Nirmala Carvalho

From July 26 to 28 the Indian Church gathers in Bengaluru to draft the synthesis that will be sent to Rome after diocesan reflections on the synodal journey. Conversion, new social challenges and the struggle to really listen to the laity and youth: some voices from the path taken so far.

The 64-year-old, who hails from Odisha, was elected by a wide margin with the support of the BJP. Archbishop Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar told AsiaNews that he hopes she “will raise her voice for tribals and uphold constitutional values.”

Dalits protest in the village of Ayyampatty on the eve of the feast day of St Mary Magdalene, the local patron saint. Dalit Catholics are excluded from the celebrations and forced to have a separate cemetery. A Dalit man threatens to go before the Madras High Court if things are not rectified.

In response to a petition by an unmarried woman, the court noted that allowing an abortion "would be equivalent to killing the fetus”. As an alternative, it said the woman should be allowed to give birth anonymously and give the child up for adoption. Meanwhile, the first National March for Life planned for New Delhi on 10 August will mark the anniversary of the law legalising abortion in 1971.

Two more cases instigated by Hindu fundamentalists over simple prayer gatherings in Varanasi and Lakhimpur. Fr Pereira: "The ruling BJP party wants people's minds to be occupied by these things, so as not to see the rise in prices, corruption, lack of work".

Only three of the 14 statues that comprise the Way of the Cross were spared. The local faithful held a silent protest to denounce the lack of progress in the investigation. Fr Kishore Ekka, parish priest of Dongargarh. "I could not speak for the pain".

A few days ago, the clergyman acted as "father" at the wedding of a Hindu girl he took in at his ashram when she was two years old. For almost 30 years, Fr Kannamplakal, a member of the Blessed Sacrament, has been opening the doors of the Divyahruday Ashram in Chennaipara to those left on their own. “I realised that if I focus on the goodness of each person, the Lord will give me everything,” he said.

On the first anniversary of the death of the Jesuit prostrated by almost nine months of unjust imprisonment for his commitment in defence of the tribals of Jharkhand, the memory of Sr Beena who assisted him in hospital in the last weeks of his life: "There was a sense of joy in his struggle. He encouraged me to renew my daily commitment as a doctor for the people of the suburbs and the marginalised".

On 3 July, feast day of Saint Thomas, Indian Christians of all denominations celebrate a day to remember that Christianity is not a foreign religion in their country. This year takes on a special significance since it is the 1,950th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Apostle in Chennai. “May Saint Thomas the Apostle help us to be strong in our faith,” said Archbishop Poola, chosen by Pope Francis to be a new cardinal.

Archbishop Moolachira makes an appeal. So far, some 31,000 people have been affected by the floods in 25 districts with 159 reported deaths. Displaced people have found shelter in Catholic parishes, schools and other facilities. The aid has gone especially where government assistance has not yet arrived.

The victim was attacked in his shop for defending on social media a BJP politician who sparked a row after making negative comments about the prophet Mohammed on TV. For Bishop Ganawa, Christians “stand for religious tolerance, dialogue and peaceful co-existence among all communities. I pray that good sense will prevail among us all.”

The archbishop of Bangalore and other Christian groups filed a plea, accepted by the Supreme Court, noting that in May alone, 57 attacks were reported on places of worship and other Church-related facilities. The “government machinery [. . .] can control the fringe elements,” Archbishop Peter Machado told AsiaNews.