A Marxist politician in a southern Indian state has declined the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2022 reportedly under party pressure.
The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation had selected K.K. Shailaja, former health minister of Kerala state, for the 64th Magsaysay award for her commitment and service towards ensuring an accessible public health system and effectively managing the Nipah and Covid-19 outbreaks in the state. The award, a prestigious international honour, is regarded as the Asian equivalent of the Nobel Prize. It is named after Ramon Magsaysay, the seventh president of Philippines president, who died in a plane crash in March 1957. If Shailaja had accepted the award, she would have become the first woman from Kerala to receive Magsaysay. Under her tenure as the health minister, Kerala had won global recognition for its effective handling of the Nipah outbreak and the Covid pandemic.

On Aug. 27, Pope Francis  created  21 new cardinals at a consistory at the Vatican. The new cardinals include the first Indian cardinal from the socially poor Dalit community–Abp Anthony Poola of Hyderabad.
His appointment is seen as historical as it recognizes the Dalit Christian community, which continues to suffer caste discrimination within the Catholic Church.
The appointment of a Dalit as cardinal comes after three decades of public struggle by Dalit Christians against continuing caste discrimination and domination. For the past four years, they have been demanding to appoint Dalit bishops, especially in the Archdiocese of Pondicherry-Cuddalore. However, it has been prevented till now.
The struggles led by Dalit groups have been widely reported in recent times by some of the global Catholic media. And, this gesture of Pope Francis comes as a ray of hope for Dalit Christians. It also vindicates their struggle for justice and equality.
Caste discrimination against the Dalits started in the early days of Christianity in India. The early Provincial Councils of Goa in 1567, 1585, and 1606, forbade low castes and untouchables from joining seminaries.
The hierarchy continues that legacy even after several centuries.
“The appointment of a Dalit cardinal is a milestone in the history of the Church, particularly for Dalit Christians.”
For instance, when the first Dalit archbishop — Marampudi Joji of Hyderabad — was appointed two decades ago, several top Church leaders in India openly criticized the Vatican. “Rome is being taken for a ride. Rome does not know the ground realities,” said outgoing archbishop Samineni Arulappa of Hyderabad.
“If I say something, it will be interpreted as oppressing the oppressed, meaning the Dalits. Ninety-five percent of Hyderabad archdiocese’s priests oppose the appointment of Archbishop M. Joji. I give my successor less than five years in his new post. He has not remained more than three to four years in one place.” (UCA News, April 9, 2000)
Ironically, the first Dalit cardinal also comes from Hyderabad, where the first Dalit archbishop was installed 22 years ago.

The protest by Catholic fishing communities seeking compensation from a multi-billion-dollar port project has entered its second month with their arch-bishop threatening to move his “stay and prayer” action to the protest venue in southern India.
“My stay and prayer will be moved to the protest venue from the archbishop’s house if required,” Archbishop Thomas Netto of Trivandrum said while addressing protesters in Kerala’s state capital on Aug. 23, as the protest entered its 34th day.
Thousands of fisherfolk under the leadership of archdiocesan bishops and priests have been protesting since July 20 against the multi-billion-dollar Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone on the coast of Vizhinjam.
They say the port endangers the livelihoods of fisher families, has displaced thousands of people and adversely affected the environment and caused coastal erosion.
The state government has ignored their demands which include suspending the project to study its environmental and social impact, rehabilitation of displaced people and employment for those who lost their livelihood and compensation for all who suffered damage.
“Fishermen and the Christian community believe Christ and the cross as everything in their lives. We know Christ died at the age of 33.  His death brought liberation for humanity. We fight for justice trusting in Christ. We have nothing to lose,” said Arch-bishop Netto, a key figure in the protest who hails from a local parish.
“We are only asking the government to rehabilitate those who lost their houses.”
He announced the decision to intensify the agitation until the government accepts their demands. “I am ready to sacrifice my life for my people,” the arch-bishop said amid thunderous applause.

A film presenting the life of St. Teresa of Calcutta, commonly referred to as Mother Teresa, will be premiering in theaters for two days in October.
In theaters Oct. 3-4, “Mother Teresa: No Greater Love” is airing in more than 960 locations across the United States. The film was produced by the Knights of Columbus, the world’s largest Catholic fraternal organization.
The film displays the life of the 20th-century saint and the impact both she and her Missionaries of Charity have had on the people they have served throughout the world. The Missionaries of Charity are a religious community dedicated to serving the poorest in society.
“The Missionaries of Charity are not publicity seekers,” David Naglieri, director of the film, told. “So, to have the opportunity to highlight the incredible work they do and the way that they live the Gospel, I think this story can positively impact people’s lives and draw them closer to their faith.”
Filmed on five continents, the documentary features “incredible access” to the apostolates run by the Missionaries of Charity, Naglieri said.
One of his favourite parts of the film includes footage in Kenya, where the Missionaries of Charity are caring for children with deformities and serious developmental disabilities.
The scene includes a Missionary of Charity sister feeding a baby with hydrocephalus, a condition in which fluid builds up in the brain.
“To see these children … and just the love and the care for that child was just something that deeply moved me,” he said.
“I think what sets this film apart is the fact that it comes 25 years after her death,” Naglieri said. “So it’s the first film that has had the chance to completely soak in her life, her legacy, and also deal with some of the information and revelations of Mother Teresa that came later.”

The Syro-Malabar Church on August 25 announced the appointment of three auxiliary bishops for the larger of the two Oriental Catholic rites in India.
It also accepted the resignation of Auxiliary Bishop Jacob Muricken of Palai, who wants to lead an ascetic life.
Cardinal George Alencherry, who heads the Church as its Major Archbishop, appoint-ed Father Alex Tharamangalam as the auxiliary bishop of the eparchy of Mananthavady and Fathers Joseph Kollamparambil and Thomas Padiyath as auxiliaries of the eparchy of Shamshabad.
The announcement was made during the closing ceremony of second session of the Church’s 30th Synod of Bishops, after obtaining the assent of Pope Francis through the Apostolic Nuncio.
Since Tharamangalam is in Germany, he could not be present on the occasion. The other two were given the insignia by Cardinal Alencherry together with Bishop Raphael Thattil Shamshabad.
With the three new prelates, the Church has a total of 65 bishops, retired as well as active.
Bishop-designate Tharamangalam, a priest of the archdiocese of Thalassery, was born in 1958. He began his priestly forma-tion in the minor Seminary at Thalassery in 1973 and was ordained a priest on January 1, 1983. He holds a doctorate in philosophy from the Gregorian University, Rome.
Bishop-elect Kollamparambil, who was born in 1955, began his priestly training at the minor seminary of Palai diocese. He was ordained a priest on December 18, 198. He has served in several parishes of Palai diocese. Having secured a Master’s from St. Thomas College, Palai, he served as a lecturer, bursar and warden of the college hostel.
Bishop-elect Padiyath, a priest from the archdiocese of Changanacherry, was born in 1969. He entered the minor seminary in 1984 and was ordained a priest on December 29, 1994. He started his priestly ministry as the assistant vicar in Athirampuzha parish and secretary to Archbishop Joseph Powathil of Changnacherry. He has a doctorate in philosophy and a Master’s in theology from the University of Leuven, Belgium. He served as a professor at Good Shepherd Major Se-minary, Kunnoth in Kannur district. He has taught in several major seminaries and In-stitutions. He is currently serving as Syncellus in the Archeparchy of Changanacherry.

The Vatican has appointed an apostolic administrator for an Eastern-rite archdiocese in southern India where a decades-old liturgical dispute continues with the change in leadership.
The Vatican named Archbishop Andrews Thazhath, an expert in the Eastern Catholic Code of Canon Law, to replace Archbishop Antony Kariyil, metropolitan vicar of Ernakulam-Angamaly Archdiocese.
Kariyil was asked to resign by the Vatican for defying the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church’s supreme synod in the liturgical dispute. Thazhath is reportedly tasked to end the dispute and implement liturgical unity by making priests of the archdiocese accept a liturgical formula approved by the Bishops’ synod.
According to the synod-approved form, the Mass celebrant turns to the altar during the eucharistic prayer, a move archdiocesan priests refuse to accept; they want to continue facing the congregation throughout the Mass.
Father Kuriakose Mundadan, representing archdiocesan priests, told that the priests and the laity in the archdiocese continue to demand Mass be celebrated in the traditional way, with the priest facing the congregation throughout.
“The change in leadership does not mean that we have changed our stand,” said Mundadan. “We have conveyed our stand to the new administrator.”
Thazhath met with priests’ representatives soon after he took charge.
Cardinal George Alencherry, head of the Eastern rite Syro-Malabar Church, believes “the process to find a solution to the dispute has begun” with the appointment of a new administrator.
“The apostolic administrator will fix a date and begin to implement” celebration of the synod-approved Mass, Alencherry told the media, but said he was not sure when “it will happen.”
Church officials familiar with the developments say winning over priests and laity will be a huge task, as the liturgical dispute had become an emotional issue.

A whopping 85% of children in India have reported being cyberbullied as well as having cyberbullied someone, according to a report released by computer security soft-ware company McAfee.
The India-centric findings are part of company’s global report titled ‘Cyberbullying in Plain Sight,’ a 10-country survey. It was conducted between June 15 and July 5, covering 11,687 parents and their children.
McAfee also claimed that the survey uncovered a startling fact – that many children take part in cyberbullying often without realizing their behavior for what it is, while parents struggle to keep up.
“Cyberbullying in India reaches alarming highs as more than 1 in 3 kids face cyber racism, sexual harassment, and threats of physical harm as early as at the age of 10 – making India the number 1 nation for reported cyberbullying in the world,” McAfee Chief Product Officer Gagan Singh said in the report.
It further said that children in India witness and experience the maximum cyber-bullying on almost every social media and messaging platform.
“85% of Indian children reported being cyberbullied as well as having cyberbullied someone else at rates well over twice the international average,” the report said.
Further, 45% of these children said they hide their cyber bullying experiences from parents, perhaps due to the relative absence of conversation.
In a release, McAfee explained the methodology it adopted for the survey, which was conducted in association with market research company MSI-ACI. The parents of children in the age group 10 and 18 were invited through e-mail to fill an online questionnaire.
The parents were first asked if their children were available to complete a survey. If yes, the parent was asked to complete a few questions themselves before turning over the survey to their child.
The 10 countries where survey was conducted are: United States, United King-dom, France, Germany, Australia, India, Canada, Japan, Brazil and Mexico.
Around 85% children in India have reported being cyberbullied and it is the highest in the world, according to a new survey released by global computer security firm McAfee Corp Monday.
Titled ‘Cyberbullying in Plain Sight’, the report is based on a 10-country survey to uncover new and “consequential trends” regarding cyberbullying.
The survey also noted that the number of Indian children reported to have cyberbullied someone is also twice the international average. Around 45% children in India said they cyberbullied a stranger, compared to 17% worldwide and 48% said they cyber-bullied someone they know, versus 21% of kids in other countries.
The top three forms of cyberbullying reported in India were spreading false rumours (39%), being excluded from groups or conversations (35%) and name calling (34%).

Cardinal Oswald Gracias, one of Pope Francis’ closest advisers, has denied reports that he sought to intervene in the case of an Indian Bishop accused of secretly fathering a child.
In a video posted online August 7, Cardinal Gracias, who is the head of the Catholic Church in India, rebutted allegations he had arranged for Bishop Kannikadass Antony William of My-sore to take a paternity test at a Catholic hospital in order to control the outcome of the test results.
Cardinal Gracias said an audio clip from a two-year-old conversation with Bishop William, which has attracted attention among Indian Catholics in recent weeks, had been “mischievously edited to give the impression that there was collusion between Bishop William and myself for a cover-up.”
In the clip of the leaked phone call, which was promoted by the rightwing website Church Militant, the cardinal could apparently be heard telling Bishop William that Gracias would arrange for the paternity test to be conducted at a Catholic hospital “so we can control the media, control the doctors, control the publicity given to the whole thing.”
However, in his statement on August 7, Cardinal Gracias said he “categorically, emphatically and totally” denied that he had said or suggested that they could control the outcome of the test.
“At no time in the conversation or otherwise have I suggest-ed any action that would be illegal or bring disrepute to the church,” said the cardinal, who has led the Bombay Archdiocese since 2006 and has served as a member of Pope Francis’ influential Council of Cardinals since the group’s creation in 2013.

More than 50,000 Indian Syro-Malabar Catholics attended a protest in the southwestern city of Kochi on Sunday, demonstrating against changes that would have priests face east during parts of local Syro-Malabar Eucharistic liturgies, and opposing the recent resignation of Archbishop Antony Kariyil.
Protest Aug. 7 outside Kaloor Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium.
The nearly two-hour protest at the Kaloor Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium drew priests and laity from across the Ernakulam-Angamaly Syro-Malabar archdiocese, according to local media reports. Organizers said more than 320 parishes were represented, along with other nearby dioceses.
Some protesters held signs in Italian, in a possible attempt to attract Vatican attention.
A priest at the demonstration told The Pillar that the event was called the “Great gathering for the protection of Faith.”
Demonstrators have four demands, he said:
• They want to keep the liturgy in the diocese versus populum – with the priest facing the people, rather than facing liturgical east.
• They are also calling for financial restitution following a controversial sale of archdiocesan land.
• They want their Church’s senior officials to listen to the opinions of the laity on controversial matters.
• And they are calling for justice for Archbishop Antony Kariyil, who says he was forced by the Vatican to resign, without any reason given.
The protest comes amid a fierce ongoing debate over whether to implement a uniform mo-de of celebrating the Syro-Malabar Church’s Eucharistic liturgy, known as the Holy Qurbana.

An archbishop of Eastern Rite Syro-Malabar Church re-signed following the Vatican’s directions. No reason were given. It may be part of the programme Vatican initiates dealing with land sale issue as well as liurgial difference of view.
Archbishop Antony Kariyil, the vicar of the major arch-bishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly archdiocese in southern Kerala state resigned on July 26, six days after he was summoned to the Vatican nunciature in New Delhi.
The nuncio issued a letter asking him to immediately tender his resignation, said archdiocesan officials from the eastern rite Syro-Malabar Church.
Archbishop Kariyil initially refused as no valid reason was cited for his resignation. He handed over a letter to the nuncio seeking to apprise Pope Francis about the developments, officials added.
The resignation comes after Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, the nuncio to India, arrived at the Arch-bishop’s House on July 26 and held a discussion with Archbishop Kariyil.
As the news spread, a section of the archdiocesan priests held an emergency meeting at the Archbishop’s House and passed a resolution recording their opposition to the Vatican emissary forcefully demanding the resignation of Archbishop Kariyil.
“The Archeparchy showed tremendous unity, Christian witness and progress during the tenure of Mar Kariyil compared to the past many years. He is a true pastor who knows the hearts and minds of his flock,” the resolution by the priests stated.
Archbishop Kariyil, it said, was a bishop who was fully committed to Jesus, the Word of God and the Roman Pontiff and never violated any canon or civil laws.
“Any attempt to jeopardize his bishopric will prove detrimental to Catholic communion and harmony,” they warned.