Kathmandu (AsiaNews) –Lumbini, the “cradle of Buddha”, was the setting for a meeting of Asia’s Catholic Journalists promoted by the Union of International Catholic Press. Participants were drawn across the five continents and at the end of the working session prayed for peace in Nepal.
Two days continuous workshops discussed the issues of religion and law, and the life of minorities in Nepal. Anto Akkara, from India, says: “Nepal seems a small country but it has tremendous diversity and which is the greatest property of Nepal. This multiplicity in unity is a great lesson for the world regarding caste, religion and culture”. Rosalina Costa, Bengalese, adds: “The program enlightened about the different aspects of Nepal. This helped me a lot to understand about the country and practices going on here”.
For the final prayer, participants chose to stop for a moments reflection before the statue of Buddha which towers over Lumbini. Fr. Parimol Palma, from Bangladesh, said: “Let us pray for Nepal and for its people, so that they may find peace through love, as Christ teaches”.