Mission congress a boost for tribal Catholics| Cathnews India
- Tribal Catholics in a central Indian diocese say a mission congress has helped strengthen their faith in a hostile environment. “The Prabhu Yesu Mahotsav (grand festival of Lord Jesus) has made us proud to be Christian,” Kishore Khadia, a tribal Catholic told UCA News on May 3, a day after attending Jhabua diocese’s mission congress.
- Bishop Devprasad Ganawa and priests being welcomed at the mission congress
- Christians in Jhabua had faced several incidents of sectarian violence in the past, especially after the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, Indian people’s party) came to power seven years ago, he pointed out. About 8,500 Christians, mostly Catholics, attended the three-day program held at the Catholic Church compound in Thandla, a major parish in the tribal-dominated diocese in Madhya Pradesh state.
- Bishop Devprasad Ganawa of Jhabua told UCA News that the mission congress aimed to deepen people’s faith as well as educate them about their rights and duties in spreading Christ’s message. Bishop Ganawa, the diocese’s first local prelate, said the program gave people an opportunity to witness their faith in public amid threats and intimidation.
