St Roch's Church, Kanyakumari, Vavathurai, India

The Church of Mae de Deus, Goa, India

Immaculate Conception Church, Goa, India

God's kindness

“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.” Mother Teresa

Pope approves Mother Teresa sainthood

Mother Teresa, celebrated for her work with the poor in the Indian city of Kolkata, is expected to be canonised as part of the Pope's Jubilee Year of Mercy.

(http://www.news.va/en/news/blessed-teresa-of-calcutta-to-be-made-a-saint)

Indian among 17 to advance on sainthood track

Father Joseph Vithayathi, one of the founders of the Sisters of the Holy Family congregation, has been declared a venerable, the second in the four-stage canonization process.

On December 14, Pope Francis authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate decrees recognizing the heroic virtues of Father Vithayathil and 16 others from various parts of the world.

(http://mattersindia.com/2015/12/indian-among-17-to-advance-on-sainthood-track/)

Eucharistic meet mourns Paris carnage

Cardinal Oswald Gracias invites the delegates to spend a few moments of silence to pray for the victims of the terrorist attack in Paris (Facebook photo)

 

Mumbai: Friday’s carnage in Paris cast a shadow over the ongoing Eucharistic Congress in Goregaon as well.

Archbishop Oswald Cardinal Gracias, of of Bombay  led the 850 delegates in observing a few moments of silence to pray for the victims who perished in the serial attacks.

Later in the evening, a mass pilgrimage was undertaken to the shrine of Our Lady of Vailankanni in Uttan, and here too, the congregation mourned the innocent loss of lives.

(http://mattersindia.com/eucharistic-meet-mourns-paris-carnage/)

Agarathala diocese witnesses a record gathering

Eucharistic Procession at Agarthala diocese

Agartala 8 Nov, 2015: More than nine thousand faithful from all parts of the state converged at Agartala today to be part of the The 7th Annual Eucharistic Procession, making it a record of sorts in the 19 year old diocese.

(http://mattersindia.com/agarathala-diocese-witness-a-record-gathering-for-eucharistic-procession/)

Agartala

(http://www.agartaladiocese.org/)

Saint Alphonsa Muttathupadathu

Saint Alphonsa Muttathupadathu, F.C.C., was a Syro-Malabar Catholic Franciscan Religious Sister who is now honored as a saint. She is the first person of India to be canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church and the first canonized saint of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church. Claims of her miraculous intervention began almost immediately upon her death, many involving children of the convent school where she taught, of the straightening of clubbed feet; she too lived with deformed feet.

India - 450-year-old Goa Church gets special postal cover

India:  A special commemorative postal cover was launched on May 24 to commemorate the completion of 450 years of Holy Spirit Church in Margao in the western Indian state of Goa.

Retired high court justice Eurico Santana Da Silva launched the postal cover on the occasion of the annual feast celebration in the presence of the Goa postmaster general Charles Lobo, Margao deanery in-charge Fr Carmo Martins, parish priest Fr Avinash Rebelo and other priests. A symbolic dove and white balloons were released on the occasion.

Lobo expressed his delight in releasing this special postal cover that will now be featured in the philately exhibitions all over the world.

Remarking that this special postal cover will be available for sale next Sunday at the church as well as at the Margao post office, the postmaster general termed it a rare collector's item since it bore a special pictorial cancellation stamp of a dove instead of the usual date and place cancellation stamp.

In his welcome address, Fr Rebello narrated the history of the parish church that was built by the Jesuits in the 16th century and is now the largest parish church in Goa with approximately 15,000 Catholics and 3,500 families.

The parish priest urged his parishioners to actively participate in the various programmes such as inter-religious dialogues, social, cultural and sports that have been planned to celebrate the multi-centennial anniversary of the church structure.

(http://www.ucanindia.in/news/450yearold-goa-church-gets-special-postal-cover/29041/daily)

Girl scores high in exam, working in five houses

Bengaluru: Shalini has scored 84 percent in her 12th grade exam in Karnataka. Nothing unusual, except that the 17-year-old girl wrote the exam after working as a help in five houses.

In addition to studying for her exams, Shalini cleaned houses to add to her family’s income.

“I used to clean clothes, clean utensils and put rangolis (decorative motifs on the floor),” she told NDTV in fluent English. Her ambition is to become the first engineer in her family.

Shalini’s father Armugam was disabled in an accident and does not work anymore. Her mother Vijaya, the main bread earner, has to juggle her cleaning jobs with hospital duties. Shalini’s younger brother Surya has been diagnosed with blood cancer and is in hospital.

Shalini had no choice but to continue working while preparing for her exams.

Asked how she managed to get any studying done, the teenager says: “I woke up at 4:30 am, went to a house to put Rangoli, that was till 5:30, then I mopped and cleaned at another house till 7:30, then went to another house to wash clothes and clean utensils till 9, then I studied, had breakfast, went to another house to wash clothes, then another house to clean utensils, then studied at night.”

(http://mattersindia.com/girl-scores-high-in-exam-working-in-five-houses/)

The Best Indian Catholic Posts - Pray for those who lose temper

 

(http://errolsj.blogspot.in/2015/05/pray-for_17.html)

Sé Cathedral of Santa Catarina, Archdiocese of Goa

 

The Sé Cathedral of Santa Catarina, known as Se Cathedral, is the cathedral of the Latin Rite Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Goa and Daman and the seat of the Patriarch of the East Indies. Located in Old Goa, India, the largest church in India[citation needed] is dedicated to Catherine of Alexandria. It is one of the oldest and most celebrated religious buildings in Goa and is one of the largest churches in Asia.

Pope Francis with Syro-Malankara Catholic Church

The Best Indian Catholic Posts - "Yoga is not just a work out; it is a work in"

“All kinds of yoga are being popularised in Western countries these days, and some of them do present yoga through a Hindu religious lens,” he said. “Most, however, have just reduced yoga to acrobatics. But yoga is not just a work out – it is a work in.”

(http://kripafoundation.blogspot.in/2015/04/twists-of-faith-in-mumbai-fr-joe.html)

India - Christian Medical College team camps in Nepal

This will be the first team that the institution plans to send to Nepal. More teams will follow depending on the need. A five-member team of two doctors and three nurses from Christian Medical College (CMC) in Vellore has arrived in Nepal to camp at one of the worst-affected districts of Dhading.

(http://www.ucanindia.in/news/christian-medical-college-team-camps-in-nepal/28889/daily)

India - Solidarity movement to organize retreat for bishops

Indore — The Universal Solidarity Movement (USM), which is committed to promote peace and harmony, plans to organize a retreat for bishops.

USM national coordinator Fr. Varghese Alengaden says the retreat is only for bishops because of the great influence they have in their dioceses and the impact they can make both within the Church and in society. Those who are open to new ways will enrich themselves much from this leadership retreat, he claimed.

“Surely this is not a traditional retreat. It is fully based on the life and teachings of Christ. It is an opportunity to explore new possibilities,” Father Alengaden added.

The retreat is scheduled for August 18-25 at Indore, the commercial capital of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

Fr. Jacob Peenickaparampbil, a member of Carmelites of Mary Immaculate, will join Fr Alengaden as the retreat preachers. The two priests have conducted many retreats and seminars for several groups of priests and religious across the country.

The central theme of the retreat is ‘what would Jesus do if he were present today?’ The first two days will be spent for an exclusive pilgrimage with Christ with the help of the famous film ‘Jesus of Nazareth’ by Franco Zeffirelli.

(http://mattersindia.com/solidarity-movement-to-organize-retreat-for-bishops/)

Cardinal Cleemis echoes Church’s service to Nepal quake victims

Vatican City — Cardinal Mar Baselios Cleemis Thottunkal, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), issued an appeal on behalf of the Catholic Church of India to help the quake victims in Nepal. The Cardinal has expressed solidarity and support for quake victims and made an plea to the bishops, priests, and men and women religious to encourage the community of the faithful, public institutions and people of good will to make voluntary contributions to this humanitarian emergency, reported Vatican Radio .
For several days, Caritas India has been on the ground, involved in rescue and recovery. The Indian Catholic Church was among the first to express its solidarity to the people of Nepal, offering prayers and condolences to all those who lost loved ones and property to the quake.
More than ten days after the quake, many people are still living out in the open, not even a tent over their heads. Drinking water is also in short supply and there is rising concern about the impact of possible epidemics on the most vulnerable, especially children.

(http://mattersindia.com/cardinal-cleemis-echoes-churchs-service-to-nepal-quake-victims/)

Indian Jesuit to address Caritas summit on inequalities

New Delhi: A leading Jesuit activist from India is among those invited to help the worldwide Caritas organization in its search for a “poor Church for the poor.”

Fr Cedric Prakash will address more than 400 Caritas delegates, Vatican representatives, NGOs and religious leaders, who are expected in Rome for the May 12-17 General Assembly of the Catholic Church’s major social wing.

The quadrennial assembly will begin with a special Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica. The delegates then move to Rome’s Domus Mariae for the assembly where speakers such as Cardinal Peter Turkson, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and theologian Dominican Father Gustavo Gutierrez will address them.

Caritas Internationalis President, Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga, will open the event which focuses on the theme: “One Human Family, Caring for Creation.”

Fr Prakash, who directs Prashant (tranquility), a center for human rights, justice and peace in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, will talk on how to reduce inequalities and achieve a really sustainable development during a two-hour session at 3 pm on May 13.

During the six days the assembly will study how growing inequalities are posing a challenge to the human family and the effects of climate change on development.

(http://mattersindia.com/indian-jesuit-to-address-caritas-summit-on-inequalities/)