February 06, 2013: A five-day conference of Latin Rite Catholic Bishops of India begin
on Tuesday. The Conference is deliberating on the changing political, social and religious
scenario in the country.
The event is held at the Christian pilgrim centre
of Vailankanni in Tamil Nadu. It would also prepare a plan that would be a broad-based
moral, spiritual, social, educational and people-oriented outline with the direction
and priorities for church in India.
The conference also marks the silver jubilee
of the formation of the Conference of Catholic Bishops’ of India (CCBI) and the golden
jubilee of the Vailankanni Basilica.
Over 172 Bishops from various parts of
the world and apostolic nuncio to India, Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio are attending
the conference.
Pope Benedict XVI has sent his emissary Cardinal Fernando Filoni,
the Prefect of the Congregation of the Evangelisation of Peoples, on the occasion.
On the last day of the conference, a new church in Vailankanni named Morning Star
Church would be consecrated. The new church has no intermediate columns inside and
can accommodate over 15,000 people.