Why do people turn to Missio for support to build churches when there are so many other needs in the world? Well, in our experience, a church is never just a building. Recently, Missio’s National Director in England and Wales, Fr Anthony Chantry, was invited to visit to the Mae Hong Song refugee camp in Thailand. There he witnessed how your support through Missio is providing help and solace to our sisters and brothers who have lost everything, yet find strength in their shared faith. The political turmoil in Myanmar continues to cause people to flee their homes and seek refuge in neighbouring countries. Ongoing conflict between ethnic armed groups and the military junta has escalated into a full-blown civil war. Over two million people have been displaced internally, with widespread destruction of homes, religious sites, and essential infrastructure like education and healthcare facilities. Many people have fled to neighbouring Thailand, with thousands taking refuge in the Mae Hong Song camp.

Life in the Mae Hong Song camp

Life in the camp is simple. The people have to build their own temporary houses using materials found in the forest. There is clean water, but no permanent sanitation. There are some international agencies working in the camp and there are opportunities for children to attend a school. Above all, it is safe: no soldiers are going to chase them away from their homes, burn down their houses, or terrorise and kill them. Fr Dominic, a Burmese priest on mission in Thailand, travels to the camp every day. He says that one of the greatest burdens that the people carry is the sense that they have no future. They cannot return to their homes in Myanmar because they have been destroyed. As more than one person shared:

‘It is like living in a prison. We are safe but cannot go anywhere and find work or further education. We just manage to live our life day-by-day.’

A new Church: a sign of hope

But when they come together for Mass, the joy that comes from their faith is both impressive and humbling. They trust in God and praise him for his goodness to them. The Lord makes himself known in a special way in situations of suffering – his presence strengthens and gives hope, in seemingly hopeless situations. With support from Missio, a new church has been completed. Their previous church, which they built themselves, was a fragile wooden structure holding two to three hundred people. There was clearly a need to build something safer, and although no permanent buildings are allowed in the camp, the new church is waterproof and secure.