In the cardinal designate's view, Pope Francis understands that the Church exists "in those little places where there is not much publicity" but where the faith is alive.

Sim, along with 3 other priests, leads the Church of Brunei that is mostly made up of some 20,000 expatriate workers.

For him, the Church cannot merely be a subculture: "as a Church, we are not one little group of people, all isolated on our own in our little bubble."

He says Church needs to build relationships, first within the community, starting within the family and moving to elsewhere in society, like the workplace and education.

The Church cuts across boundaries of race, colour, social status, or migrant status because "all of us are children, sons and daughters of Jesus Christ" Sim told CNA.

The 69-year old native of Brunei reinforced his view, saying approximately 70% of the small Catholic population are migrant workers from the Philippines.

Another 20% are migrants from other countries such as Indonesia, India, and Malaysia. The remaining 10% are indigenous Bruneians.

Sim says the challenge of the Bruneian Church is to "provide a home away from home" for the mostly migrant community; supporting them in times of trouble such as illness or death.

It also helps with financial and feeding programmes.

He commented that the Catholic Church has had a presence in Brunei for over 90 years and its three Catholic schools are especially an area of contribution; 60% to 70% of their students are Muslim.

Brunei is a country of 2,200 square miles located on the north coast of Borneo, an island the country shares with Malaysia and Indonesia.

The wealthy oil and gas-rich nation has a population of some 500,000 people, more than 70% of whom are Muslim.

Sim said he was surprised to learn Pope Francis had chosen him to be one of 13 new cardinals.

"For me, it was a bit of a shock and unexpected," Sim told Vatican News.

At his priestly ordination in 1989, Sim became the first native priest of Brunei. Then, in 2005, Pope John Paul II appointed him Vicar Apostolic and he became the first local bishop of Brunei.

Sources

• Catholic News Agency
• Vatican News

Brunei, which is a tiny nation on the island of Borneo, has adopted a more conservative form of Islam in recent years.

In 2013 it announced its intention to introduce sharia law, the Islamic legal system that imposes strict corporal punishments.

The first stage of the law included fines or jail for offences such as pregnancy out of wedlock or failing to pray on Friday.

Human rights group Amnesty International says the new stoning and amputation penalties, which also apply to children, are provided for in new sections under Brunei's Sharia Penal Code.

They will come into effect tomorrow.

The legal changes were announced "in a discreet notice" on the attorney general's website, Amnesty says.

"To legalize such cruel and inhuman penalties is appalling of itself," Rachel Chhoa-Howard, who works for Amnesty International.

She says some of the potential offences "should not even be deemed crimes at all, including consensual sex between adults of the same gender.

"Brunei must immediately halt its plans to implement these vicious punishments and revise its penal code in compliance with its human rights obligations," Chhoa-Howard says.

"The international community must urgently condemn Brunei's move to put these cruel penalties into practice."

Both Elton John and George Clooney have spoken out against the new law, promising to boycott Brunei-owned luxury hotels.

Clooney notes the Sultan of Brunei owns a handful of luxury hotels, including the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Dorchester in London and the Plaza Athenee in Paris.

Speaking in support of Clooney's stance, Elton John says he won't be visiting any of these hotels in future.

"Discrimination on the basis of sexuality is plain wrong and has no place in any society.

"That's why I commend my friend, George Clooney, for taking a stand and calling out the anti-gay discrimination and bigotry now being enshrined in law in the nation of Brunei, a place where gay people are brutalised or worse," Elton John says.

Brunei's sultan instituted the Sharia Penal Code in 2014 to bolster the influence of Islam in the tiny, oil-rich monarchy, which has long been known for conservative policies such as banning the public sale of liquor.

Source

• Rolling Stone
• Huffington Post
• The Guardian
• iNews

"Our logo is 'Duc in altum' (Put out into the deep), and we now have projects to empower and sustain the missionary dimension of the Church," Bishop Cornelius Sim, Vicar Apostolic of Brunei, told CNA Oct. 17.

"We are one of the smallest dioceses in Asia," he said, adding that with only one bishop and three priests, "we hope to have vocations to the priesthood and religious life."

Brunei is a country of 2,200 square miles located entirely on the island of Borneo, which is also home to parts of Malaysia and Indonesia. It is a developed country, and one of the richest in the world. Malay is the official language, but English and Chinese are both widely spoken.

The country is an absolute monarchy led by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. About two-thirds of the population is Muslim, and Brunei was recently noted for its adoption of Sharia law, though it is being applied only to Muslims.

Around 10 percent of the population is atheist, 13 percent is Buddhist, and a small number have indigenous beliefs. Christians, half of whom are Catholic, constitute 10 percent of Brunei's population.

Fr. Arin Sugit, the bishop's assistant at Our Lady of the Assumption Cathedral in the nation's capital of Bandar Seri Begawan, explained to CNA that a majority of the Catholic population - 70 percent - are migrant workers from the Philippines. Another 20 percent are migrants from other countries such as Indonesia, India, and Malaysia, he said, and the remaining 10 percent are indigenous Bruneians.

Source

CNA/EWTN News/Patheos.Com

Image: AsiaNews

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah said authorities had been considering the new Sharia Penal Code for years and it will be enforced in 'phases'.

Punishments under the Hudud code may include stoning for adultery, amputation for theft and flogging for drinking alcohol or even having an abortion.

The code will make Brunei the first ASEAN country to enforce a national Sharia law. Continue Reading - Listen to interview