PENANG (UCAN): Evangelisation in Asia is “storytelling, not conquering,” Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, vice president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences [FABC], told the delegates to the Great Pilgrimage of Hope held from November 27-30 in Penang, Malaysia.
Cardinal David urged Christians to share the story of Jesus through lived experience rather than through force or proselytism saying that Asian Catholics must learn to recognise Jesus in the way the two disciples did on the road to Emmaus—through encounter, memory and shared humanity.
The cardinal said pointed out that Jesus “walked with [the disciples] as a stranger, and walks with us today,” adding that the story of redemption “continues in our lives and through our witness.”
Cardinal David, who heads the Diocese of Kalookan, in Metro Manila, the Philippines, said the congress forms part of a longer spiritual journey toward 2033, the 2,000th anniversary of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus.
He said the event invites the Church “to rediscover the power of storytelling as the unique missionary language of Asia,” adding that Asia has long understood the formative power of story, recalling its heritage of epics, myths, songs, dances, legends and parables.
Asia has long understood the formative power of story, recalling its heritage of epics, myths, songs, dances, legends and parables
The gathering, organised by the FABC Office of Evangelisation, drew more than 900 delegates from 32 countries. It is considered a follow-up to the first Asian Mission Congress held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in 2006.
Cardinal David noted that the first Asian Mission Congress placed storytelling and faith-sharing at the heart of its missionary method.
Today, the FABC views storytelling “not merely as a method of proclamation but as a lived mission,” rooted in community life and the synodal practice of listening.
The cardinal said the Asian way of evangelisation is “storytelling, not conquering.”
He explained. “Evangelisation in Asia is not loud. It is relational, respectful, and contemplative. We no longer believe in forcing faith on anybody through proselytising.” He also acknowledged that the Church bears the consequences of past historical errors, including missionary ties to colonial powers that continue to fuel suspicion in certain places.
Asia is not the continent of great cathedrals. It is the continent of great stories—of harmony, compassion, hospitality, resilience and hope
Cardinal David
Asian Christians can recognise Jesus on the road among migrants, families broken by conflict and poverty, young people searching for meaning online, victims of violence, indigenous communities defending their lands, and people rebuilding after natural disasters, he said.
“Living the story means letting him reappear in us,” Cardinal David said.
He pointed to the Asian Continental Synodal Assembly in Bangkok in 2023, which identified four paths for sharing the story of Jesus: dialogue with cultures, religions, the poor and creation.
“Asia is not the continent of great cathedrals. It is the continent of great stories—of harmony, compassion, hospitality, resilience and hope,” he said.
Ahead of the 2033 jubilee, he added, the Church in Asia is called to become “more synodal, more welcoming, more relational,” telling the story of Jesus in ways that heal divisions, build interreligious bridges, uplift the poor and protect the planet.
