New Delhi: An archbishop who has completed 40 years as a prelate says the zeal for the mission had led him from Kerala in southern India to remote tribal villages in the country’s central region.
“I wanted to proclaim the Gospel to the people who had not yet heard about Christ. Even today the same zeal burns me,” Archbishop Abraham Viruthakulangara of Nagpur told scores of priests, nuns and lay people who on July 13 attended the ruby jubilee of his ordination as a bishop.
Reminding the priests and religious that they are called to serve the same mission, the 73-year-old archbishop cautioned them not to lose their goal.
“When our missionary activities do not have this aim, they become mere social work, and we become just social workers,” he added.
He was only 34 when he was appointed the first bishop of Khandwa, a predominantly tribal diocese in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh in 1977.
He was the 100th Indian Catholic bishop since the hierarchy was established in the country in 1986.
The jubilee celebrations included a concelebrated Mass with all priests of the archdiocese at Pastoral Centre, Mohan Nagar, in downtown Nagpur.
Fr Lijo Mampoothara, public relations officer of the archdiocese, applauded Archbishop Viruthakulangara for bringing unity among various religions in Nagpur and surroundings areas.
Nagpur is the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (national volunteers corps), the umbrella organization for Hindu rightwing groups. The National Council of Churches in India, the association of Protestant Orthodox Churches in the country, also has its base in the city.
The prelate was born on June 5, 1943, in Kuruppunthara, a village in Kottayam district of Kerala. After his ordination in 1969, he worked among Gond tribal people for eight years until his appointment as a bishop. During his 20 years in Khandwa he helped local Christians to bond with their Hindu and Muslim neighbors, Fr Mampoothara said.
The young prelate’s proficiency in the tribal language helped him reach out to thousands and transform their lives. Mother Teresa, who visited Khandwa in those days, commended his zeal and commitment to the tribal mission.
He was appointed the Archbishop of Nagpur on April 22, 1998, with the motto “Radiating Christ.”