Bishop of the Apostolic Prefecture of Mongolia, Wenceslao Padilla CICM, will visit Perth next week, where he will speak at several events.
Bishop Padilla will be in WA from September 21 to 24, and will speak at the launch of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference social justice statement.
He will also speak on behalf of Catholic Mission at each weekend Mass at St Francis of Assisi Parish in Maida Vale.
During the whirlwind trip, Bishop Padilla will also visit several schools to thank them for their support of projects run by Catholic Mission that have assisted the poor in Mongolia.
These schools include Aranmore Catholic Primary School, St Denis’ Catholic Primary School and Emmanuel Catholic College.
Perth director of Catholic Mission, Francis Leong, said he was looking forward to hosting the 63-year-old Bishop on his first visit to WA.
“Being the first bishop of one of the remotest places in the world, I certainly feel Bishop Padilla has a special message and presence for all of us living and working in our consumer-driven, win-at all-cost and fear-the-stranger society,” he said.
“The Catholic Church in Mongolia only started just over 20 years ago when he was one of the first wave of Catholic missionaries permitted to enter the country after decades of oppression under communist rule and extreme poverty.
“His story is of the youngest Church in the world, and of a society made new and resurrected amidst much brokenness and isolation that I’m sure will resonate with all of us who would find it hard to imagine our lives without our Church.”
Bishop Padilla was born in the Philippines and ordained in 1976.
He was appointed Apostolic Prefect of Ulaanbaatar, capital of Mongolia, in 2002.
The following year, his status was elevated to Bishop, although Mongolia remains an Apostolic Prefecture, as it has not yet reached the requirements to be declared a diocese.