By Thomas Scaria Imphal, Dec 6, 2023: Friends and relatives of Shantirani are at the forefront of a civil war in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur, but the 28-year-old is fighting her own war against drug addiction. Helping Shantirani (not her real name) and about 25 other women areContinue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Imphal, Nov 10, 2023: Laughter and singing reverberated through a girls orphanage in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur, as violence raged on the streets outside. “Not that we are not affected by the violence, but we feel safe and secure here,” Anjali Khouchung, a 12-year-old residentContinue Reading
By Purushottam Nayak and Dibakar Paricha Sankarakhole, Oct 28, 2028: Kantheswar Digal, who tops the list of the 35 Kandhamal martyrs on the road to beatification, fearlessly witnessed his Catholic faith in the face of anti-Christian violence, brutal persecution and death in Kandhamal. His life serves as a beacon ofContinue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Kochi, Oct 21, 2023: Catholic nuns in a southern Indian archdiocese have a new mission: to keep faith alive while priests and laypeople clash with bishops over liturgy. “Our parish church had remained closed for several months because of the dispute,” Sr. Graceline Jose, who serves St.Continue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Polur, India: Kavitha was 14 and Navyashree 16 (names changed) when they were married off, but their marriages did not last long: their in-laws threw out the two village girls from their homes in the southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh. “Today, both are under our care andContinue Reading
By Fiona Power Melbourne, Sept 10, 2023: Eighty years ago, Doctor Sister Mary Glowrey, an Australian born and educated medical missionary, founded India’s largest non-government healthcare network. Now called the Catholic Health Association of India, CHAI comprises more than 3,500 healthcare and social service member institutions across India. Thousands ofContinue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Guwahati, Aug 12, 2023: Sister Sanrupe Kharsyiumiong and her companion were busy recruiting candidates for her congregation in some parishes of Manipur, when ethnic violence targeting Christians erupted May 3 in the northeastern Indian state. After escaping, “our plan was to return in three days, but [we]Continue Reading
By Pretesh Kiran Bengaluru, Aug 12, 2023: St. John’s Medical College, Bangalore is celebrating its 60th year of existence this year. What was conceived as an idea in 1944, and started as a Medical College in 1963, is now known to many as a worldclass Medical College with over 750Continue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Bengaluru, July 28, 2023: Shalini Mathew (not her real name) thanks a home for women in distress managed by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Tarbes for bringing her out of her trauma. “I used to get up in the middle of night and scream for help,Continue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Bijapur, May 22, 2023: Gadyamma, who has been living as a devadasi since childhood, does not want her daughter to follow the oppressive tradition of being a female dancer in Hindu temples. “I became a devadasi when I was 12 under our village tradition, but I wantContinue Reading
