More than 5 thousand faithful participated in the inauguration of the Marian place of worship. A joyous occasion for a community that still bears the marks of the 2008 anti-Christian pogroms unleashed by Hindu fundamentalists. And a way to heal wounds and traumas especially in the little ones.
Kandhamal () – Christians are celebrating in the diocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, in the Indian state of Orissa, for the inauguration of a new sanctuary dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima. About 5,000 faithful, four priests and as many religious attended the inauguration on May 13. The place of worship is in the area where many Christians had taken refuge in 2008 during the Kandhamal pogroms, which left more than 100 dead and 50,000 displaced.
The Marian sanctuary of Sugadabadi, explains to Bijay Mallick, one of the animators of the novena of prayer and meditation prior to the opening, between May 4 and 12, is “an occasion of great joy”. “If we are alive and safe – he continues – it is because the Virgin Mary protected us from the fundamentalists and from those who persecuted us in 2008” and because the Virgin “is stronger than the threats of the Hindu fundamentalists”.
Today, adds Sagar Digal, begins “the feast of Our Lady of Fatima whose intercession has brought us closer to God and strengthened our faith in Jesus.” Christians in the area, continues Peter Digal, have experienced traumatic moments of “psychological pain and agony, especially the little ones” and that horror is a reminder of how “cruel Hindu fundamentalism is towards Christians.”
The Catholic village of Sugadabadi is made up of 120 families who still carry in their memory the drama they experienced almost 15 years ago, with fires, devastation, deaths and more than 50,000 people who fled into the jungle despite the threat of the wild animals. But today is a time for celebration, and the priests and nuns lead the community to the new Marian place of worship accompanied by dances, songs, hymns and prayers. The shrine was blessed by Fr Pradosh Chandran Nayak, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar. “The celebration of the feast of Our Lady of Fatima in the new sanctuary – stressed the priest – reveals our deep faith in God and the power of intercession of Mary”.
“When we pray in the sanctuary we receive peace of mind, enlightenment, guidance and guidance. “God is one, but the paths are different. We need each other,” concludes Jharana Pradhan, the woman who worked tirelessly and fearlessly to turn this mountain into a sanctuary, “despite our differences in faith.”
