Another Christian place of worship has been vandalized in the Indian capital, New Delhi, the 5th such incident in two months. The attackers broke open the main gate of St Alphonsa’s Church in the Vasant Kunj area, early Monday morning and entered the sacristy, before opening the tabernacle and scattering the host, Delhi archdiocese spokesman Father Savarimuthu Shankar told UCANews. In the morning, parish priest, Fr. Vincent Salvatore found the tabernacle open and the ciborium missing. The sacred hosts were scattered on the altar and the floor. The parish is named after Sister Alphonsa, India’s first woman saint canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Church officials didn’t blame anyone for lack of proof, and police registered it as theft. The Christian community has seen a spate of attacks since December 1 when St Sebastian Church in the Dilshad Garden area of the city was allegedly torched. A few days later rocks were thrown at a Catholic Church in Jasola district, causing minor damage. A crib for a Nativity scene was found burned earlier this month at a church in Rohini district, while on January 14, a Catholic church was attacked and its grotto smashed by three unidentified men.
Fr Shankar said the Christian community planned to hold a candle light vigil Monday evening to protest against the St Alphonsa Church attack. He also said authorities have done nothing since Church officials spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee about the earlier attacks. “It is getting very disturbing now. The community is left with no option but to come out on streets and protest,” he said.
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Another Delhi Catholic church vandalized
Vatican Radio
February 2, 2015
Another Christian place of worship has been vandalized in the Indian capital, New Delhi, the 5th such incident in two months. The attackers broke open the main gate of St Alphonsa’s Church in the Vasant Kunj area, early Monday morning and entered the sacristy, before opening the tabernacle and scattering the host, Delhi archdiocese spokesman Father Savarimuthu Shankar told UCANews. In the morning, parish priest, Fr. Vincent Salvatore found the tabernacle open and the ciborium missing. The sacred hosts were scattered on the altar and the floor. The parish is named after Sister Alphonsa, India’s first woman saint canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Church officials didn’t blame anyone for lack of proof, and police registered it as theft. The Christian community has seen a spate of attacks since December 1 when St Sebastian Church in the Dilshad Garden area of the city was allegedly torched. A few days later rocks were thrown at a Catholic Church in Jasola district, causing minor damage. A crib for a Nativity scene was found burned earlier this month at a church in Rohini district, while on January 14, a Catholic church was attacked and its grotto smashed by three unidentified men.
Fr Shankar said the Christian community planned to hold a candle light vigil Monday evening to protest against the St Alphonsa Church attack. He also said authorities have done nothing since Church officials spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee about the earlier attacks. “It is getting very disturbing now. The community is left with no option but to come out on streets and protest,” he said.
Another Christian place of worship has been vandalized in the Indian capital, New Delhi, the 5th such incident in two months. The attackers broke open the main gate of St Alphonsa’s Church in the Vasant Kunj area, early Monday morning and entered the sacristy, before opening the tabernacle and scattering the host, Delhi archdiocese spokesman Father Savarimuthu Shankar told UCANews. In the morning, parish priest, Fr. Vincent Salvatore found the tabernacle open and the ciborium missing. The sacred hosts were scattered on the altar and the floor. The parish is named after Sister Alphonsa, India’s first woman saint canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Church officials didn’t blame anyone for lack of proof, and police registered it as theft. The Christian community has seen a spate of attacks since December 1 when St Sebastian Church in the Dilshad Garden area of the city was allegedly torched. A few days later rocks were thrown at a Catholic Church in Jasola district, causing minor damage. A crib for a Nativity scene was found burned earlier this month at a church in Rohini district, while on January 14, a Catholic church was attacked and its grotto smashed by three unidentified men.
Fr Shankar said the Christian community planned to hold a candle light vigil Monday evening to protest against the St Alphonsa Church attack. He also said authorities have done nothing since Church officials spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee about the earlier attacks. “It is getting very disturbing now. The community is left with no option but to come out on streets and protest,” he said.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment