Orissa Christians pray for peace on anniversary of persecution

(August 24, 2009) Christians across the eastern Indian state of Orissa and in other parts of India held prayers, services and meetings on Monday to recall the wave of brutal anti-Christian violence a year ago following the murder of Hindu leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati. The Swami and four of his associates were killed on August 23 by Maoists, but the following day extremists Hindus unleashed a reign of terror on Christians blaming them for the assassination. Tight security arrangements were made in riot-scarred Kandhamal district on Sunday, August 23, where routine Sunday Masses was held at churches peacefully as members of the minority community prayed for peace following a call given by Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar. Christian groups wanted to remember the martyred Christians, but above all to convey a message of coexistence and peace with justice. The Ecumenical Christian Forum of Human Rights (ECFoHR) observed a day for interreligious harmony on Monday at Madurai in Tamil Nadu, with a prayer vigil for the Christian martyrs. Another ecumenical meeting was organized in New Delhi’s Sacred Heart Cathedral for peace, healing and reconciliation. Elshwhere in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, the seminarians of Vidya Bhavan organized an hour of Eucharistic adoration to remember the massacres of Kandhamal. Cardinal Oswald Gracias, Archbishop of Bombay, told AsiaNews that India must regain the glory she had before the 'shame' of Orissa, of being a multi-cultural, multi-religious, multi-lingual country, with values of peace, harmony, understanding and tolerance.