Kathmandu (AsiaNews) - "We're working to reduce the gap between rich and poor, between educated and illiterate Nepalese, among the heard and the those who have no voice". The words spoken on 29 September by Fr. Rabin Rai, pastor of Kathmandu, are aimed primarily at young people as an instrument of change, following the line dictated by Pope Francis in July in Rio de Janeiro, at the last World Youth Day.
Fr. Rabin Rai is a priest at Assumption Cathedral (Kathmandu), the oldest in the country. On the occasion of the celebration, in front of a crowd of faithful, he spoke of faith and devotion to God as "the only means we have to overcome the forms of discrimination that are fragmenting our society". And he added: "I call on all young people and their parents to use God's message to avoid every form of oppression and injustice."
The previous day, in the same Cathedral, a meeting was held among boys of the parish and the leaders of the Asian Catholic youth movement. Most of the debate has focused on the lives of Catholics and their role within society.
The Catholic community of Nepal has over 8,000 worshippers and their number continues to grow. Local church missions are active primarily in the fields of education, social assistance and health care. Fr. Rai has asked his parishioners to "always carry a Bible with you and a cross in order to transmit the word of God and fight inequalities". All the churches of the country plan to join this mission during the month of the Rosary (October).