By Purushottam Nayak
Bhubaneswar, Dec 9, 2022: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has inaugurated renovated and extended building of St. Vincent’s Pro-Cathedral Church in Bhubaneswar, the capital of the eastern Indian state of Odisha.
“I am delighted to be here for the completion of the renovation of the church. Thank you very much,” said the chief minister in his inaugural address to the gathering on December 9, at the pro-cathedral.
Archbishop John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar in his welcoming speech said Christians in the state have experienced the chief minister’s care and attention.
“We thank you sir wholeheartedly for your coming over here this evening to grace the occasion,” said the Divine Word prelate.
Dilip Tirkey, president of the Hockey Federation India and a native of Odisha present for the inauguration, too expressed the gratitude of Christians of the state to the chief minister. “He is a man who goes along with everyone in Odisha,” said the Catholic sportsperson.
Tirkey also said the chief minister wants all religions in Odisha to develop. “We witness his initiative here today. The chief minister meeting all the bishops of Odisha, people over here is a matter of great joy and honour,” added the Catholic sportsperson.
The chief minister on July 3, 2021, allotted 20 million rupees for the beautification and renovation of the pro-cathedral.
The inauguration was attended by Odisha Bishops Niranjan Sualsingh of Sambalpur, Kishor Kumar Kujur of Rourkela and Aplinar Senapati of Rayagada along with 20 priests, 35 nuns and 500 faithfu.
The pro-cathedral church now can accommodate about 1,200 faithful at a time.
The chief minister has a secular image as he has care and concern for the Christian communities in Odisha, said Raju Digal, council member of St. Vincent’s Pro-Cathedral Parish, “We are proud of Naveen Patnaik,” he added.
The history of the pro-cathedral dates back to 1951-1952 when the Sisters of St. Joseph of Annecy, France, obtained the government approval to start a school in two separate blocks under the guidance of principal Mother Bernadette.
As there was no Catholic Church in Bhubaneswar, it was found necessary to arrange a place in the school for the celebration of the Mass on Sundays. One of the priests from the Sacred Heart Church, Khurda Road, about 20 km northwest, and priests from Cuttack used to come regularly to Bhubaneswar to offer Mass for the nuns and a small migrant community in the city.
The pro-cathedral church was built on a free government land in 1958 on a long-lease basis for religious purposes.
In 1958, it was declared a semi-public chapel, and two years later Father Antony Attuly was posted in Bhubaneswar as the first chaplain.
In April 1963 the foundation stone for the present church was laid and it was blessed on December 24, 1968. The Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar comprises the civil districts of Boudh, Cuttack, Kandhamal, Kendrapara, Khurda, Jagatsingpur, Jajpur, Nayagarh, and Puri.
In 1974, the Cuttack Mission was divided into the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar archdiocese and the Berhampur diocese. Henry D’Souza was appointed the first archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar. In the same year, he shifted his residence from Cuttack to Bhubaneswar. St. Vincent’s Pro-Cathedral celebrated a silver jubilee in 1999 and a ruby jubilee 15 years later.
“The pro-cathedral has grown from 65 Catholics in 1951 to about 20,000 today. It embraces people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds,” says Father Ananta Uthansingh, associate parish priest of pro-cathedral parish.