Nepal makes history with largest Christmas celebrations .

(Dec. 28, 2011) This year’s Christmas celebrations in Nepal were the largest in the country’s history, said Christian leaders. Thousands of non-Christians attended Mass in Nepal’s Catholic and Protestant churches. A crowd of more than 2,000 people came to Mass at Assumption Cathedral in Lalitpur District, said Catholic Bishop Anthony Sharma, Apostolic Vicar of Nepal. The prelate said although the building can only hold up to 1,000 people, many followed the service from outside and security guards were forced to keep the doors open. They had been kept closed in recent years because of the danger of attacks. “We should all look up to Heaven and follow Him, who sacrificed His life for humanity,” Bishop Sharma said in his sermon, which he delivered to hundreds of non-Christians. He also encouraged members of various confessions to work for peace.
Thousands of people also attended the Mass organised by Kathmandu’s Protestant community. Bishop Narayan Sharma of the Protestant Gyaneshwor Church, said the building was overflowing with worshippers. Since the fall of the Hindu monarchy in 2006, the government has decided to boost tourism by making Christmas a national holiday. Greater security has allowed Christians to celebrate Mass in public and display their sacred images and decorations outside of churches, stores and homes. The country’s Catholic community now stands at 10,000, up from 6,000 in 2006, when state and religion were formally separated in Nepal. In order to entertain tourists who came to Kathmandu for Christmas, local authorities organised non-religious events, such as Christmas concerts, gifts for children, songs and dances.