Prelate discusses restrictions on Church under Brunei’s Islamic monarchy
May 27, 2026
» Continue to this story on Fides
CWN Editor's Note: In an interview with the Fides news agency, the apostolic administrator of the Apostolic Vicariate of Brunei discussed the situation of the Church under the Islamic monarchy there (map).
Father Robert Leong Soon Choi said that “we have neither nuns nor religious, and there can be no missionaries, because this is not permitted by the government, which only allows local priests.” Under these conditions, there are three priests and three Catholic churches in the Southeast Asian nation.
“The government, however, wishes to show, in a certain way, that it is open and welcoming and that it allows the Catholic community to live within the state,” he continued. Nonetheless, “we cannot expand or evangelize. We cannot build new churches or expand existing ones.”
“The faithful are diligent, and Sunday Mass, religious holidays, and pastoral activities always attract large crowds,” he added. “Our community is small, and it lives its faith with simplicity and serenity, to the extent permitted by the constitutional order, and with a vibrant faith.”
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