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Kidnappers provided medicine, never mistreated: Father Uzhunnalil

Father Thomas Uzhunnalil, who was released from his kidnappers on Sept 12, says his Islamic abductors who spoke Arabic did not mistreat him but provided him with medicine for his severe diabetic condition. Father Uzhunnalil said throughout his captivity, he celebrated Mass daily, remem-bering readings and parts of text, without liturgical texts or species to […]

Sign language Mass in Kerala hailed as first in India

Cardinal George Alencherry, the head of Kerala-based Syro-Malabar Church, led a Mass for hearing impaired people Sept. 11 assisted by priests train-ed in sign language, with local media calling it a first in India. Some 200 people, including school-going children to 83-year grandmother, attended the mass and gathering at the Church’s headquarters in Kochi. Hearing […]

Archishop Thazhath slams compulsory Sunday program on Modi’s birthday

Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) senior vice-president, Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Thrissur, has expre-ssed anxiety over the UP govern-ment’s move to make compulsory the attendance at the state’s primary schools as a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday celebrations. The archbishop of Thrissur told reporters here on Sept 9 that such a move […]

Kerala Catholic Church upset with LDF’s liquor policy

The Catholic Church in Kerala is upset with the new liquor policy of the state’s LDF govern-ment, as closed bars are being allowed to reopen despite assura-nces from CPI-M General Secretary Sitaram Yechury to the contrary, a bishop said. Expressing deep anguish, Bishop Mar Remigiose Inchana-niyil, Syro-Malabar Catholic Diocese of Thamarassery, told the media that […]

CCTV cameras inside Mumbai church divide parishioners

Catholic groups in Mumbai are pitting against one another over surveillance cameras installed in the women’s wash-room of St Michael’s Church in Mumbai’s Mahim. While two women filed a police complaint against the church authorities, accusing the priests of voyeurism and stalk-ing, Catholic association has called it a campaign to defame priests, the Hindustan Times […]

Chinese authorities ban children going to churches

Communist authorities are continuing to tighten their grip on practising Christians with at least four regional governments across China issuing notices that restrict children from joining Christian groups and attending religious activities. The ban includes turning children away from churches even if they attend with their parents and teachers. Additionally, the ban includes promises that […]

Nepal criminalizes religious conversion under new law

Religious communities in Hindu-majority Nepal need to press for changes to a new law impacting on religious freedom, which is inconsistent with the nation’s international commit-ments. While there has been ongoing discussion of some specific aspects of the law, many Christian leaders have yet to grasp its wider implications. On Aug. 9, amendments were made […]

Sri Lankan bishops condemn govt’s decision to legalize abortion

Bishops in Sri Lanka have condemned a government move to allow abortion in some circumstances. Cabinet has approved presentation of a bill to parliament to legalize abortion when a pregnancy is due to rape or if a fetus is diagnosed with a “lethal” congenital malformation. The Sri Lankan bishops’ conference stressed that the church believes […]