By Matters India Reporter
Shillong, Nov. 6, 2019: Cardinal Charles Bo of Myanmar, head of the Catholic Church in Asia, will lead the annual Eucharistic procession on November 10 in Shillong, capital of Meghalaya state.
The cardinal’s presence is to respect a promise he had made to late Archbishop Dominic Jala of Shillong, says a statement from Barnabas Nongbah, general secretary of the pastoral council of the Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians.
Archbishop Jala died on October 10 in an automobile accident in California. The archbishop and the cardinal belong to the Salesians of Don Bosco congregation.
The statement says the cardinal will be the main celebrant at the 10 am Mass.
The annual Eucharistic procession will start at 1:30 pm from the cathedral and end with the Benediction at the Calvary.
Four bishops from northeastern India will assist the cardinal at the Mass.
Cardinal Bo, president of the Federation of Asian Catholic Bishops’ Conferences, will land in Guwahati on November 9 and visit the headquarters of the Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians at Hatigaon, a suburb in the city, the commercial capital of Assam state.
The Salesian sisters now work in two centers in Myanmar. The second center was opened on May 24 this year at Tedim in Kalay diocese.
The cardinal will also visit the Sacred Heart Theological College and the Oriens Theological College in Shillong’s Mawlai area, before leaving India.
Nongbah’s statement urged people to not bring their vehicles to the Laitumkhgrah area to avoid traffic congestion. “A general appeal is also being made to all to maintain cleanliness and dispose their waste in bins and baskets placed at all parking lots and in the cathedral area,” it added.