A Catholic bishop in northern Myanmar said faith continues to sustain displaced communities in Kachin State, where the Church provides humanitarian aid, education, and pastoral care as fighting drags into another year and about 250,000 people remain uprooted by conflict.
Speaking to the Vatican’s Fides News Agency, Bishop John Mung Ngawn La Sam of Myitkyina described a population worn down by years of fighting between Myanmar’s military and opposition forces, including the Kachin Independence Army and People’s Defense Forces.
“We are all tired of the conflict. Hundreds of thousands of displaced people are suffering,” La Sam said. The estimate of about 250,000 displaced people is based on recent figures from the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.
The bishop said many families now live in refugee camps and informal settlements, where Christians and Buddhists share the same hardships.
“They are housed in refugee camps or in small encampments in wooded areas where they have gathered. They all live together: Christians and Buddhists. Every now and then, I go to visit them, and we celebrate Mass together,” he said.
La Sam said the Church continues to assist displaced families through Karuna, the local Caritas organization. With Myanmar’s education system disrupted by war, nuns and catechists have also organized informal classes for children and young people.
“People are struggling to survive,” he said, adding that education has been entrusted “to the goodwill of many people, such as the nuns and catechists who organize informal classes for children and young people.”
The bishop said prolonged displacement has left many families living from one day to the next.
“In our situation, we live day by day; the faithful have had to leave their villages and parishes, they have been forced to flee, but in many places, such as refugee camps and informal settlements, given the prolonged displacement, a certain balance has almost been found. In other words, people have almost become accustomed to this precarious life, which, however, cannot be our future,” he said.
Although Myitkyina remains under military control and has not seen fighting inside the city, clashes continue across much of Kachin State.
La Sam said he has continued visiting displaced communities, administering the sacraments and offering encouragement. During the first months of 2026, he administered 900 confirmations to young Catholics between the ages of 12 and 15.
“These are young people with the light of Christ in their eyes and in their hearts: they are our hope, their lives are a great sign of hope,” he said.
Looking ahead, the bishop expressed hope that the country can move beyond conflict.
“We can do nothing but wait and pray. Because without God’s help, we can do nothing. Therefore, we hope that a process of national reconciliation can begin, which, God willing, will be possible and will restore peace,” he said.
