Chhattisgarh to host major Catholic spiritual renewal program

Cardinal Telesphore P. Toppo will be among top Church leaders to attend the ninth National Catholic Charismatic Hindi Convention on October 24-26 at Kunkuri, a major a parish under Jashpur diocese and a Christian stronghold in the central Indian state. The convention has chosen the theme “Jesus sparks the light in the Christian family and World.”

Besides Cardinal Toppo, who is the archbishop of Ranchi in the neighboring state of Jharkhand, Archbishops Victor Henry Thakur of Raipur and John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, Bishops Patras Minj of Ambikapur, Paul Toppo of Raigarh, Vincent Barwa of Simdega, Anand Jojo of Hazaribagh, Kishor Kumar Kujur of Rourkela, Vinay Kandulna of Khunti and Emmanuel Kerketta of Jashpur will address the gathering.

The event will comprise of talks, prayer service, adoration and healing and faith sharing testimonies. Hundreds of Catholics in and around Chhattisgarh are expected to attend the event.

The convention is being organized in the backdrop of a ban on non-Hindu religious leaders in certain villages in the state now ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (Indian people’s party), the political arm of rightwing Hindu groups.

On Wednesday, the Chhattisgarh High Court issued notices to state government seeking reply within three weeks on a writ petition challenging the constitutionality of resolutions adopted by some gram Sabha (village council) imposing the ban.

(Source: Matters India)