Signs of the Times #16: Bridge Across Continents in Fellowship with the Poor ft. Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, S.D.B.

Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, S.D.B. is the Archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar and joined us at the recent Catholic Social Tradition Conference hosted by the Center for Social Concerns here at Notre Dame. He sat down with us to expand on his keynote talk. We discussed what it was like for him to grow up under a military regime in a poor village in Myanmar and how this has influenced his special regard for the poor. He shared how he has been outspoken about a controversial China-funded dam project in Myanmar stating that superpowers like China are exploiting the poor for their own profit. We discussed the growth of the Catholic population in Myanmar and how the nation was influenced by the visit of Pope Francis in 2017. He strongly emphasizes the idea that justice is at the heart of the gospel, stating that justice is not an option for believers, it’s a mandate.