Catholics of Dalit origin in a diocese in Tamil Nadu state in southern India have sought the intervention of the Church and civil authorities to end the discriminatory practices against them in their parish. Some 25 of their leaders joined for a day-long hunger strike in front of the Thiruchirappaly district’s headquarters on July 21, alleging their people were being excluded from the annual feast at their St. Mary Magdalene parish Church at Kottapalayam. Most of the parish’s 500 fami-lies come from a Dalit (for-merly considered untouchable) background and are part of the Diocese of Kumbakonam. “We were not allowed to participate in the July 14-22 festivities, which involve pulling decorated chariots on streets in the villages adjacent to the church,” said P. Sandandorai, president of the National Council of Dalit Christian’s Tamil Nadu unit. The chariot procession passes through upper-caste Hindu neighborhoods, but not in the localities where Dalit Catholics live, Sandandorai, a lawyer, told on July 24.
“We are not given equal treatment in our church, not allowed to participate in any activities, not even in the donation drive for the festivities,” he lamented. Sandandorai further alleged that the parish also does not include the Dalit Catholics in the decision-making process. “No parish council was formed as the influential Catholics want to keep out the Dalits,” he added.
Spanish bishops speak out after leaks of their meeting with Leo XIV
The executive committee of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference, (CEE, by its Spanish acronym) meeting in Madrid this week, issued an official statement regarding the leaks
