, music can touch people in so many ways.”
FR. MARIANO SOE NAING
Spokesman, Catholic Bishops' Conference of Myanmar
“The main slogan is: 'Let us stop the wars, let us stop the fight, and let us welcome the peace that the Holy Father is bringing to our land.'”
Myanmar has 52 million inhabitants. Of them, 450,000 are Catholics. At the end of November, a pope will visit their country for the first time.
