For centuries, the role of monastic institutions has not only been to disseminate doctrines, but also to improve society by promoting virtuous behaviour as religion acts like a guiding light for the public.
Having clung to this inherited mindset, Father Adriano Pelosin, who has been in the Catholic priesthood for more than 50 years, decided to dedicate himself to helping underprivileged people across the country since he arrived in Thailand four decades ago.
Besides his role as a missionary at the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME), a society of secular priests who dedicate their lives to missionary activities, the Italian said he also worked as a social worker to help others regardless of their religion or race.
The priest has set up several centres that provide, among other things, basic necessities such as food and medicine for indigent people in several parts of Thailand including Prae, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Kamphaeng Phet and Sukhothai.
Father Adriano Pelosin has always worked with children since he arrived in Thailand over 40 years ago. Sirilak Kasetboriboon.
In Chiang Mai, villagers who travelled from outlying communities to see doctors in the central Muang district can stay overnight at a house bought by the elderly priest.
Dubbed "Homes of Hope," these centres have also been established in the ghettos of Nonthaburi's Pak Kret district, Pathum Thani, Chiang Mai and Bang Sue community in Bangkok. At these havens of help, the veteran clergyman said assistance and medical care are provided free of charge to the impoverished and elderly, children and HIV-infected people in the slums.
The main purpose of these is to hammer home the message of hope and kindle one's inner drive to be a better person, while also discouraging youngsters from becoming drug mules, prostitutes or turning to other forms of crime.
"I have to figure out how to steer them away from those illegal activities and encourage them to pursue their studies," he said.
Father Adriano said his holy mission has not been without challenges. Local mafia figures were curious about his presence in the communities they dominated. However, they did not interfere once they realised the priest was sincere in his goal of doing good, he said.
Father Adriano Pelosin visits villagers in a Rangae community in Pathum Thani's Lat Lum Kaeo district. Several activities have been held to enhance residents' livelihood and community condition. photos by Tawatchai Kemgumnerd
He said he often visited and helped youngsters who were jailed for their involvement in various illegal rackets. He persuaded them to avoid disputes or fights and helped ween them off their delinquent, and at times, violent behaviour, he said, adding that many had subsequently turned over a new leaf and are now living as responsible members of society.
While he wasn't able to steer them all onto the right path, Father Adriano said he was pleased with what he has achieved. Seeing young people turn their lives around gives him the energy to continue his mission in Thailand, he said.
When he first set foot in the country some 40 years ago, he said he weathered rough conditions to help impoverished highlanders who lived in ethnic minority communities deep in the mountains of the North.
Due to the political conflicts at the time, when a Communist insurgency was at its peak, the situation was very tense and he often found himself having to explain himself to the security authorities, he said.
"I took one trip to meet poor and disenfranchised ethnic villagers in remote areas. I lived with them, ate and slept like them with the hope that I could help them," he said.
Peaceful and sacred vibes in the Saint Marco Church in Pathum Thani's Muang district. The place is operated by Father Adriano Pelosin.
Back then he only had a rudimentary understanding of the Thai political situation, he said, but he was able to win over the local people by showing them he was there to improve the living conditions of ethnic villagers.
He said he didn't realise he had waded into potentially dangerous waters given all the political infighting and the determination of the Communist rebels, who were taking over parts of the country.
He helped provide food and medical care to people living in the highland areas, many of whom were homeless after they were evicted from their ancestral farmland, which the state authorities declared had encroached on public land.
The priest also assisted the highlanders in building weirs, and brought patients in these far-flung communities to see better-trained doctors in the city, he said.
Soon, Father Adriano grew closer to the Akha and Lahu highland communities, as well as to some of the armed ethnic groups who opened their arms to welcome him. His association with the rebels in the mountains may have earned him a special place in the communities. But it also pitted him against the authorities, who blacklisted him in the mistaken belief that was aiding the insurgency.
Father Adriano was deemed a threat to national security and stood accused of persuading the highlanders to resist the government. He every move was closely monitored by state officials for over five years before they recognised the value and integrity of of his charitable mission.
Comparing his social work in the cities to that in remote rural areas, Father Adriano said it was harder to boost the morale of the marginalised and neglected who live in big cities, where many are discouraged by the rampant materialism and constant struggle to survive.
At the Saint Marco Church in Pathum Thani, many people, regardless of their faith, routinely drop by to see Father Adriano. Many describe him as a "saviour".
Occupying one corner of the church compound is a foster home that doubles as a common area reserved for reading and playing sports for underprivileged children, as well as for people from local communities at the weekends.
The priest said he also regularly makes house calls in the ghettos of central Muang district for people who are too unwell to leave their homes. One woman aged 99 who lives in one of these slum areas but declined to give her name said Father Adriano was a "rock".
The priest said he never imagined when he was younger that he would end up working halfway around the world in Thailand to fulfill his holy duties by helping local villagers in need.
Hailing from a well-to-do farming family in the northern Italian city of Padua, the clergyman found his calling at the tender age of 11 and applied to join one of PIME's seminaries.
Headquartered in Rome, this society of secular priests and lay people now dedicate their lives to missionary activities in over 15 countries including Thailand.
The seminary marks the starting point to priesthood, with seats granted to youngsters who aspire to devote themselves to the service of the Church after they complete their primary education. Over a period of more than 10 years, they are educated about Christianity and trained to perform missionary activities.
The priest said his father bitterly opposed his decision to devote his life to God's work as his he wanted him to inherit the family farming business, but that his mother was a pillar of strength and support.
"I always wanted to be a priest since I was young. So when the chance came I applied to the seminary, where I started to learn Latin," he said.
After he graduated from seminary, he was sent to pursue further theological studies in the US for four years. He later taught at various seminaries for two years before setting his compass for Thailand.
"While I was studying in the US, I always wanted to work as a missionary to help underprivileged people in foreign countries," he said.
When PIME started operating in Thailand, he was dispatched here almost immediately. Now many local villagers and underprivileged city residents hope Father Adriano never leaves.