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The Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM), better known as the "Sisters of Loreto”, are currently celebrating 175 years of their presence in South Asia. "With immense gratitude to God we celebrate the arrival in India of the first sisters, who 175 years ago brought the love of God", Sister Anita M. Braganza, head of the religious Province of South Asia told Vatican’s Fides news agency. Twelve brave Irish women, that included 7 nuns and 5 postulants, set sail from Ireland, where the congregation was founded in 1609 by the Englishwoman Mary Ward, landed in Calcutta, British India, after 4 months on Dec. 30, 1841. Averaging 19 years of age, the Loreto nuns headed by 23-year old Mother Delphine Hart, never intended to return home. Based in Kolkata, formerly Calcutta, the congregation spread to many parts of India, Nepal, Bangladesh. "That experience was the result of a missionary zeal: a life dedicated ...
The Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM), better known as the "Sisters of Loreto”, are currently celebrating 175 years of their presence in South Asia. "With immense gratitude to God we celebrate the arrival in India of the first sisters, who 175 years ago brought the love of God", Sister Anita M. Braganza, head of the religious Province of South Asia told Vatican’s Fides news agency.
Twelve brave Irish women, that included 7 nuns and 5 postulants, set sail from Ireland, where the congregation was founded in 1609 by the Englishwoman Mary Ward, landed in Calcutta, British India, after 4 months on Dec. 30, 1841. Averaging 19 years of age, the Loreto nuns headed by 23-year old Mother Delphine Hart, never intended to return home. Based in Kolkata, formerly Calcutta, the congregation spread to many parts of India, Nepal, Bangladesh.
"That experience was the result of a missionary zeal: a life dedicated to mission, saying goodbye to their loved ones, with no plans to return home,” noted Sr. Braganza. “Catholic nuns were the first to set foot on Indian soil, in particular by contributing to the training of women and children from all social classes", Sr. Braganza.
“Remember, Reimage, Renew,” is the theme of the year-long celebration of 175 years of the Sister of Loreto of South Asia, that began on December 17. One of the highlights is a walk in Kolkata on Sunday, Jan. 8, from the Governor’s Raj Bhavan palace to Loreto House.
It was the Sisters of Loreto in Ireland that St Teresa of Kolkata joined as a postulant in 1928 at age 18, in order to come to the eastern Indian city as a missionary. She arrived there the following year. After a spiritual experience regarded as "the call within the call" in 1946, Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity Sisters in 1950. Pope Francis declared her a Saint on Sept. 4, last year.
Lahore, Pakistan, Jan 6, 2017 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Supporters of Pakistan’s strict blasphemy law attempted to march in Lahore on Wednesday, but were thwarted when police made more than 150 arrests.The nation's blasphemy laws impose strict punishment on those who desecrate the Quran or who defame or insult Muhammad.The Jan. 4 demonstrations would have fallen on the sixth anniversary of the 2011 assassination of Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer, a prominent advocate of changing the strict blasphemy law. He was killed by his own security guard, Mumtaz Qadri, for his stance on the law.Some backers of the strict anti-blasphemy law consider Qadri a hero.Protesters from several religious parties had planned the march in the capital of Punjab province. The arrested were members of the Islamist coalition Tehreek-i-Labaik Ya Rasool Allah.Authorities said that more arrests would be made and no one had permission to hold a rally in Lahore, the Pakistani newspaper Dawn reports.Po...
Lahore, Pakistan, Jan 6, 2017 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Supporters of Pakistan’s strict blasphemy law attempted to march in Lahore on Wednesday, but were thwarted when police made more than 150 arrests.
The nation's blasphemy laws impose strict punishment on those who desecrate the Quran or who defame or insult Muhammad.
The Jan. 4 demonstrations would have fallen on the sixth anniversary of the 2011 assassination of Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer, a prominent advocate of changing the strict blasphemy law. He was killed by his own security guard, Mumtaz Qadri, for his stance on the law.
Some backers of the strict anti-blasphemy law consider Qadri a hero.
Protesters from several religious parties had planned the march in the capital of Punjab province. The arrested were members of the Islamist coalition Tehreek-i-Labaik Ya Rasool Allah.
Authorities said that more arrests would be made and no one had permission to hold a rally in Lahore, the Pakistani newspaper Dawn reports.
Police barricades set up to prevent the march caused severe traffic jams.
Other protests had been planned in Rawalpindi.
Taseer’s assassination was followed by the March 2, 2011 assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, another critic of the misuse of the blasphemy law.
Bhatti, a Catholic and the only Christian in the Pakistani cabinet, worked as the federal minister for minorities and spoke out against religious persecution.
A Pakistani Catholic diocese has opened an inquiry into whether to declare him a martyr.
Pakistan's state religion is Islam, and around 97 percent of the population is Muslim.
The blasphemy laws are said to be often used to settle scores or to persecute religious minorities: though non-Muslims constitute only three percent of the Pakistani population, 14 percent of blasphemy cases have been levied against them.
Many of those accused of blasphemy are murdered, and advocates of changing the law, such as Taseer, are targeted by violence.
By Carol ZimmermannWASHINGTON (CNS) -- The Catholic Church has a "tremendousresponsibility to bring people together in prayer and dialogue, to begin anewthe vital work of fostering healing and lasting peace," said a report by aU.S. bishops' task force released Jan. 5 in the wake of last year's incidentsof violence and racial tensions.Thework to "root out racism and create healthy dynamics in our neighborhoods"is a long-term project, but the scope of it should not cause fear orintimidation, wrote Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Atlanta, chairman of the TaskForce to Promote Peace in Our Communities, in the report's introduction.He alsosaid "the church is at her absolute best when she is a bold and propheticvoice for the power of the love upon which our faith is based, the love of Jesus Christ."Thetask force is taking on a broad issue, but in its report, it breaks down whatneeds to be done into a few recommendations to the U.S. bishops, urging them tofocus on:-- Prayer:Masses, rosarie...
By Carol Zimmermann
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The Catholic Church has a "tremendous responsibility to bring people together in prayer and dialogue, to begin anew the vital work of fostering healing and lasting peace," said a report by a U.S. bishops' task force released Jan. 5 in the wake of last year's incidents of violence and racial tensions.
The work to "root out racism and create healthy dynamics in our neighborhoods" is a long-term project, but the scope of it should not cause fear or intimidation, wrote Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Atlanta, chairman of the Task Force to Promote Peace in Our Communities, in the report's introduction.
He also said "the church is at her absolute best when she is a bold and prophetic voice for the power of the love upon which our faith is based, the love of Jesus Christ."
The task force is taking on a broad issue, but in its report, it breaks down what needs to be done into a few recommendations to the U.S. bishops, urging them to focus on:
-- Prayer: Masses, rosaries, prayer services during the year.
-- Local dialogues: conversations on race and dialogues hosted by parishes or dioceses.
-- Parish and diocesan training: intercultural competence training for staff and parishioners.
-- Opportunities for encounter: providing forums for people to examine local challenges firsthand.
-- Support of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, which funds group that address concerns about race, poverty and violence.
The group also recommended that the National Day of Prayer for Peace in our Communities be an annual observance, urged U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishop committees to provide resources for racial healing and stressed that a statement on racism from the bishops was "more important than ever."
A summary of the findings of the task force -- convened last year by Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, then president of the USCCB -- was presented to the U.S. bishops in November at their fall assembly in Baltimore.
The full report -- online at http://bit.ly/2iMX8rS -- highlights some of the activities promoted by the task force last year, including the nationwide celebration of a Day of Prayer for Peace in Our Communities Sept. 9 and listening sessions and interviews between members of the task force and community members.
In describing some of the discussions that took place among task force members -- both bishops and lay leaders -- the report notes that there is not a one-time solution for overcoming racism and violence.
In stressing the work ahead, the task force praised previous bishops' statements on racism, but said they were "not sufficient to address the difficulties of the moment." It also urged Catholics to look at where they might be contributing to race issues "from hiring practices to parish and school closures."
The group stressed that the church should continue to pray for the challenges facing communities not just "in the heat of a tragic moment" but throughout the year.
It also summarized some interviews that took place with individuals on the topic of building peaceful communities. In discussions with police officers, for example, one person said he had started a program where each church in his area was responsible for what happened within a one-mile radius of their church building and church members were trained on how to engage in conversations that would build community dialogue.
A police officer stressed that parishes could plan events in various neighborhoods to give police officers and residents a chance to sit and talk.
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Follow Zimmermann on Twitter: @carolmaczim.
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