The upcoming beatification of an Indian nun murdered over 20 years ago, will be an inspi-ration for India’s persecuted Christians, say local church leaders. Indian Catholics are preparing for the Nov. 4 beati-fication ceremony of Sister Rani Maria Vattalil who was killed in a knife attack on Feb. 25, 1995 as she travelled on a bus near the city of Indore on her way to her home state Kerala for a vacation.
Sister Rani Maria was a member of the indigenous Franciscan Clarist Congregation in Indore Diocese situated in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. She was 41 years of age when she was murdered.
Her “beatification, obvious-ly, is going to be a great source of inspiration for the Church in India that faces persecution,” said Paul Abraham, a Catholic writer based in Madhya Pradesh where attacks on Christians are frequently reported.
Abraham, a former journalist who closely followed the cause of the heroic nun, said her life and death will become a focus for local Christian communities.
