Bishop Maculewicz: “Two new churches and a small community called to be salt and leaven in society”

Bishop Jerzy Maculewicz, the Apostolic Administrator of Uzbekistan, reported that two new parishes have been established in the Muslim-majority country over the last two years. One new parish, dedicated to Divine Mercy, is located in Angren, approximately 90 kilometers from the capital, Tashkent. This community consists of just over 20 faithful, two-thirds of whom are children.

The second new parish is dedicated to Saint Joseph. Maculewicz, a Conventual Franciscan, noted that these new parishes often begin with only three to five people. He described the growth of the Catholic Church in Uzbekistan as a gradual process rooted in personal relationships and the witness of the faithful.

Maculewicz has served in Uzbekistan for 21 years. He noted that his appointment to the Apostolic Administration on April 1, 2005, occurred the day before the death of Pope John Paul II.