Odisha soldier who converted is proud of his faith in Jesus Christ
Naba Kishore Patra is a catechist in the diocese of Balasore. Born and raised in a Hindu family, he married a Catholic woman, who introduced him to the Christian faith. Vincentian priests and nuns nurtured the seed of his faith. Now he wants "to work hard for the mission".
Balasore (AsiaNews) – "I am proud of my faith in Jesus Christ and I am grateful to my wife for encouraging me to accept the Catholic faith,” said Naba Kishore Patra, a retired soldier who spoke to AsiaNews.
A member of St Paul’s Parish in of Hatigarh, diocese of Balasore (Odisha), Naba was born into a Hindu family. He converted to Christianity after he got married. After retirement, he decided to dedicate his life to the parish, where he serves as a catechist.
Naba, 60, is the last of five children. He and his four older brothers – Harilal, Motilal, Jarilal and Sukhlal – were raised as Hindu. His name means "new." He is sure that "God had a plan that inspired my parents to give me that name."
After high school, he joined the military. Later, his family arranged his marriage to Shantilata, a Catholic woman who had been adopted by the late Mgr Jacob Vadakkaveetil CM, the former bishop of the diocese.
For him, the "greatest blessing was marrying a Catholic woman, who instilled in me the faith. Afterwards, priests and nuns nurtured that seed and today I am proud to be a catechist."
Naba converted to Christianity thanks to his wife, and with the spiritual support of priests of the Congregation of the Mission and the Daughters of Charity (the male and female societies of apostolic life founded by Saint Vincent de Paul).
He served in the military for 26 years, going from private to junior commissioner officer. For him, "All this happened thanks to God's blessing.”
In 2001 he left the forces and decided to follow God's "call to work for evangelisation".
After training for a semester for four consecutive years (12 months in total), "I became a full-time catechist. This period allowed me to be well trained, and provided me with the qualities needed to bring the word of God to different places and among different people."
His "rules" of missionary work are: "Dedication to prayer and devotion, availability to serve, ability to forgive and sacrifice for the good of others, read the Bible every day, build good relations between Christians and believers of other religions, have the courage to live a Christian life, attend Mass every day, and live in simplicity and humility."
"Christ is in me, he is my pride," Naba noted. For this reason, his advice to other catechists is "to work hard for the mission. If we have faith in God, he will bless our missionary work."
.png)
