Varanasi (AsiaNews) - They came in 15 thousand and more to Varanasi to attend the annual meeting of the movement Khrist Bhakta, the devotees of Christ. They are Christians, Hindus and Muslims of different social castes, all united by devotion to Jesus (see AsiaNews, 20/10/2009, "Khrist Bhakta: tens of thousands of Hindus fascinated by Christ")  

The annual Satsang, the three days of prayer which is now in its tenth year,  gathers people from the Indian states of Orissa, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh to the Ashram of Matridham. Leading the meeting were the priests of the Indian Missionary Society (IMS) who have lived and worked in the holy city of Hinduism for over 15 years.

The meeting, which runs until 15 November, was opened yesterday by  Msgr. Patrick D'Souza, Bishop Emeritus of Varanasi. This years Satsang is characterized by two particular facts: the witness of some laymen who follow the movement for some years and an interfaith prayer service with the participation of Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh and Muslim leaders.  

Among the laity of Khrist Bhakta called to animate the moments of prayer and tell their story there are people from different regions and religious cultures.  

Ashok Bhai is a young worker from a Hindu family of Uttaranchal in northern India. Five years ago, the encounter with Jesus saved him from despair that led him to the brink of suicide. In 2005 he met the Khrist Bhakta and since then is a regular visitor to the ashram in Varanasi.

Sadhu Nityanand, is a young man born into a wealthy Brahmin family of Madhya Pradesh. Raised in the Hindu tradition he encountered Christianity during higher education at Ramjas College Delhi Nitesh. On joining the Evangelical Church he was driven from his home by his family and since then has become an itinerant preacher.  

Fr. Anil Dev, IMS, and the priest responsible for the movement, tells AsiaNews that "the intent of the annual Satsang is to reaffirm faith for Khrist Bhaktas" and that the meeting this year, "provides theological reflections on the theme 'Christ , family and ecology '".  

The inter-religious meeting, also promoted in previous editions of the Satsang, is scheduled for this morning. It will have as its main theme the integrity of creation and provides for prayers for the protection of people from many natural disasters that befall India every year killing people and aggravating the conditions of poverty in which hundreds of thousands of people are already living.