Bangkok: The 12th Continental Conference of Christian Family Movements of Asia began its four-day conference at Baan Phu Waan Pastoral Center in Bangkok, Thailand. Over 100 delegates from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam are participating in the conference.
The theme of the Conference is ‘Interreligious Dialogue: Advancing the Mission of Christian Family Movements in Asia’, which will be explored through keynote speeches presented by domain experts, and panel presentations by clerics of major Asian religions and couples in interreligious marriages.
The opening ceremony began with a Holy Mass, celebrated by His Excellency, Bishop Silvio Siripong Charatsri, President, Catholic Commission of Thailand for the Laity, Desk of the Family, in which he stressed upon moving towards a “Church of Dialogue”, especially as the Christian community is a minority in most of the Asian countries.
The delegates also welcomed His Excellency Bishop Gerardo Alminaza, who is the International Confederation of Christian Family Movements (ICCFM) Chaplain and CFM Philippines National Chaplain. Furthermore, Rev. Fr. Alexis Clement Prakash Fernando, who is the CFM Sri Lanka National Chaplain, set the stage for the discussions through his keynote speech on “Interreligious Dialogue: An Overview and the Church Perspective”.
Rev. Fr. Alexis provided a brief overview of the meaning of interreligious dialogue, the perspective of the church and the common perspective.
The day concluded with a Thai cultural performance by So Cho Kho Group and Loy Krathong Festival Celebration.