ACN Project of the Week – India

A chapel in the village of a vast parish The parish of the Immaculate Conception in Moharpara, in northeast India, lies close to the border with Bangladesh. It includes 31 different villages and serves a population of around 5,000 Catholics, most of them relatively young in age. The parish is vast, and many of the …

India-Church rejoicing that martyrs now on road to sainthood

An Indian archbishop has expressed delight that the Vatican has opened the cause of canonization of martyrs killed during one of the most violent outbreaks of Christian persecution this century.   The cause has been opened of Catholic catechist Kanteswar Digal and 34 others who died when Hindutva extremists attacked Christians in Kandhamal, Odisha (formerly …

India, Manipur – Pray for an end to the suffering!

A Catholic archbishop in northeast India, who has seen his diocese at the centre of a wave of deadly attacks, has issued an urgent appeal for prayers “to transform the minds of the people who are led by hatred and religious violence”. In a letter to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), Archbishop Dominic …

India: Anti-Christian violence continues to rage in Manipur

Even leaders of the Hindu nationalist party are beginning to accuse the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of complicity in what has become a widespread attack on Christians. Aid to the Church in Need (CAN) continues to monitor the situation closely. (Photo: A Catholic village burned down by a mob). The situation in the State of …

Project of the Week – India

Aid for the renovation of a convent The Handmaids of Mary, an Indigenous women’s congregation, was founded in 1944 to care for those on the margins of society, in particular the women and children of the disadvantaged ethnic minorities and the Dalits (previously known as the untouchables)—members of the lowest class in society. Today, the …

India – Government-sponsored Hindu nationalism at root of interreligious clashes in Manipur

Local Church sources have little doubt that the clashes that have pitted Hindus against Christians in the state of Manipur are part of a wider agenda to encourage the Hindu base to vote for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in upcoming elections. The fierce clashes that have been going on for weeks in the …

ACN Project of the Week – India

A vehicle for an extensive parish in a remote region   The parish of Saint Francis Xavier is situated in Lazu, a remote parish in the Diocese of Miao (Northeast India), close to the border with Myanmar. The parish has 10 outstations* and a total of around 2,500 Catholic faithful. The people of this region …

India – Supporting the formation of 25 young religious women

ACN Project of the Week The congregation of the Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod was founded in France and has been established in India ever since 1886. Today, the religious sisters are present in the capital, New Delhi, and in 17 of the federal states of the country. They are dedicated to the service …