Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bhubaneshwar (Agenzia Fides) – Hundreds of Bibles have been burned, destroyed, or damaged in the wave of anti-Christian violence that has struck Orissa. Thus, Indian Christians have launched a campaign to collect 1,000 new Bibles and distribute them among the faithful in this eastern Indian state.
The Bibles will be presented to Archbishop Raphael Cheenath, SVD of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar, who just weeks ago lamented the destruction of many copies of the Sacred Scriptures and the lack of Bibles in his Archdiocese, mentioning how the Word of God is the essential tool in offering the people of Orissa strength and hope. The Bibles donated are in Oriya, the language of Orissa, and thus will make it easier for them in reading it.
“It is a way of showing our solidarity and closeness to the persecuted Christians who are deprived of their fundamental rights,” the Catholic Secular Forum (CSF) said. The CSF is a non-government organization that works to defend Christians in India, which has sent dozens of volunteers into Orissa to offer humanitarian aid to refugees. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 5/11/2008)
