Odisha youth at WYD feels accompanied by martyrs
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Some 50 young people from eastern India’s Odisha state who have joined Pope Francis and young people from across the world for the Catholic Church’s international celebration of World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland, feel they are being spiritually accompanied by their martyrs. John, a 21-year old Catholic from the diocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar said this to AsiaNews explaining he felt the martyrs of Odisha were spiritually accompanying not only them but also all the young pilgrims from India. “This is because their death has changed our faith, … making us more aware. Thanks to them and World Youth Day we learn mercy”, he said, recalling the theme of the World Youth Day, “Blessed are the Merciful, for they will Receive Mercy.” Three priests are accompanying the Odisha group, that includes a Hindu girl who is considering starting the catechumenate. The group estimates there are some 500 Indians at the July 2...
Some 50 young people from eastern India’s Odisha state who have joined Pope Francis and young people from across the world for the Catholic Church’s international celebration of World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland, feel they are being spiritually accompanied by their martyrs. John, a 21-year old Catholic from the diocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar said this to AsiaNews explaining he felt the martyrs of Odisha were spiritually accompanying not only them but also all the young pilgrims from India. “This is because their death has changed our faith, … making us more aware. Thanks to them and World Youth Day we learn mercy”, he said, recalling the theme of the World Youth Day, “Blessed are the Merciful, for they will Receive Mercy.”
Three priests are accompanying the Odisha group, that includes a Hindu girl who is considering starting the catechumenate. The group estimates there are some 500 Indians at the July 26-31 World Youth Day, to which Pope Francis was enthusiastically wolcomed Friday evening at Krakow’s Blonia Park.
In his wallet John carries a photograph of a close friend, Rajesh, whom he lost in the anti-Christian massacre in Odisha’s Kandhamal Disctrict in 2008. “If God chooses the humble to be his witnesses, my friend was one of them," he told AsiaNews. Violence against Christians in Kandhamal, erupted with untold savagery, with Hindu extremists blaming Christians for the August 23, 2008 murder of Hindu leader Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati, despite Maoist rebels claiming the assassination. Among the many who perished was Rajesh who died of a stray gunshot wound. John says he does not seek revenge but would perhaps like to see more justice. “The trip to Poland "is an opportunity for me to remember him,” John said. During one of the morning catechesis in Hindi, John spoke about Rajesh, and many people wanted to know more about him. (Source: AsiaNews)
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