The Catholic Church in Odisha has observed the 23rd anniversary of the martyrdom of Father Arul Doss.
Father Doss, a priest of Balasore diocese, was killed by Hindu radicals on Sept. 2, 1999, in a remote village parish in Mayurbhanj district of the eastern Indian state.
More than 3.000 people, along with 30 priests and some 50 nuns and brothers, from Balasore and neighboring dioceses paid homage to the martyr at Jambani village that comes under Bagdapha parish.
Archbishop John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, head of the Odisha Church, in his homily said the large gathering proved the famous saying of Tertullian, “The blood of the Martyr is the seed of the Church.”
Archbishop Barwa paying tribute to Fr Arul Doss The Di-vine Word prelate also reminded the faithful the Jesus was victo-rious against the evil one. “We as His followers also will be able to overcome all evils by remaining steadfast to our Lord. We will never be defeated as long as we are with and in the Lord. Let’s therefore continue to practice and express our faith boldly, freely and share our faith with others so that one day they also will know Christ the redeemer.”
Father Jadu Marandi, former vicar general of Balasore and the current parish priest hailed Father Doss as a champion of the poor, needy and underprivileged Ho people. “Father Arul Doss has become a medium of God’s abundance blessings for the people of Odisha,” he added.