Alyan Johnson, 22, was critically injured in a shooting involving personnel of the Dolphin Force in Rawalpindi, the garrison city adjoining Islamabad, on the night of May 26.

According to his family, Johnson had just dropped off a passenger when police arrived in pursuit of a suspected armed man. The suspect allegedly fired into the air and attempted to flee, after which officers opened fire.

Johnson, who joined a ride-hailing company six months ago to help support his family, remains hospitalized.

His family has filed a complaint at Sadiqabad police station, demanding an impartial investigation, strict action against those responsible, and compensation for the injuries and losses suffered.

Four Dolphin Force personnel allegedly involved in the shooting have been suspended and charged on the orders of the Rawalpindi city police officer.

Joseph Michael, Johnsonʼs uncle, said the family was dissatisfied with what he described as a limited official response.

“We demand justice and imprisonment for the shooters who misused their authority,” Michael told EWTN News. “Johnson raised his hands and identified himself as a rider in a loud voice, but the shooting continued. He had no weapon and no criminal record. He only wanted to help his father, who works as a sanitary worker.”

Michael said Johnson suffered multiple gunshot wounds and two fractures in his right leg.

“Anything could have happened. We are grateful he survived,” he added.

Raja Abdul Hanif, chairman of the Punjab chief ministerʼs inspection team, visited Johnson in the hospital on May 29 and assured the family of justice. He directed authorities to ensure all medicines and treatment costs were provided by the hospital.

“The law is equal for everyone and action will be taken against those involved in the incident following a transparent investigation,” Hanif said.

Police have yet to issue a detailed public explanation of the shooting.

The incident has triggered strong reactions among Christian activists and rights advocates.

A delegation led by Tariq Mehmood Ghouri, coordinator of the Catholic bishops' National Commission for Justice and Peace in the Islamabad-Rawalpindi Diocese, visited the hospital and pledged legal and moral support to the family.

“The situation was mishandled. Doctors are still uncertain whether the young laborer will ever walk normally again,” Ghouri said.

“For many poor families, motorcycle ride-hailing is one of the few ways to earn a living amid soaring inflation and fuel prices. The state must recognize these realities and act with compassion.”

Ghouri said the shooting raised serious questions about police training and operational procedures.

“The incident is an eye-opener for those who claim that religious minorities enjoy equal rights and protection in Pakistan,” he said.

A pattern of police ‘encounters’ in Punjab

The shooting comes amid growing scrutiny of police encounter practices in Punjab.

A fact-finding report released in February by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) concluded that Punjabʼs Crime Control Department has pursued a policy of staged police encounters, often resulting in extrajudicial killings and undermining constitutional safeguards and the rule of law.

Based on media reports, the commission documented at least 670 Crime Control Department-led encounters during the first eight months of 2025, resulting in the deaths of 924 suspects, while only two police officers were reported killed.

“In genuine armed confrontations, such a ratio appears to be statistically implausible,” the report states. “This imbalance suggests deliberate executions and reckless disregard for the sanctity of life.”

The report also documented allegations of intimidation against victims' families, including pressure to bury relatives quickly, obstacles to independent medical examinations, and threats against those seeking justice.

Concerns over Dolphin Force operations are not new. In 2022, members of the unit shot dead a dismissed police constable and injured two others in Lahore, the capital of Punjab, after allegedly mistaking them for robbers.

Manda, 23, a member of Bhalukapara Parish in the Diocese of Mymensingh, was appointed to lead her nationʼs squad for the 2026 South Asian Football Federation Womenʼs Championship by English head coach Peter James Butler.

The tournament is being held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Goa, India, from May 25 to June 7.

In Muslim-majority Bangladesh, where Christians make up a tiny minority, Mariaʼs appointment has been a source of widespread pride among the countryʼs Christian community, particularly its young people.

A member of the Garo Indigenous community, she is known for her ability to carry the ball from defensive lines to the opponentʼs box, earning a reputation as one of the teamʼs most decisive players.

‘A fighting leader’

Butler expressed strong confidence in the new captain.

“Maria is a player with a very fighting mentality, and she is highly respected in the entire squad,” he said.

“She will lead the team with her performance. I know she will earn that respect from others too. A fighting leader like her can earn everyoneʼs respect in the dressing room.”

Speaking at the tournamentʼs official press conference in Goa, Maria declared: “We have been champions in the last two editions. We want to play our natural game and keep moving forward.”

Under her captaincy, Bangladesh opened the tournament with a 4-2 victory over the Maldives on May 28. After the match, Manda told Bangladeshi broadcaster T Sports: “We always aim to play well and give a good game to our countrymen. We won the first match with everyoneʼs prayers and blessings. It feels great. I want more such support in the future.”

Bangladesh fell 3-0 to host nation India on May 31 but advances to the semifinal round, where the team faces Nepal on June 3.

From U-15 glory to senior captain

Manda first became involved in organized football through the Bangamata School Football Tournament in 2011. She went on to captain Bangladeshʼs U-15 team, which won the inaugural SAFF U-15 Womenʼs Championship in 2017 — a campaign in which Bangladesh went unbeaten and did not concede a single goal. She became a fixture in the senior squad that won back-to-back SAFF Womenʼs Championship titles in 2022 and 2024.

This is her first time captaining the senior national team.

Father Bikash James Rebeiro, CSC, secretary of the Episcopal Commission for Youth and national youth coordinator for the Catholic Church in Bangladesh, told EWTN News: “Today, Christian youth and the youth of the country are very happy and proud to see the national team armband in your hand. Maria, the fighter on the field, is leading the entire country — this is a huge achievement for us.”

“You have proven that with concentration and dreams, it is possible to overcome any obstacle,” he added.

“Your leadership, hard work, and dedication are a great inspiration for millions.”

Christian women rising in South Asian soccer

Manda is not alone in representing Christian communities on the South Asian soccer stage.

In Pakistan, Catholic defender Joyann Geraldine Thomas became the first Christian woman to represent her country when she debuted at the 2014 SAFF Womenʼs Championship in Islamabad, having developed her skills through a parish-based soccer club in Karachi.

India forward Grace Dangmei — a Christian from Manipurʼs Rongmei Naga tribe who faced Mandaʼs Bangladesh in Goa on May 31 — has helped India win multiple SAFF titles and is among the few Indian women to have played professionally overseas.

For now, Manda remains focused on the semifinal ahead. “We will be careful not to make the same mistakes we made in the first match,” she said.

Nearly 2,000 people attacked Gillʼs family in Sargodha, in northern Punjab province, on May 25, 2024, after allegations emerged that his father, Nazir (Lazar) Masih, had desecrated pages of the Quran. EWTN News covered the attack at the time.

The mob ransacked the familyʼs home and shoe factory in Mujahid Colony and later set the business on fire after a mosque announcement reportedly amplified the accusations.

Police managed to evacuate nine members of the family, but Masih was caught by the crowd and beaten with stones, bricks, and sticks. The 74-year-old succumbed to his injuries on the night of June 2–3, 2024.

The killing sparked protests by Christian groups across the country, while politicians and Catholic bishops visited the family and held meetings with police officials.

Yet nearly two years later, the family says it is still waiting for justice and compensation for the destruction of their property, which remains abandoned after they fled Sargodha.

“Our wounds became fresh during Eid. The cruelty cannot be described in words,” Gill told EWTN News.

“The confidence is gone. We cannot move around or talk freely. Two of my children had to discontinue their education and start working to support the family in a new city and help pay house rent,” he said.

“The police assured us of 1.2 million rupees [about $4,300] as compensation for damage to the factory, which was actually worth millions. But despite repeated visits to the district administration and Punjabʼs minority affairs minister, we received nothing.”

Arrests but no accountability

Sargodha police registered cases against about 450 unidentified suspects under anti-terrorism laws, and 25 people were arrested over the attack on Masih.

However, all of the accused were released within weeks, according to Sunil Kaleem, director of the Organization for Legal Aid, which has provided legal support to the family.

“We challenged the bails granted to the accused, but without success. The biased judges of lower courts often rely on consistency and benefit-of-doubt principles in such cases,” Kaleem said.

“There are no independent eyewitnesses apart from police officials, and there is little interest in pursuing accountability. The chances of punishment in mob attacks linked to blasphemy allegations remain very low.”

Church leaders and rights groups have long argued that Pakistanʼs blasphemy laws disproportionately affect religious minorities and often fail to uphold principles of justice, including due process and the presumption of innocence.

At least 26 Christians were killed extrajudicially in Pakistan between 1994 and 2024 following blasphemy allegations, according to the Center for Social Justice, a Lahore-based advocacy group.

Church response

Father David John, parish priest of St. Francis Xavier Church in Sargodha, said Masihʼs family received financial assistance and shelter from the National Commission for Justice and Peace, the Catholic bishops' rights body, for 20 months.

“Psychological support was crucial for frightened Christians in the area, and it was important to stand with them,” he said.

“We did what we could. There was a long struggle to restore normalcy in the city with the support of district peace committees and Muslim friends.”

“Religious minorities in Pakistan deserve to live in peace and harmony. People of goodwill stand with us. There is tremendous scope for interfaith dialogue, and efforts toward acceptance must continue.”

Catholic activist Ashiknaz Khokhar criticized delays in the justice process and warned of wider consequences.

“It weakens public trust and leaves vulnerable communities exposed to further harm. When cases remain unresolved, fear and instability increase,” he said, adding that Masihʼs family now plans to sell its two homes after losing its business in Sargodha.

He called for stronger preventive measures, including proactive law enforcement to manage crowds before violence escalates.

“The state should use digital monitoring systems to address online hate speech, provide administrative and security safeguards to ensure judicial independence, discourage misuse of laws through consistent accountability, and introduce educational reforms promoting religious tolerance and civic responsibility,” he said.

After landing at Kolkata airport in the early hours of May 23, Rubio headed straight to the mother house. Accompanied by his wife, Jeanette Dousdebes, he attended a special Mass at the tomb of the nun, known as the “saint of the gutters,” on the ground floor of the mother house and placed a wreath of flowers on it.

“With Respect and Tribute from the People of The United States of America” read the card pinned to the wreath Rubio placed on the tomb of Mother Teresa, which is thronged by hundreds of pilgrims daily.

After the nearly hourlong Mass, Rubio spent another half hour with the Missionaries of Charity sisters at the mother house as dozens of excited novices looked on from the upper verandah.

“It was beautiful. His respect for the mother is amazing. We thank God for this visit,” Sister Concettina, the congregationʼs secretary-general, told EWTN News after Rubio left, briefing the media, who had waited patiently outside for a couple of hours.

From the mother house, Rubio and his entourage moved to Shishu Bhavan (a childrenʼs home), 650 feet away on the same A.J.C. Bose Road, where Rubio handed out teddy bears to destitute children with disabilities.

“Mother Teresa left a tremendous legacy of compassion and service. I was honored to visit the Missionaries of Charity today to pay homage to her legacy,” Rubio said on X before flying from Kolkata to New Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Telegraph, an English-language daily based in Kolkata, also hinted at the significance of Rubioʼs mother house visit, titling its report “U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits mother house in Kolkata on first leg of India trip.”

A long-scheduled day of double joy

Later that afternoon, it proved a long-scheduled day of double joy for the Missionaries of Charity, with 25 novices of different nationalities taking their final professions at Auxilium Parish Church in a solemn service led by Archbishop Elias Frank of Kolkata in the presence of hundreds of sisters.

“It is a day of double joy for us,” Sister Marie Juan, one of the senior Missionaries of Charity councilors who formally “accepted” the vows during the two-hour service — with Superior General Sister Mary Joseph away in Australia — told EWTN News while coming out of the church.

The senior Missionary of Charity official was responding to an EWTN News question on how she felt about the U.S. secretary of state visiting the Mother House at the start of his four-day visit to India.

An act of solidarity amid recent strains

The congregation had previously undergone a stressful period when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government led by Modi canceled its FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act) license to receive foreign donations on Christmas Day 2021 — alongside thousands of Indian church and secular advocacy and charity groups, including Bread for the World and Compassion International.

Following widespread Indian and international outcry, the Modi government restored the Missionaries of Charityʼs FCRA license within a fortnight, after peers in the U.K. House of Lords slammed the decision in a Jan. 6, 2022, debate.

“This unique visit is reassuring for us,” Alexander Anthony, secretary-general of the All India Catholic Union — the official national lay network for Catholics in India — told EWTN News on May 26.

The Rubio visit, said Kolkata-based Anthony, “is an act of solidarity with the MCs and Christian community in India. It gives out a clear message to the rulers as the community is distressed.”

India has reported steadily increasing incidents of anti-Christian violence, rising from 127 in 2014, when Modi assumed power, to 834 by 2024.

The Christian community has been on edge recently after the BJP, for the first time, took power in West Bengal state — of which Kolkata is the capital — in the April elections, amid widespread criticism of the deletion of more than 9 million voters from the rolls, equivalent to 12% of the voter list.

Even the Missionaries of Charity sisters in Kolkata had to appeal to get their voting rights restored, The Times of India reported.

Youth organizations, womenʼs groups, and lay associations — working with religious sisters and priests — are leading rosary devotions in villages and cities. The Diocese of Mymensinghʼs Youth Commission has launched a monthlong initiative aimed at students living in city hostels, while parishes from Dhaka to Natore are continuing long-standing community devotions.

In Mymensingh, the diocesan Youth Commission inaugurated the program at the Surasree-Panthanivas Mess, a student hostel in the Kachizhuli area, where young men and women joined the rosary and Mass together, according to Charchil Mrong, secretary of the Youth Commission of the Diocese of Mymensingh.

“Many said that they were able to connect with each other and be optimistic about their faith and goals,” Mrong told EWTN News. “Our aim is to bring disconnected youth from religious places back to the path of Jesus and we took this initiative with that aim in mind.”

Mrong said the May rosary is also being prayed in homes across the city, where families gather as they do each year for the devotion.

“It is not just in the hostels where students stay, but like every year, this rosary prayer starts in May in different families in the city, and through this prayer, families come together. This is not just a prayer but also strengthens unity, harmony, and family ties in the entire area,” Mrong said. “This prayer will reach all the young men and women in Mymensingh, bringing them together to a new light of hope. Hopefully, this prayer will bring positive changes in our youth society.”

Weekly devotions in the capital

In Dhaka, the rosary and Mass are offered every Tuesday and Wednesday during May at Tejgaon Holy Rosary Church. People from all walks of life take part, with many remaining after the prayers to pray privately at the Marian grotto and light candles.

“Mother Mary is the best means of reaching Jesus; we can reach Jesus through praying to Mother Mary,” said Father Jyanto S. Gomes, parish priest of Holy Rosary Church.

“Mother Mary is a symbol of obedience and humility. By praying to her, we make ourselves obedient and humble to Jesus,” Gomes said. “This prayer should be a constant part of our family life in May and we should maintain the practice of prayer.”

Village devotion in the north

In Natore district to the north, parishioners of Gopalpur Catholic Church gather each Wednesday in May to pray the rosary at the parish cemetery. In surrounding villages, women travel from house to house leading the rosary.

“The devotion to Mother Mary is strengthened in this month of May,” said Mary Rozario, a member of Gopalpur Church. “Although we should always pray this prayer, we cannot do it much due to lack of time, but in May we try to pray to Mother Mary.”

“People are now very busy with worldly matters, and their attention to prayer is very low,” Rozario said. “Therefore, the Church should take timely steps to make them prayer-oriented. We should move away from traditional prayer and determine the time for prayer considering the time of people.”

Bishop Samson Shukardin of Hyderabad, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Pakistan, extended the invitation during a papal audience on May 15, according to UCA News.

Pope Leo XIV responded positively to the invitation and expressed a desire to visit Pakistan in the future, the outlet reported.

Shukardin said the bishops returned from the “ad limina” visit with renewed hope for the church in Pakistan.

“The challenges we have in Pakistan are first how to evangelize the Church and also reach other people. A big challenge is that our people are still illiterate but strong in faith; they are poor but very hardworking. Many of our people are not receiving equal rights,” he said in a video shared on May 16 on Catholic TV.

“We have a big problem regarding blasphemy cases and forced conversions. Sometimes our Church is rejected and persecuted because we are not doing what others expect. Our Church is going through difficulties, but we are hopeful that one day we will receive equal rights in Pakistan.”

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, religious minorities in the country, including Christians and Ahmadis, continued to face persecution and discrimination in 2025.

The commissionʼs annual report highlighted persistent cases of forced conversion and underage marriages involving Hindu and Christian girls in Punjab and Sindh provinces, exposing failures in enforcing child marriage laws.

Mary James Gill, a Christian politician, former lawmaker, and executive director of the Center for Law and Justice, said Christians continue to face social and economic marginalization along with challenges related to religious freedom and interfaith relations.

“Eighty percent of Christians in Pakistan live below the poverty line. The reasons are linked more to caste-based structures than religion itself. A papal visit can bring attention to these issues,” she told EWTN News on May 19.

Gill said the Vatican holds moral and diplomatic influence that could help amplify the concerns of marginalized communities.

“Pakistan as a state gives weight and respect to Vatican recommendations and to figures such as the archbishop of Canterbury. A papal visit could increase visibility for Christian concerns and resonate with expectations from the community. It would also be a positive gesture because Christian political leadership in Pakistan often remains divided,” she said.

Father Raphael Paliakara, the 46-year-old novitiate rector; Father Andreas Kindo, the 32-year-old newly appointed administrator; and 23-year-old Brother Shinu Joseph were shot dead at the Salesian novitiate at Ngarian Hills in Manipur on the night of May 15, 2001.

“I remember the deep pain of May 15, 2001,” recalled Father Joseph Pamplackal, Salesian provincial of Dimapur, presiding over the memorial Mass held at the cemetery with dozens of Salesian priests, including 10 who had been novices at the time and were present at the novitiate during the attack.

“Today we remember the beauty of Salesian missionary spirit. When Father Raphael was shot, Father Andreas rushed forward to protect him, and Brother Shinu too was shot. They died for the faith and inspired many to witness to the faith,” Pamplackal said at the Mass.

Twenty-eight relatives of the three slain Salesians traveled from the southern state of Kerala and from Jharkhand in eastern India for the occasion.

‘Shepherds who did not flee’

A memorial card distributed at the event described the three as “shepherds who did not flee” and summarized the events of 2001: “They laid down their lives for us … when armed militants stormed the novitiate demanding money and the novices' lives.”

“Money was handed over, but [they] refused to surrender any novice. They died as true shepherds standing between the wolf and the flock,” the card said.

Father Josekutty Madathiparambil, one of the 27 novices sheltered during the attack, told EWTN News on May 19 that the events of that night shaped his vocation.

“What happened that night influenced my life a lot. Their sacrifice has given a new meaning to life,” said Madathiparambil, who is originally from Kerala and now serves in eastern Arunachal Pradesh state.

“The militants had asked the fathers to bring out the novices, separating them as ‘locals’ [from Manipur] and ‘outsiders.’ That would have been the end of our lives. But they fulfilled what Jesus has said: ‘There is no greater love than laying down oneʼs life for others,’” he said.

After the memorial service, the Salesians — including 10 of the novices who went on to become priests — joined the family members of the slain Salesians in a two-hour gathering that included the screening of the documentary “They Laid Down Their Lives for Us” produced for the occasion.

“Today we are celebrating the silver jubilee of their martyrdom, which has not gone in vain. We are the proof for that,” said Father Anthony Kangba Rang in his testimony.

“We were heartbroken when we came here for the funeral 25 years ago,” recalled John Paliakara, elder brother of Father Raphael, who brought eight members of the Paliakara family, including three siblings, from Kerala for the anniversary.

“But it is no more a tragic memory. They saved the lives of 27 novices. We are proud of it,” he told EWTN News.

Ethnic tensions persist

As the Salesians prepared for the anniversary, they received a grim reminder of the continuing ethnic tensions in Manipur when two Salesian brothers were kidnapped on May 13.

“I was very tense hearing about this, and that too round the jubilee time,” said Father Shyjan Chemmaparappallil, another 2001 novice who was in Manipur that day.

“Our prayers were heard, and they were released unharmed the next night,” he said during the jubilee commemoration.

Father Suresh Innocent, from whose care the two ethnic Naga Salesian brothers were taken at an impromptu road checkpoint by Kuki groups, described the ordeal.

“I was shattered. Because of their ethnic [Naga] identity, they were taken away. It is reported that it was a tit-for-tat kidnapping, as some ethnic Kukis had been kidnapped earlier in the day,” Innocent told EWTN News on May 16 after bringing the brothers to the Dimapur provincial house.

“Due to prayers and high-level interventions, they were released in 24 hours,” he said.

The kidnapping took place on the same day that three Kuki Baptist pastors were killed in an ambush in Kangpokpi district, an attack that has further deepened the ethnic crisis in the state.

“We feel frustrated that our people were denied bail a second time today on the false allegation of conversion,” Bishop Devprasad John Ganawa of Udaipur, a Divine Word missionary, told EWTN News on May 12.

“When the hooligans disrupted the Mass on May 1 shouting ‘conversion,’ our people forced them out. Instead of registering a criminal case against the intruders, the police have charged our people with ‘conversion and attempt to murder’ and arrested nine Catholics of Bandaria Parish,” Ganawa explained.

‘They took out a knife’

“I was saying the evening Mass at the substation of my parish at Kalinjara village when the incident happened,” Father Arvind Amliyar recounted to EWTN News.

“During the Communion time over a dozen people stormed into the church, shouted ‘conversion,’ and started filming with cameras. When one of them took out a knife, our people snatched it and chased them out,” Amliyar said.

“Soon police came and what happened then shocked me. Instead of finding out what had happened, they arrested four Catholics the same night,” the priest said.

A Hindu mob then staged a protest outside the police station and demanded action against the parishioners, according to Amliyar. Police turned away Catholics who went to them twice, including at midnight the same day and the next day, refusing to register their complaint.

Police came knocking on May 4 at 2:30 a.m. and arrested five more parishioners, including Anil Rawat, 70, a retired headmaster of a government school who now runs a private school in the village.

Bail denied twice

The local magistrate court rejected the parishioners' bail application the next day, as they were charged with “serious crimes”: conversion and attempted murder. Church lawyers then moved the case to the Banswara district court, which denied bail again on May 12.

“Now, we have to go to the High Court with senior lawyers,” Amliyar said of the challenging situation facing the village church, which serves about 70 Catholic families. About 70 people were attending Mass when the intruders stormed in.

“I cannot understand what is going on. The police bluntly refused to register the complaint of our people and have filed a serious charge of conversion against our people and imprisoned them,” Ganawa said of the first case of alleged conversion in Udaipur Diocese, where he has served as bishop for 13 years.

Anti-conversion laws ‘reduced to a tool to harass minorities’

“This is another typical case of the widespread abuse of anti-conversion laws against Christians in several states, most of them ruled by the BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party],” A.C. Michael, a Catholic and national coordinator of the United Christian Forum, which monitors atrocities against Christians, told EWTN News from New Delhi.

Under the Indian criminal system, the burden of proof lies with the prosecution. However, under recently enacted or amended anti-conversion laws, Michael said, the burden of disproving the charge of conversion is shifted to the accused, making it difficult for defendants to secure bail from trial courts quickly, even in fraudulent cases.

Under the Rajasthan Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, enacted in 2025, the burden of disproving the allegation of conversion falls on the accused.

As a result, Michael said, hundreds of Christians are languishing in jails in BJP-ruled states while protracted legal challenges drag on in higher courts.

“The shocking reality is that there has been hardly any conviction in so-called conversion cases. That is why the churches and Christian groups have moved the Supreme Court for abolishing the anti-conversion laws that have been reduced to a tool to harass minorities,” Michael said.

He noted that the Supreme Court in May 2024 observed that certain provisions in anti-conversion laws may be in violation of Article 25 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees the right to freely profess, practice, and propagate oneʼs religion.

The Feb. 4–10 biennial assembly of more than 200 bishops in India in Bangalore also reiterated this concern in its final statement: “As many innocent individuals are incarcerated based on unfounded allegations of forceful religious conversions, we strongly demand the repealing of legislations which are inconsistent with religious freedom and right to privacy.”

In the Jamalganj area of Sunamganj district, about 4,000 families — roughly 20,000 people — are learning to grow food year-round on previously unused land in their backyards, raise poultry without chemical pesticides, and produce organic fertilizer from earthworms and cow dung.

The project, formally known as the Livelihood Diversification and Climate Resilience Project for the Haor Region, is run by Caritas Bangladesh, the charitable arm of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Bangladesh. It began in July 2023 and is scheduled to run through January 2027.

‘The taste of the food is better now’

Rubina Begum, 30, is one of the beneficiaries. On a small patch of uncultivated land beside her home, she grows gourds, eggplant, beans, and leafy greens — all without chemical pesticides or fertilizers.

“Caritas gave me earthworms and I am preparing fertilizer by releasing them into the cow dung. I am applying that fertilizer to the vegetable garden. I am using a kind of trap to kill the insects; I am using stove ash to kill insects. I am not using any kind of chemical pesticides or fertilizers,” Begum told EWTN News.

Before joining the program a year and a half ago, she used conventional farming methods. The difference, she said, is tangible.

“When we used to farm earlier, the yield was low and the taste of the food is also better now than before. We are also selling vegetables in the market to meet the needs of our family. With this, we can do other household purchases,” Begum, a mother of three, said. “At the same time, I am farming ducks and chickens at home, but earlier, due to the use of pesticides, I could not farm ducks and chickens at home; they would die.”

Her husband, Samraj Miah, 40, is a day laborer. The Jamalganj area sits in Bangladeshʼs haor region — a basin of tectonic wetlands that floods for roughly four months each year, leaving families like theirs without work or income for extended stretches.

“I am grateful to Caritas. Because we are now able to live fairly comfortably by using the methods Caritas have taught us about vegetable cultivation and poultry farming,” Miah told EWTN News.

He added that a cow or two would allow them to produce their own dung for fertilizer rather than sourcing it from neighbors, while also supplying milk for the familyʼs nutritional needs.

A region where 90% live in poverty

According to the 2022 national census, the population of Jamalganj subdistrict is about 185,866 across an area of roughly 309 square kilometers. About 90% of the population lives below the poverty line, according to local government estimates.

Agriculture is the areaʼs primary livelihood, but climate change has made it increasingly precarious. Seasonal flooding eliminates crop production for four months each year, with an additional two months of knock-on disruption — meaning families can face six months without reliable income.

Caritas Bangladeshʼs response extends beyond kitchen gardening. The project also provides sewing machines and training, seed funding for small businesses, support for traditional handicraft workers, and tree-planting initiatives.

Aruna Debnath, 72, and his wife received about 5,500 taka (about $45) in startup assistance from Caritas. With the money, they buy bamboo and other materials and now earn about 2,500 taka (about $20) per week making baskets, pots, and chicken nets from home.

“We used to work as daily wage laborers, but as we get older, it becomes very difficult to work as day laborers, and many times they donʼt even want to hire us. But after receiving financial assistance from Caritas, we are working from home,” Debnath told EWTN News.

“I work at home on my own terms, take a break when itʼs hard, and then work again. With the income we earn, our family is living well,” he said.

The couple acknowledged, however, that the rise of cheap plastic alternatives has undercut the market for their biodegradable bamboo products.

'A part of Laudato Si' and environmental conservation'

Swapan Nayek, the project supervisor, told EWTN News that Caritas Bangladesh is incorporating the teachings of Laudato Si', the late Pope Francis' 2015 encyclical on the environment and human development, into every project.

“Among our various activities, we focus more on kitchen gardening so that they can produce something throughout the year on the fallow land in their backyards to meet their familyʼs needs and earn some income,” Nayek said.

Tree planting and greening are central to the haor project, he added, calling vegetable cultivation and annual tree planting "a part of Laudato Si' and environmental conservation."

But Nayek was candid about the scale of the challenges. Beyond food insecurity, the haor region faces acute problems with sanitation, healthcare, and access to clean drinking water.

“In the haor, there is not only a problem of food but also problems of sanitation, healthcare, drinking water, and these places are big challenges for us. We are providing services on a small scale, which is insufficient,” Nayek told EWTN News. He said more funding and vocational training are needed to expand the projectʼs reach.

The project also partners with the Bangladesh governmentʼs Department of Agriculture. Suman Kumar Saha, the agriculture officer for Jamalganj, praised the collaboration.

“Caritas‘ field-level farmer selection and the technology and resources they have are, in a word, extraordinary. Since Caritas is working for the socio-economic development of women here, this is also very commendable,” Saha told EWTN News. “The people of the haor are in great distress, and Caritas’ training and education are working very well to help them overcome that distress.”

For Begum, the aspirations are simpler and closer to home.

“I hope to make my children if not doctors, engineers or anything else, at least ideal farmers,” she said.

The bishop told ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, that in the earthquake, nine churches were destroyed, roughly 80 Christians were killed, and reconstruction costs remain far beyond the community’s means. For now, his priority is not only rebuilding churches but also renewing parish life through catechism, choirs, youth groups, and efforts to preserve both Arabic and liturgical identity in a community facing emigration and economic pressure.

3 priests ordained in Armagh Archdiocese

In the Armagh Archdiocese in Ireland, three new priests were ordained in St. Patrick’s Cathedral on May 9.

Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh expressed his gratitude for the ordinations. “I give thanks for their generous ‘yes’ to God’s call, and my hope is that they will have many years of fulfillment in serving God’s people here in the Archdiocese of Armagh. Our celebration will bring to 12 the number of priestly ordinations for the archdiocese in recent years. At a time when the Church in Ireland continues to face many pastoral challenges, these ordinations are a moment of encouragement and hope for the archdiocese," he said.

As of September 2025, 77 men were in training for the priesthood for Irish dioceses.

Canadian archdiocese welcomes 4 new priests

The Archdiocese of Toronto celebrated the ordination of four new priests on Saturday, May 9.

“We gather this morning in our cathedral to celebrate something truly extraordinary. Each, in your own way, years ago, at different times, and in different circumstances and different places, heard the words of Christ saying ‘Come, follow me,’” Cardinal Frank Leo told the ordinandi at St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica, according to the Canadian Catholic Register.

Hong Kong Diocese celebrates 80th anniversary

Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan, bishop of Hong Kong, marked the 80th anniversary of his diocese’s founding in a celebration on Saturday, May 9.

“The joy of our Church lies in being able to share the joy of the Gospel with Hong Kong,” Chow said during the event, which included the inauguration of a historical exhibition on the local Church, according to Fides News Agency.

The exhibition will feature photographs, oral testimony, and guided tours on the growth of the diocese, the work of Caritas International, and Catholic education. Hong Kong is home to around 600,000 Catholics.

The event also marked the 180th anniversary of the founding of the mission there. “The heart of evangelization is unchanging, and in this way, people can experience the love of the Gospel,” the cardinal said.

Kidnapped Nigerian priest freed after 3 months in captivity

Father Nathaniel Asuwaye of Holy Trinity Parish in the Diocese of Kafanchan, Nigeria, who was kidnapped on Feb. 7 during an attack by gunmen, has regained his freedom after more than three months in captivity, ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, reported May 13.

“We are pleased to inform you that Father Nathaniel is now safe and receiving care. He is in stable condition, remains in good spirits, and appreciates your prayers and support,” Father Jacob Shanet, the chancellor of the diocese, said in a May 12 statement.

Notre Dame marks 170 years of ‘L’Œuvre d’Orient’

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris hosted the Day of Eastern Christians under the theme “Bearers of Hope,” coinciding with the 170th anniversary of L’Œuvre d’Orient, ACI MENA reported on May 11.

Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, presided over the liturgy in the presence of Eastern Catholic patriarchs and representatives, bishops, and supporters. Speakers stressed that aid to Eastern Christians is not only material but also spiritual and ecclesial, affirming that they belong fully to the universal Church.

Gugerotti warned against the world’s silence in the face of suffering in the Middle East, while Eastern Catholic leaders thanked French Catholics for their solidarity and cautioned that the disappearance of Christians from their homelands would be a loss for the entire Church.

Irish Parliament rejects bill to expand abortion access

In Ireland, pro-life campaigners hailed a significant success this week when the Social Democrats’ Reproductive Rights (Amendment) Bill was defeated in the Dáil.

The bill would have abolished the current three-day waiting period for an abortion, revised abortion criteria on the grounds of fatal fetal abnormality, and removed criminal sanctions found in the current law. While the government allowed a free vote of conscience, Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill raised “significant legal and operational concerns” regarding the proposed legislation, which will not now proceed. The bill was heavily informed by the controversial O’Shea review of 2018 abortion legislation, which proposed 10 legislative changes and which pro-life advocates argue overlooks the rights of the unborn child.

Welcoming the vote, Eilis Mulroy of Pro Life Campaign Ireland said the vote would not have happened without a core group of pro-life TDs (Teachtaí Dála, or members of Parliament) who stood firm. She also pointed to the coordinated pro-life lobbying effort in the final 72 hours before the vote, which made a decisive difference by informing and persuading elected representatives.

Trump traveled to Beijing this week to meet with Xi Jinping about numerous topics, including the potential release of multiple political prisoners.

Speaking with reporters after the meeting, Trump confirmed that the leaders spoke about Jimmy Lai, the founder and publisher of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily who was sentenced to 20 years in prison over what Chinese officials claim were national security violations.

“I donʼt want to mislead anybody,” Trump said. Xi Jinping “said Jimmy Lai is a tough one for him to do.”

“They went through a lot and right or wrong, they went through a lot, so he told me that would be a tough one,” Trump said.

“I think heʼs giving very serious consideration to the pastor,” he said, referring to Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri — a Christian pastor detained by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Despite the failure to come to an agreement on Lai’s freedom, his daughter Claire Lai told EWTN News that her family is “so grateful to President Trump and his administration for their continuous support of and…commitment to” her fatherʼs case.

“President Trump first raised [Jimmy Lai’s case] in South Korea, back at the end of 2025, and has raised it again this time,” she said. “Of course, the dream was for my father to come back on Air Force One, but I remain extremely confident that itʼs him and his administration that will secure the release of my father.”

“Yesterday was the day of the Ascension...when Jesus ascended into heaven," Claire Lai said. "And prior to that, he had promised that he was going up so that he could send the Holy Spirit down."

“So…in the days that follow, I hope that the Holy Spirit might move President Xiʼs heart and he might see the wisdom in releasing my aging and ailing father, who has done nothing wrong,” she said.

“He is a man who was anti-violence, pro-democracy, pro-free press, free speech, and anti-Hong Kong independence. And all he wanted was for the rights that China promised in the Sino-British Joint Declaration to be kept, for those promises to be kept,” she said.

“Everything he did at the time he did them was perfectly legal. Thatʼs why in his latest trial…99% of the things they pulled out was from prior to the National Security Law coming into force.”

“My father, he is a symbol of freedom for so many, but he is a symbol of hope. Heʼs a symbol of faith,” she said. “I think possibly even more since his imprisonment because…in the silence of his cell and in the intensity of his suffering, he really has learned just the abundance of Godʼs mercy and the abundance of his grace.”

She continued: “I know that…our good Lord and the Blessed Mother will continue to watch over him as they always have.”

“We appeal to the members of the Senate to abide by what the Constitution directs: to proceed with the trial and to decide the case against the Vice President by summoning witnesses, hearing testimony, and voting according to the evidence and, above all, the demands of righteousness and justice,” CBCP President Archbishop Gilbert Garcera of Lipa said.

On May 11, the House of Representatives voted 257–25, with nine abstentions, to impeach Duterte for the second time, making her the first official in Philippine history to be impeached twice. The House forwarded the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate for trial.

“We urge the senators to avoid any act that may be perceived as evading their sworn duty or circumventing the requirements of the Constitution,” Garcera said. “You now have this opportunity to restore our peopleʼs faith and confidence in our public institutions that adhere to the rule of law and serve the common good in the pursuit of justice and truth.”

The bishops also called on Filipinos to remain engaged throughout the proceedings.

“Let us fulfill our civic duties and responsibilities by ensuring a fair and credible trial so that all may see and hear clear, verified evidence and arguments,” the CBCP statement said.

“We must also remain vigilant in monitoring the proceedings. In this way, we uphold the truth, safeguard the integrity of public discourse, and strengthen our nation against misinformation, disinformation, and manipulation.”

In a separate statement, Bishop Gerardo Alminaza of San Carlos also urged Filipinos to monitor the impeachment closely.

Duterte is accused of systematic misuse of confidential funds totaling 612.5 million Philippine pesos (roughly $10 million) paid to the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education during her tenure as education secretary, including irregular disbursements, suspicious liquidations, and recipients that could not be verified.

Allegations also include that she amassed wealth beyond her lawful income and failed to accurately disclose her assets.

She allegedly bribed government officials to influence procurement and financial decisions.

Additionally, she was accused of threatening to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Whatʼs next for the Senate?

The Articles of Impeachment were transmitted to the Senate on May 13, and the Senate is required to act as an impeachment court.

The Senate will conduct a trial in which senators serve as both judges and jurors. Removal from office requires conviction by a vote of two-thirds of all senators — 16 out of 24.

If convicted and removed from office, Duterte would be barred from holding any public office. She has already declared her candidacy for the 2028 presidential election.

A previous impeachment by the House in February 2025 was voided by the Supreme Court on constitutional grounds.

“This is a historic development. We hope it will lead to positive changes as the chief minister has already promised,” Archbishop George Antonysamy of Madras and Mylapore told EWTN News on May 13.

Vijayʼs new political party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), which translates to Victory Party of Tamil Nadu, was founded in 2024. In its electoral debut, the party stunned the Dravidian parties that had held power for nearly six decades between them, winning 107 seats in the 234-member state assembly.

Acknowledging the mandate, five smaller parties withdrew their support from the ousted DMK and opposition AIADMK coalitions to back TVK, pushing it past the 118-seat majority mark and prompting the state governor to invite Vijay to form the government on May 9.

The Vijay government won a crucial vote of confidence on May 13 with 144 votes, with a section of the AIADMK also voting in his favor.

‘I wonʼt touch public money’

“I wonʼt touch public money,” Vijay declared soon after his swearing-in on May 10, promising a “corruption-free” administration. Within hours, the new chief minister signed three orders subsidizing electricity for the poor, establishing a task force for womenʼs safety, and setting up anti-narcotics units to curb the drug menace.

Welcoming “the steps the CM has promised,” Antonysamy said, “We cannot judge a person in a few days. Everything will depend on the performance. Vijay himself is new to government administration, and his legislators too, as most of them hail from his fan base.”

Catholic identity in the spotlight

“We are really rejoicing that we have a Catholic chief minister,” Father Vincent Chinnadurai, spokesperson of the Tamil Nadu Catholic Bishops' Council, told EWTN News.

“Vijay is known as a popular actor. But his Catholic background came into public attention after the Hindu nationalists tried to polarize the voters, saying that Vijay is a Christian with the first name Joseph,” explained Chinnadurai, who is also the rector of the Santhome Basilica in Chennai, adjacent to the archbishopʼs residence.

The Santhome Basilica is built over the traditional site of the tomb of St. Thomas the Apostle, who according to tradition was martyred at Mylapore in present-day Chennai in A.D. 72. It is one of three basilicas in the world built over tombs traditionally associated with apostles, along with St. Peterʼs Basilica at the Vatican and the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

“The people here are very happy, as we are privileged to be the first big state in India to have a Catholic chief minister, and at a time when Christians are facing troubles in different parts of the country,” Chinnadurai added. He is a former chairman of the Minorities Commission of Tamil Nadu.

With approximately 77 million people, Tamil Nadu is the seventh most populous of Indiaʼs 28 states.

The archbishop also acknowledged that “Vijay is not known much as a Catholic. But during the election time, it came out in a big way.”

Hindu nationalists and the ‘Joseph’ factor

The name “Joseph” stood out prominently on the large stage at the Nehru Indoor Stadium during the swearing-in ceremony, which was broadcast live by major national television channels.

When Hindu nationalists tried to brand Vijay as a Christian in the run-up to the election held on April 19, Chinnadurai pointed out that “he did not back off.”

Instead, Vijay publicized a Christmas program in which he made a speech linking himself to the Old Testament figure of Joseph, who looked after his brothers even after they had thrown him into a well, while he was the ruler of Egypt. In the speech, Vijay also asserted that “Tamil Nadu is a mother; all children are equal,” promising to care for all, including those who opposed him.

In the state, where popular film actors have massive fan followings with organized clubs, The Hindu, a national daily based in Chennai, noted in its May 10 edition that although Vijay set up TVK only two years ago, the party was built on more than 80,000 fan clubs established from 2009 across the state, carrying out social work and social campaigns.

Faithful throng Marian shrine

Thousands of Vijayʼs fans thronged the Marian shrine of Vailankanni, known as the Lourdes of the East, about 200 miles south of Chennai, from the night of May 1, expecting him to visit the shrine on the morning of May 2 in thanksgiving after voting.

The fans waited through the night and loudly chanted “TVK, TVK” inside the church premises before church authorities asked them to calm down. Vijay canceled the visit after hearing about the commotion at the shrine.

“Vijay is an alumnus of our college, and his mother used to come to our college for Mass regularly,” Professor Gladstone Xavier of Chennaiʼs Loyola College told EWTN News.

With Vijayʼs Catholic identity now public, Xavier hopes that “Vijayʼs performance as the chief minister should make the community proud.”

In a statement issued on May 12, Minority Concern said Christian sanitation workers continue to face unsafe working conditions, inadequate protective equipment, and limited employment opportunities beyond sanitation work due to entrenched discrimination.

On May 7, Shabbir Masih, a 33-year-old father of three, died after inhaling toxic gases inside a 25-foot-deep sewer line in Faisalabad. Three days earlier, Shakeel Masih and Samar Masih died while cleaning a sewer line in Sahiwal district.

In April, three Christian sanitation workers also died in similar incidents in Karachi in the southern province of Sindh.

“Sanitary workers are indispensable members of society. No individual should risk their life simply for carrying out essential public service work,” said Aftab Alexander Mughal, director of Minority Concern.

“Protecting the rights and safety of Christian sanitary workers is not only a labor issue — it is a matter of human dignity, equality, and justice.”

Christians make up about 1.37% of Pakistanʼs population and have long complained of being pushed into low-paid sanitation work historically associated with marginalized castes in South Asia.

‘The death toll is higher than reported’

Speaking from Lahore, 49-year-old Catholic sanitation worker Shafiq Masih rejected official claims that proper personal protective equipment (PPE) is provided to workers.

“Each of the Water and Sanitation Authority field office responsible for sewer maintenance reportedly has only one PPE suit, shown only to visiting officials or media,” he told EWTN News.

“Even that imported suit from Japan is not suitable for local conditions — it is heavy and impractical. The death toll is higher than reported.”

Masih, who helped form a union of nearly 2,900 sanitation workers in Lahoreʼs Johar Town area in 2023, said little has changed in more than two decades of service.

“The Church has no concern for us,” he said, adding that he received assurance of only spiritual support when he raised the issue with his parish priest.

He also said that after Christian workers refused to enter manholes without PPE, authorities began hiring daily wage laborers to perform the same tasks.

Court rulings and government response

Rights groups such as Minority Concern have urged Pakistanʼs federal and provincial governments, municipal authorities, and employers to end discriminatory hiring practices that channel minorities into hazardous work.

In December 2025, the Islamabad High Court barred the use of the phrase “Christians only” in sanitation job advertisements and called for urgent safety reforms to reduce fatalities among sewer workers.

According to Manzoor Masih of the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), violations of the ruling have decreased.

“Concerned departments apologized and re-advertised after we notified the violations,” he said, expressing concern over the rising number of deaths.

He added that the commission has taken notice and sought reports from provincial Water and Sanitation Authority offices.

In November 2025, the NCHR filed a petition before the Federal Constitutional Court seeking an end to manual sewer cleaning, arguing that forcing workers into toxic environments without protection violates constitutional guarantees of life, dignity, equality, and safe working conditions.

A 2024 NCHR inquiry report titled "Risk of Sanitation Work in Pakistan" warned that sanitation workers continue to face deadly conditions due to the absence of occupational safety standards, weak enforcement of labor laws, and discrimination against religious minorities.

The report estimates that sanitation workers make up about 2% of Pakistanʼs 225 million population and that approximately 80% are Christians.

Based on a survey of 42 sanitation workers in Karachi, it found that 78.6% were never provided personal protective equipment, while 57.1% reported workplace injuries, including lung damage and dislocated joints.

It documented at least 14 deaths between 2022 and 2024, mostly in Punjab, caused by toxic sewer gases and unsafe working practices.

Father James Cervantes, MIC, known for his initiative calling for Eucharistic revival in the Philippines and co-launching the Philippine Rosary Crusade during the EDSA Revolutionʼs 40th anniversary, is calling the faithful to respond to what he described as heaven’s urgent appeal for our time.

“The premise is simple,” he said. “We are living in a time of deep moral confusion, widespread indifference to God, and a growing loss of souls. Our Lady has already given us the remedy. The answer is prayer, sacrifice, and the holy rosary.”

The initiative, called “The 153-Day Fátima Invitation,” asks the faithful to offer 153 Hail Marys a day for 153 days, from May 13 to Oct. 13 — the exact span of the apparitions of Our Lady of Fátima.

At Fátima in 1917, Our Lady appeared to three shepherd children and pleaded with the world: “Pray, pray much, and make sacrifices for sinners, for many souls go to hell because there is no one to sacrifice and pray for them.”

For Cervantes, that appeal remains as urgent today as ever.

“This is an act of love, an act of faith, and a great work of mercy for the salvation of souls,” he said. “It will be an intense time of spiritual harvesting, done with great love and sacrifice, to honor and console Our Lord and Our Lady and to heed their request to help save many souls.”

Why 153?

The number 153 is not arbitrary. Cervantes points to several striking spiritual and biblical connections.

First, Our Lady’s apparitions at Fátima lasted from May 13 to Oct. 13 — a span of exactly 153 days.

Second, at the time of the Fátima apparitions, the full traditional rosary consisted of 15 mysteries — the joyful, sorrowful, and glorious mysteries — containing 153 Hail Marys. The luminous mysteries were later added by Pope John Paul II in 2002.

Third, in the Gospel of John, after the Resurrection, the disciples cast their nets at Christ’s command and caught 153 large fish. According to St. Jerome, 153 represented all the known species of fish at the time — a symbol that all nations would be gathered into the net of the Church.

“It is a time of spiritual fishing,” Cervantes explained. “A time to cast the net for souls lost in the sea of sin and death. As the call of Jesus goes: ‘Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.’”

He also noted another striking providence: Our Lady appeared in 1917, and the sum of the numbers from 1 through 17 equals 153.

“In subtle but beautiful ways,” he said, “heaven keeps pointing us back to 153.”

A spiritual battle for souls

The invitation comes at a time when some Catholics sense that the world is entering deeper spiritual darkness.

Families are under strain. Faith is growing cold. Many young people are drifting from God. War, terrorism, and global instability dominate headlines. The battle is no longer merely social or cultural. At its core, it is spiritual, according to Cervantes.

“Our Lady of Fátima showed the children a vision of hell,” he said. “She warned that many souls are lost because there is no one to pray and sacrifice for them. That warning should move us.”

He added that the rosary is not merely a devotional practice but a spiritual weapon entrusted by heaven.

“The method to catch souls will be the holy rosary — a spiritual net,” he said. “For the next 153 days, we are being invited to do spiritual harvesting.”

The rosary and the salvation of souls

Throughout history, saints and popes have spoken of the power of the rosary.

St. Louis de Montfort taught that God gave the rosary as a means to convert even the most hardened sinners.

St. Dominic called it one of heaven’s most powerful weapons for the conversion of souls.

Pope Pius X described the rosary as “the most beautiful and the richest in graces of all prayers.”

Blessed Pius IX famously declared: “Give me an army saying the rosary and I will conquer the world.”

And one of the children of Fátima, St. Francisco Marto, once said with childlike simplicity: “Oh, Our Lady! I’ll say as many rosaries as you want.” The children of Fátima were said to pray as many as nine rosaries a day.

A simple invitation

Cervantes emphasized that the invitation is simple: Place prayer at the center of daily life.

“Step into a sacred rhythm of prayer,” he said. “For the next 153 days, place the rosary at the heart of your day and gently witness how God begins to move.”

The purpose is not merely personal devotion but a concrete response to Our Lady of Fátima’s request to help save souls through the power of the rosary.

“This is a great work of mercy for souls,” he said. “The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few. Who will be the ‘few’ to respond?”

From May 13 to Oct. 13, Catholics are invited to pray the full rosary — the 15 traditional mysteries — offering 153 Hail Marys each day for sinners, for souls in danger, and for those who are far from God.

YouTube evangelizer Gabriel Castillo, featured in the National Catholic Register about his book “The Power of the Rosary” and his "Rosary Testimonies" documentary, has spoken extensively about the power of praying the full rosary every day versus only one or two a day.

In a world marked by confusion, moral relativism, and spiritual darkness, Cervantes said heaven’s answer remains astonishingly simple.

“Let us be the few who answer the call of Our Lord and Our Lady," he said.

Speaking on the opening day of the biannual plenary assembly in Sydney, Bo described overlapping economic, employment, social, health, and education crises gripping the southeast Asian nation, also known as Burma.

More than 3.5 million people have been displaced and basic healthcare and education systems have collapsed in much of the country, the cardinal said.

The figure has risen from the nearly 3 million Bo cited in a May 2024 interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, underscoring the worsening trajectory of the conflict.

A 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck central Myanmar in March 2025, killing thousands, compounded the suffering. Bo at the time described “apocalyptic scenes.”

“Among young people in particular,” he told the bishops on May 8, “daily life is increasingly defined by insecurity, psychological strain, and a loss of trust in the future.”

“We remain a people of hope,” Bo added.

The cardinal thanked Australian Catholics for what he called the “unwavering solidarity” of Catholic Mission, the Australian arm of the Pontifical Mission Societies, which has long partnered with the Archdiocese of Yangon on education initiatives.

“Your solidarity is not an abstract idea … it is a light in the darkness,” he said. “Your support … reminds our suffering people they are not forgotten by the universal Church.”

Bo linked his appeal to the centenary of World Mission Sunday, established by Pope Pius XI in 1926 and to be observed worldwide on Oct. 18.

“Mission,” he said, is “not the work of missionaries but the responsibility of the whole Church.”

“Your partnership with us is not just charity,” he added. “It is communion.”

A voice for peace amid civil war

Bo then led a short ceremony to commission Peter Gates as the new national director of Catholic Mission Australia in the presence of Archbishop Timothy Costelloe of Perth, the conference president. Like Bo, Costelloe is a member of the Salesians of Don Bosco.

Myanmar has been engulfed in civil war since the military seized power on Feb. 1, 2021, deposing the elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi. Bo has repeatedly called for nonviolence and dialogue, urging both the junta and pro-democracy forces to step back from further bloodshed. Pope Francis visited the country in 2017. In November 2025, Pope Leo XIV appealed to the international community not to forget the people of Myanmar.

Born in Monhla Village in 1948, Bo joined the Salesians of Don Bosco as a young man and was ordained a priest in 1976. He was appointed archbishop of Yangon by Pope John Paul II in 2003 and was created cardinal by Pope Francis in 2015. He served as president of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences from 2018 to 2022.

The Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference plenary continues in Sydney through May 13.

In an official statement released by the Diocese of Tagbilaran on May 5, Saco said that after “much prayer and careful discernment,” he had decided not to continue with the episcopal ordination scheduled for May 26.

“I sincerely ask for your understanding regarding this change of heart,” Saco said in the statement. “It comes from a deep awareness of my own human limitations and inadequacies.”

Saco, who had been serving as diocesan administrator since October 2025 following the appointment of Bishop Alberto Uy as archbishop of Cebu in 2025, was appointed bishop of Tagbilaran by Pope Leo XIV on March 25.

The Archdiocese of Cebu, the metropolitan see of Tagbilaran, later confirmed that the Vatican had accepted Sacoʼs decision.

In a statement, Uy said that Saco had communicated his decision directly to the Holy Father.

“Bishop-elect Gerardo ‘Jingboy’ Saco Jr. has communicated to the Holy Father his decision not to proceed with his episcopal ordination,” Uy said. “The papal nuncio has informed me that the Holy Father has accepted his decision.”

Uy acknowledged that while he respects Sacoʼs decision, it “has brought sadness to many of us, especially the faithful of the Diocese of Tagbilaran.”

Despite widespread public interest surrounding the rare decision, Saco has declined interview requests from journalists. Sources interviewed by EWTN News said the priest has requested privacy and told those seeking interviews that he “just needs more time for himself.”

One priest from the Diocese of Tagbilaran, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, said many clergy were initially “shocked and saddened” upon hearing the news but that he respected the decision of Saco, whom he described as “a simple man, kind and has a big heart for the poor and marginalized.”

“We have a very thriving diocese. We are not in debt. We have so many vocations. We send out priests to do mission work because we have many priests here. I donʼt know why he declined.”

Online, many Catholic faithful and netizens reacted with surprise and sympathy. Some described the decision as “courageous,” noting that stepping away from such an appointment required humility and honesty. Others promised prayers for Saco and for the Diocese of Tagbilaran, which remains “sede vacante” pending a new episcopal appointment.

Difficult role

Catholic apologist and pro-life advocate Carlos Antonio Palad cautioned against “dark and baseless speculations” about Sacoʼs reasons, noting that “the pope has accepted his decision, so he cannot be accused of disobedience, as some have implied.”

Palad added that the leadership of a diocese “is very heavy, and it is not a secret that many priests refuse the office when it is offered to them,” urging respect for Sacoʼs “conscience and his decision.”

Catholic commentators also noted that, while rare, there have been instances in Church history where priests or bishops-elect declined episcopal appointments before ordination.

The Diocese of Tagbilaran comprises 60 parishes, served by 126 diocesan priests across 1,734 square kilometers (670 square miles) of the southern half of the island province of Bohol, according to the latest statistics.

Saco remains the diocesan administrator as the Holy See restarts the selection process for a new bishop of Tagbilaran.

While the poll outcomes from the two southern states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been soothing for Christians, the results from West Bengal and Assam in eastern and northeastern India have come as frustrating for Christian communities.

Kerala: A ‘clear verdict’ against propaganda

In the southern Christian heartland of Kerala, the ruling communist alliance was decimated to 35 seats while the opposition Congress-led alliance won 102 seats in the 140-member assembly of Kerala, a state of 35 million people, 18% of whom are Christian.

“The result has shown that the people cannot be misled by propaganda and they have given a clear verdict against it,” Father Thomas Tharayil, deputy secretary of the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council, told EWTN News on May 6.

The remark came against the backdrop of anti-Christian propaganda by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with prominent Christians in the BJP even attacking Church leaders for the Churchʼs protest against the draconian amendment to the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act.

Christians in Kerala were relieved after four prominent Christians who had allied with the BJP lost the polls despite making much noise against church leadership: P.C. George, a seven-time Kerala legislator; his son Shone George; federal Minister of State for Minority Affairs George Kurian; and Anoop Antony.

Half a dozen other Christian candidates the BJP fielded in Christian pockets under its lotus symbol also lost, while the party won just three seats with its Hindu candidates.

Tamil Nadu: A ‘genuinely historic’ TVK upset

In neighboring Tamil Nadu, with a population of 77 million, the new political party TVK (Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam — Victory Party of Tamil Nadu), founded by Catholic actor Joseph Vijay, stunned the Dravidian parties that had held power for nearly six decades between them.

Under Vijayʼs leadership, the TVK he founded in 2024 won 108 of the 234 seats in the state legislature, with the ruling DMK reduced to 73 and the opposition AIADMK left with 53 seats.

Describing the TVK victory that stunned even poll forecasts as “genuinely historic,” Father Charles Antony, editor of the Catholic fortnightly New Leader based in Chennai, told EWTN News: “Vijayʼs victory is real, consequential, and disruptive [of the] bipolar politics” in the state, which has more than 5 million Christians.

“He visited churches, temples, and mosques alike during the campaign, successfully projecting himself as a leader for all communities. This secular messaging helped his party distance itself from identity-based polarization,” he added.

While Vijay is “Catholic,” Antony emphasized that “his Christian identity is incidental to his politics. Attacks from the BJP [on his Christian identity] with ‘minority’ tag against him, paradoxically, may have helped consolidate minority votes.”

West Bengal: ‘A terrible result many had feared’

The likely outcome in West Bengal — the state bordering Bangladesh — had been the subject of much conjecture even before voting, due to the controversial, hurried action of the Election Commission of India that disenfranchised more than 9 million, or 12%, of its 76 million voters under a Special Intensive Revision of the voter list.

The Trinamool Congress, which had ruled the state since 2011 across three consecutive terms, lost the election badly — as many had feared — winning a mere 80 seats while the BJP captured power in the state for the first time, with 205 seats in the 294-seat state assembly.

“This is a terrible result many had feared,” Sunil Lucas, former president of Signis India, told EWTN News, while prominent Church leaders declined to comment on the results that bring the Hindu nationalist BJP to power in West Bengal — with Kolkata as its capital — for the first time.

“Decoding BJPʼs Bengal sweep: 77 seats won in 2021 retained, 129 wrested from TMC,” Indian Express summed up the results, which were flayed by the ruling party and the opposition parties other than the BJP.

On May 5, the national news channel NDTV carried a similar report with graphic details on how the ruling Trinamool Congress party “performed in seats with high voter deletions.” In constituencies where more than 25,000 voters had been disenfranchised, the BJP had won 95 of 147 seats, the report pointed out.

Assam: ‘Democracy becomes a failure’

In Assam state in the northeast, the BJP improved its tally with allies to 102 of the stateʼs 126 seats, securing a third consecutive term.

“When the ruling party with over two-thirds majority has no member of the minorities in the legislature, democracy becomes a failure,” Allen Brooks, a Catholic and spokesperson for the ecumenical Assam Christian Forum, told EWTN News.

While none of the 82 BJP winners are from the Muslim community, which accounts for 34% of Assamʼs population, Brooks also lamented that “there is not a single Christian in the Assam Assembly now, though Christians account for 3.7%” of the stateʼs 31 million people.

Commenting on the election results, Cardinal Anthony Poola, president of the Catholic Bishops' conference of India, in a May 6 statement said: “The true measure of a vibrant democracy lies not just in the successful conduct of elections but in the steadfast commitment of elected leaders to serve the most vulnerable. We urge the new governments to work hand-in-hand with all institutions to build a more just, inclusive, and equitable India.”

This story was updated at 12:29 p.m. ET on May 6, 2026, to include Cardinal Anthony Poolaʼs statement.

“I know that I am not capable of this big responsibility,” Vaquilar said. "But being chosen for this big responsibility, I am hoping for all the help from God, for I know he will guide me as a pastor,” the bishop-designate said after David William Antonio, archbishop of Nueva Segovia — the jurisdiction in which Vaquilar had served until now — announced his appointment.

“Your presence is a blessing, and we look forward to journeying together in faith, hope, and service. Thank you for saying ‘yes’ to this new ministry. The local Church of Urdaneta is blessed to have you as our new shepherd,” the Diocese of Urdaneta posted on Facebook.

Vaquilar succeeds Bishop Jacinto A. José, who led the diocese for over 20 years and whose resignation the pope accepted after the prelate reached the age of 75, the retirement age for bishops in the Catholic Church.

Who is the new bishop of Urdaneta?

Born on May 3, 1970, in the town of Cabugao in Ilocos Sur province, Vaquilar studied philosophy at the San Pablo University Seminary in Baguio and theology at the Immaculate Conception School of Theology in Vigan. He earned a licentiate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and a doctorate in biblical theology from the Loyola School of Theology in Quezon City.

He was ordained a priest on May 5, 1997, for the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia.

He has held the following positions, among others: parochial vicar of the Metropolitan Cathedral of St. Paul in Vigan (1997–2000, 2004); professor and resident formator at the Immaculate Conception School of Theology in Vigan (2000–2001, 2005–2009); and rector of the Immaculate Conception School of Theology in Vigan (2009–2011, and subsequently, since 2015).

He has also served as parish priest at St. Nicholas of Tolentine in Sinait (2013–2014) and as director of the Archdiocesan Biblical Apostolate since 2018.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

The reactions followed a May 2 ceremony by the provincial Department of Endowments, Hajj, Religious and Minority Affairs, which distributed checks to 37 victims from minority communities affected by terrorism in the province bordering Afghanistan.

The beneficiaries included 11 widows, 24 orphaned children, and two persons with disabilities, who received payments ranging from 1 million to 2 million rupees ($3,588 to $7,175).

Some recipients were linked to All Saints Church, where at least 96 people were killed and more than 150 injured in twin suicide bombings on Sept. 22, 2013.

Among them was Zubair Zafar, who lost his father in the attack claimed by a faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

Now working as an office assistant at the civil secretariat, Zafar said he plans to use the 2 million rupees to support his siblings' education and arrange his younger sisterʼs marriage.

“I wanted to join the military, but I could not leave my family as the eldest of five children,” he said. “I started working after my grade 12 exams to support my mother, who works as a kitchen in-charge at an orphanage run by the Peshawar Diocese of the Church of Pakistan.”

He said government officials, in their speeches, promised laptops, scholarships, and profit-sharing from minority funds for widows and orphans. “Given the pace, we have little hope,” he added.

Delayed disbursements

While provincial governments in Sindh and Punjab provided compensation ranging from 200,000 to 500,000 rupees to victims soon after the attack, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government delayed disbursements despite court interventions and repeated appeals.

Frustration deepened after the Provincial Disaster Management Authority and the Auqaf Department converted an earlier 200 million rupee compensation package earmarked for Christian victims into a broader endowment fund for minorities, a move families say diluted targeted relief.

On April 1, Chief Minister Sohail Afridi approved increasing the fundʼs allocation from 200 million to 400 million rupees and directed authorities to expedite payments.

But survivors say the process remains opaque and slow.

Khuram Yaqoob Sahotra, who lost his right eye in the blast, returned from the distribution ceremony disheartened.

“I was told the compensation would be given before July 1. I expected the checks the same day. Now we are told to wait again for approval,” he said.

The 40-year-old father of three, a former school clerk who lost his job during the COVID-19 pandemic, still carries ball bearings lodged in his spine.

“Doctors have advised me against lifting heavy objects. I cannot sit or stand for long periods,” he said, adding that his extended family now supports him.

He continues to undergo treatment for complications related to his artificial eye. “Initially, support came from across the country, but it later dried up. Now there is no clear plan. There is no transparency,” he said.

Habib Khan, additional secretary of the Auqaf Department in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said at least 100 more minority victims would receive compensation this month.

“The data is being verified. Those with incomplete documents are being contacted. No one will be left out,” he said, declining to comment on the prolonged delay.

‘A mockery of justice’

Rights advocates say the payments come too late for many families.

The Cecil and Iris Chaudhry Foundation, a Catholic charity that provided vocational training to 80 orphaned girls and widowed mothers after the attack, said many victims died over the years due to inadequate medical care and financial hardship.

“More than a decade has passed, during which many injured victims lost their lives and families lost their sole breadwinners,” said Michelle Chaudhry, president of the foundation. “Disbursing funds in installments now amounts to a mockery of justice.”

She urged the government to release full compensation in a single payment “with dignity and respect.”

All Saints Church

Built in 1883 inside Peshawarʼs Kohati Gate, All Saints Church is widely regarded as Pakistanʼs only church designed in a mosque-inspired architectural style, with domes, minaret-like towers, and Persian and Pashto biblical inscriptions. The Christian community rebuilt it at a cost of 4 million rupees ($14,349) without government support.

Peshawar remains on the front line of militancy in Pakistan.

In 2022, Church of Pakistan lay pastor William Siraj, 70, was shot dead and another pastor injured after Sunday prayers at Shaheedan (Martyrs)-e-All Saints Church in Peshawar.

In 2016, security forces foiled a suicide attack on a Christian neighborhood in the cityʼs Warsak area after four suicide bombers attempted to enter the colony.

Officers raided the area on the night of April 30 and detained the suspects, according to Tanvir Ahmed, deputy commissioner of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police. Ahmed said the men had prior robbery cases against them and that police were continuing to investigate.

“The Christian community was celebrating Easter Sunday a month ago and the robbers thought the father had extra money, so they committed this robbery,” Ahmed told EWTN News.

According to police, the men arrived at the church on a rickshaw; the driver kept watch outside while two others scaled the perimeter wall, cut through a grille, and entered the priestʼs bedroom.

The predawn assault

The arrests follow an attack at around 2:30 a.m. on April 28 on Father Subash Pulok Gomes, OMI, 51, an Oblate missionary who lives in the compound of De Mazenod Catholic Church in Baridhara, Dhakaʼs diplomatic enclave.

The intruders made off with cash, the priestʼs passport, and other documents, according to the police account. Gomes is currently undergoing treatment.

“They beat me and tortured me and tied me up and then fought with me, and my nose and face were injured,” Gomes said.

A day after the incident, the priest filed a general diary with police describing the assault.

“When I was crying, they covered my face with a cloth and beat me,” he said in his statement. “Two unidentified people beat me and took 250,000 [taka; $2,037] and other valuable papers including my passport that were kept in the cupboard in the room.”

According to the statement, one of the assailants called the other “Mizan” — a name commonly used among Muslim men in Bangladesh — and tried to calm the priest before the men left with the cash and documents.

Following the incident, the priests, in consultation with their superior and other Church authorities, filed only the general diary rather than pursuing a formal criminal case.

“For religious and spiritual reasons, I and the Church authorities will not file any case regarding the incident. I request that the incident be recorded in the general diary for future reference,” Gomes said.

A priest told EWTN News that Gomes is now undergoing mental trauma. A second robbery occurred at a Catholic residence on the same night, lay leaders and Church authorities said, expressing concern over the incidents.

A pattern of attacks

The De Mazenod Church has been targeted before. On May 4, 2022, police arrested a 26-year-old Muslim man, Mohammad Nahid Sheikh, for hurling bricks at the church and damaging an image of the Virgin Mary.

In April of that year, a young man attacked a Catholic church in Joypurhat in northern Bangladesh and destroyed statues of Jesus, Mary, and St. Teresa of Calcutta.

More recently, attackers detonated a homemade bomb outside St. Maryʼs Cathedral in Dhaka on Nov. 7, 2025; hours later, another device exploded inside the compound of St. Josephʼs Higher Secondary School and College in the Mohammadpur neighborhood. About a month earlier, on Oct. 8, 2025, a similar device was detonated at the gate of Holy Rosary Catholic Church, founded by Portuguese missionaries in 1677 and one of the oldest Catholic institutions in the country.

In 2001, 10 Catholics were killed and dozens injured in a bomb blast during a Sunday Mass in Gopalganj, in southern Bangladesh, but the incident is still being investigated.

Christians account for less than 0.5% of the population of Bangladesh, and religious minorities together make up around 8% of the more than 180 million people in the Muslim-majority South Asian nation.

Christian leaders demand investigation

Christian leaders are calling for justice. After the latest robbery, representatives of the Bangladesh Christian Association met with priests at De Mazenod Church and demanded a government investigation.

The associationʼs president, Nirmal Rozario, said the incident was very unfortunate and posed grave risks to religious life in the country.

“We condemn this incident and demand a fair investigation from the government into this incident and all the incidents that have happened to Christian minority communities in the past,” Rozario told EWTN News.

The Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026, passed on April 27, sets 18 years as the minimum legal age of marriage for both boys and girls. Previously, the minimum age stood at 18 for males and 16 for females in Punjab, home to Pakistanʼs largest Christian community.

The House also adopted an amendment directing courts not to treat the mere statement or purported consent of a child to reside with or accompany an adult contracting party as determinative in custody, residence, or protective orders.

Agreement on child protection

Moved by Ijaz Masih, a Christian member of the Punjab Assembly and former provincial minister for human rights and minority affairs, and co-sponsored by 13 members across party lines, the amendment was described as a rare instance of consensus on child protection.

Church representatives linked the law to ongoing concerns over how consent is assessed in cases involving alleged forced conversion and marriage of minority girls.

“In Pakistanʼs forced conversion cases of Christian and Hindu families, the statement recorded before a magistrate is often crucial because it provides a girlʼs testimony under judicial oversight,” Masih told EWTN News, adding that proposals to annul such marriages remain under consideration.

The bill was passed amid renewed concern in Christian circles after the Federal Constitutional Court on March 25 upheld the marriage of a 13-year-old Christian girl, Maria Bibi, to a 30-year-old Muslim man.

Speaking at an April 30 Bible study session organized by the Ecumenical Commission for Human Development at St. Francis Catholic Church in Kamalpur village in the Faisalabad Diocese, Father Obaid Matthais, dean of studies at St. Thomas the Apostle Minor Seminary, questioned the effectiveness of the reform.

“How can the new law prevent forced conversion when the Muslim nikah [marriage] remains valid?” he said, warning that minority girls studying or working away from home remain at risk.

He added that such rulings “hang like a sword” over vulnerable Christian girls, particularly domestic workers and students in urban centers.

Christian leaders, including Archbishop Khalid Rehmat of Lahore, have also expressed concern that court decisions in such cases risk legitimizing disputed marriages involving minors allegedly abducted and forcibly converted, especially in the absence of updated personal laws governing Christian marriage and family life.

The proposed reform of the Christian Marriage Act of 1872 seeks to raise the minimum marriage age for Christian boys and girls to 18 and require both parties to be Christian for a marriage to be solemnized under the law, replacing current provisions that allow interfaith marriages.

Rehmat has announced the formation of a church committee to draft amendments following an ecumenical consultation held in Lahore on April 24–25.

Qamar Iqbal, assistant professor of political science, described the Child Marriage Restraint Bill as a “protective mechanism,” saying it could strengthen legal safeguards if implemented effectively.

In a joint statement issued on April 29, Bishop Samson Shukardin of Hyderabad, president of the Pakistan Catholic Bishops' Conference and chairperson of the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), together with Father Bernard Emmanuel, NCJP national director, and Naeem Yousaf Gill, NCJP executive director, described the legislation as a “defining move” to safeguard childhood and uphold human dignity.

While welcoming the law, they stressed that legislation alone is not sufficient to end child marriage and called for strict enforcement. “Union councils, nikah registrars, and police must be held accountable, and courts must enforce the law without exception,” the statement said.

They urged institutions and families not to bypass the law under the guise of custom or tradition.

“The problem remains due to dual legal systems [constitutional and Sharia]. Judges are often influenced in cases involving minorities,” Gill told EWTN News, adding that equal and consistent implementation could turn the law into a “cornerstone for lasting change.”

Report findings

The NCJPʼs position aligns with findings from its April 11 report, “Captive Souls: The Untold Story of Pakistanʼs Minority Girls,” which documented multiple cases of alleged forced conversion and highlighted recurring issues such as social exclusion, abuse, financial exploitation, and weak legal documentation.

The report recommends a state-regulated conversion process overseen by magistrates, a ban on clerics and madrassas issuing independent conversion certificates, and strict enforcement of a minimum age of 18 for both marriage and religious conversion.

It notes that Pakistan currently has no legal minimum age for religious conversion, leaving a critical protection gap.

Matthais, however, remains skeptical about prospects for reform. “Itʼs tough. The majority will resist such changes,” he said, arguing that proposed safeguards for religious minorities often face ideological opposition.

Iqbal said work on regulating conversion practices must continue, though progress remains slow due to “sensitive majority sentiments” that require careful engagement and dialogue.

“Things are peaceful now and the Church has made its stand clear with our earlier (April 20) statement,” Father Barry Cardozo, Goa archdiocesan social communications director, told EWTN News on April 28.

Gautam Khattar, a viral Hindu YouTuber and founder of the Hindu group Sanatan Mahasangh, made the controversial remarks about St. Francis Xavier on April 18 at an event organized by a Hindu group, Sanatan Dharma Raksha Samiti (Eternal Religion Protection Committee), at Vasco in south Goa in the presence of a state minister and legislator.

“We unequivocally reject and condemn these pernicious statements,” the Catholic Church of Goa articulated its concern in a powerful statement on April 20 as news of the controversial comments spread.

The statement expressed “deep pain and anguish over the hateful and malicious remarks made recently at a public function in Vasco city against St. Francis Xavier, … affectionately known as the Gõycho Saib, a saint loved and revered not only in Goa but by millions of people across the globe.”

In Konkani, the language of Goa, Gõycho Saib — commonly rendered “Goencho Saib” in English-language press — means “Protector of Goa.”

Born in Spain in 1506, the Jesuit co-founder Francis Xavier reached Goa in 1542 while the region was a Portuguese colony. Baptizing thousands in Goa and along the southern coast of India, missionary Xavier left for east Asia in 1549 and returned to India in 1551.

During his trip to China in 1552, he fell sick and died at the age of 46. After his buried body was found incorrupt a year later, it was brought to Goa and has been preserved in a glass casket on top of the side altar of the Basilica of Bom Jesus.

The incorrupt body is taken out for solemn exposition every 10 years and kept for public viewing for weeks at the nearby Se Cathedral during the decennial exposition, with millions thronging Goa.

“Such divisive rhetoric, laced with falsehoods and venom, deeply hurts the sentiments of lakhs [hundreds of thousands] of Goans — irrespective of the religion they profess — who hold St. Francis Xavier in the highest esteem. These statements have caused serious hurt to the religious sentiments of Catholics and risk disturbing the communal harmony we have long cherished,” the Catholic Church pointed out.

It called upon “authorities to take immediate, strong, and exemplary action against those responsible for this hate speech, in accordance with the laws of the land.”

At the same time, the Church appealed to “all to remain calm and exercise restraint. Let us uphold the peace and unity that have defined us for so long,” it said, calling for the saintʼs “spirit of love and fraternity [to] continue to guide us all towards ever greater unity and peace in these troubled times.”

Apology to Christian community

Amid infuriated protesters marching to police stations and holding huge protest rallies in all major centers in Goa, Khattar went underground while the Hindu group that organized the meeting held a news conference the next day to apologize to the Christian community.

“We are tendering an apology to all our Christian brothers with whom we have been living like brothers. We never expected Khattar to make such a statement, and we had tried to stop him,” the organizers said in a statement.

The self-described “spiritual beat journalist” Khattar has been booked by the Goa Police under criminal sections for allegedly making “derogatory remarks” against St. Francis Xavier and “hurting religious sentiments.”

“This was an attempt by the Hindu fringe elements to polarize the Goans on religious lines,” Cyril Fernandes, president of the Catholic Association of Goa, which filed the criminal complaint against Khattar, told EWTN News on April 29.

“The people of Goa stand united and it was manifest in the protests with people all faiths joining the protests. Hindus were never persecuted under the Portuguese as these fringe groups claim,” Fernandes reiterated.

Christians, most of them Catholic, account for a quarter of Goaʼs 1.5 million people, with the overwhelming majority being Hindus.

Joan Rebello, a retired Catholic professor who joined the protest in Murgao, told EWTN News: “The protest was spontaneous and widespread. Even many Hindus joined the protests as they were also hurt by the remarks against the saint revered as Goaʼs patron.”

Meanwhile, news reports quoting the police said Khattar was hospitalized on April 28 after he complained of “uneasiness and hypertension.”

She died on April 14, according to Our Lady of Peace Hospital, which announced her passing the following day.

In the 1970s, Sister Eva performed surgery on an Indigenous woman using a bamboo table and coconut water to keep the patient alive in Lake Sebu, southern Philippines. The urgent action was necessary because reaching the nearest hospital required hours on foot and crossing multiple rivers.

Her life of service and sacrifice made a deep impact on people, particularly the poor who most availed themselves of the nunʼs medical and pastoral care.

“I remember her vividly during my years as an intern and resident at Manila Doctors Hospital, attending to her patients,” said Dr. Anthony Leachon, a physician.

“Her quiet strength, her devotion to the sick and the poor, and her example of servant leadership shaped not only the lives of those she treated but also the young physicians who learned under her guidance,” he added.

Sister Eva was born on Sept. 17, 1940, in Liloan, Southern Leyte. She studied at the Velez College of Medicine in Cebu, central Philippines, and practiced at her familyʼs clinic in Liloan for a while.

Later, she entered the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres to be a nun and missionary in 1974, serving as a physician in Lake Sebu and later in other parts of the country.

Health as a right

One of her steadfast beliefs was that health is a right for all, not a privilege for a few.

Being a surgeon, she did not limit herself to an operating room. She visited public hospitals, communities, and places with very limited access to health care.

Sister Evaʼs role went beyond that of a physician who is meant to treat illnesses; she made sure to work for peopleʼs dignity — interacting with patients where they lived, seeing their existential realities.

“In this way, she showed the human face of healing and care while witnessing Godʼs mercy,” Maria Martineze, a volunteer, told EWTN News.

The nunʼs quiet and consistent commitment tried to abridge the existing gap — need and access to health but also working for inclusion and peopleʼs right to access health, Martineze explained.

‘Barefoot doctors’

She trained “barefoot doctors” — men and women skilled to treat common illnesses and provide basic care in remote and rural areas where accessing health care has always remained a challenge.

According to Sister Eva, the “barefoot doctors” are not physicians, but they are skilled at treating common diseases.

Sister Eva trained 17 barefoot doctors in Lake Sebu in 1974. Over the years, she expanded the initiative across the country, training 274 barefoot doctors from 110 Indigenous communities.

Care for Indigenous peoples

Sister Eva had a distinctive character — going to the peripheries — as a missionary and a doctor. In her heart, she had special love for Indigenous peoples and geographically and socially isolated communities in the country, including the Tʼboli, Aeta, and Manobo.

She trained them in basic medical skills like CPR, physical exams, and minor surgery, empowering them to become health providers for their tribes.

One of the Indigenous peoples, the Aeta, displaced by the Mount Pinatubo eruption in 1991, was cared for by the nun.

The nun worked with them for years, capacitating the leaders and community, strengthening their dignity, resilience, and physical well-being.

With her efforts, as many as 146 families with 500 persons were able to resettle. Some eventually converted to Catholicism.

“She spent her life in healing and service with compassion and love for Indigenous people,” Lourdes Balinta, an Aeta teacher, told EWTN News.

Hospital for affordable health care

The Foundation of Our Lady of Peace Mission was established in 1984 by Sister Eva and American Jesuit Father James Reuter to address the needs of the poor.

Additionally, in 1992, Our Lady of Peace Hospital, Parañaque, Metro Manila, was built to provide the poor with affordable access to quality health care, including feeding and livelihood programs for the poor in Metro Manila and other areas.

“Through her foundation and hospital, she brought healing, dignity, and hope to countless marginalized communities across the Philippines, offering free medical care, shelter, and livelihood opportunities,” a message from Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation said.

“Small in stature but immense in spirit, Sister Evaʼs life stands as a powerful witness to Gospel compassion lived out in action,” it added.

Sister Evaʼs life was marked by extraordinary compassion and service to the poor, embodying the Christian spirit of selfless love and dedication, Bishop Precioso D. Cantillas of Maasin said.

Her tireless work as a healer and advocate for the marginalized was a profound witness to her faith in Christ and love for humanity, he added. The remarkable legacy she leaves behind — her ministry and compassion — touched countless lives.

“May her example keep motivating us to live lives of service and faithfulness to Godʼs mission,” the prelate said.

Accolades

In 1997, Sister Eva received the Ramon Magsaysay Award, often considered Asiaʼs Nobel Prize, for her dedicated service to the poor communities through medicine.

In 1992, she received the Mother Teresa Award of the Philippines. In 2006, the nun was recognized as a Lasallian Star of Faith awardee, recognizing her decades of dedicated service as a nun and surgeon whose life epitomized faith in service.

True spirit of service

Though Sister Eva has passed, her legacy remains in the hearts of people.

“She was a hardworking, humble, and caring woman of God — a physician-leader whose hands healed and whose heart uplifted countless lives,” Leachon said. “Multi-awarded yet always grounded, she embodied the true spirit of service.”

“Her life reminds us that medicine is not only science but also love in action,” he added. “May her memory continue to inspire generations of healers and advocates. Her light endures in the lives she touched.”

Chisim, 65, received the papal honor “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice” in 2025 in recognition of her lifelong service to the Church. The award highlighted a vocation lived not in vows or ordination but in persistent support of Catholics discerning consecrated life.

Mariamnagar Parish, founded in 1937 by American Holy Cross missionaries, has produced at least eight priests and seven religious sisters over the years. According to clergy and religious from the parish, Chisim has played a role — both direct or indirect — in nearly all of those vocations.

A member of the parish, Chisim teaches at the local Catholic school and serves as a catechist. Known for her fidelity to Church teaching and firm moral guidance, she has long accompanied young people considering the priesthood or religious life, often stepping into roles usually filled by parents or formal formation staff.

Though never officially assigned to a seminary or formation house, Chisim has acted quietly and become what local clergy call a “caregiver of vocations,” introducing boys and girls to seminaries and religious congregations, helping them navigate formation, and supporting them materially when poverty threatened to derail their calling.

Chisim, the mother of one child, personally financed the seminary education of her younger brother — now Father Joseph Chisim. Beyond her family, she has continued to follow the progress of seminarians and candidates, remaining in contact with them through letters, visits, and phone calls, particularly during moments of doubt or crisis.

Father Sanchaya Ignatius Chisim (no relation to Lobdine Chisim), rector of St. Paul’s Minor Seminary in Jalchatra, Tangail, credits the influence of the laywoman as decisive in his own discernment. Speaking to EWTN News, he said she first inspired him while teaching catechism classes during his school years.

“She encouraged me to enter the seminary and continued to guide me after I joined,” he said. “She gave me advice and counseling, and many times helped me financially while I was a seminarian.”

During vacations home from the seminary, Father Chisim recalled, she would regularly check on him. “She protected me like a mother and warned me against temptation. She played an important role in my becoming a priest, and I am grateful to her.”

Religious sisters from Mariamnagar Parish offer similar testimony.

Sister Mary Hima of the Associates of Mary, Queen of Apostles, now headmistress of St. Lawrence School in Dhaka, said she first encountered Chisim as a child in catechism classes.

“She inspired us to become sisters even then,” Hima told EWTN News. “When I later entered the formation house, she was very happy and continued to motivate me, saying that as a sister I would be able to serve very well.”

Hima said Chisim’s support did not end after first profession. During a difficult period in her early religious life, when she felt unable to confide in her community or family, she turned to Chisim for guidance.

“She gave me honest advice and counseling, which helped me continue my religious life with strength,” Hima said, adding that she remains deeply grateful.

Beyond individual discernment, Chisim has become a respected figure throughout her village. She regularly leads evening prayers and is known for encouraging priests, sisters, and laypeople to live faithfully and ethically.

Speaking to EWTN News, Chisim said her motivation comes from a simple conviction about the life of the Church.

“Priests and sisters provide wonderful service. They keep the Church alive,” she said. “That is why we need many of them.”

She explained that she offers financial assistance only to those pursuing religious vocations, not for marriage. “Many families live below the poverty line,” she said. “Some boys and girls lose enthusiasm because they cannot afford books, exam fees, or school costs. I help them as much as I can.”

Although she does not consider herself wealthy, Chisim said she finds peace in supporting vocations. “I spend less on the world so that I can help them,” she said.

Her role has even extended to assisting diocesan leadership. She recalled being asked by Bishop Ponen Paul Kubi, CSC, of Mymensingh to counsel seminarians struggling with hesitation shortly before ordination.

“I talk to them and encourage them to return to the seminary,” she said. “Many have continued and are now serving the Church beautifully.”

For those who know her, Chisim’s life stands as a testimony to the often-unseen power of lay witness — a vocation of fidelity that, quietly and persistently, has helped sustain the Church in Bangladesh.

The violence took place on April 19 in the Christian village of Birganj in the area of Christ the King Catholic Church in the Birganj area of ​​the Dinajpur Diocese in the northern part of the country.

Nearly 200 Muslims were reportedly involved in the attack and used local homemade weapons such as axes, iron rods, and bamboo sticks in an attempt to steal land from Indigenous Christians and Hindus.

Indigenous peoples in Bangladesh are made up of ethnic groups that are culturally and historically distinct from the Bengali majority in the country, and many happen to be Christian, Hindu, or Buddhist.

“Six Indigenous were seriously injured in the attack and one was pierced by an arrow. The injured are undergoing treatment in the hospital,” Pius Murmu, a 45-year-old Catholic injured in the attack, told EWTN News.

Murmu said that almost 50-60 families live in Birganj and that they have been using the land there for more than a century. In addition, more than 200 landless Indigenous families in the area use the cemetery to bury their dead and live around it.

Indigenous Christian families in Birganj say they have been living on the land there for several generations.

Saiful Islam, police officer in charge of the local Birganj police station, told EWTN News that there has been a long-standing dispute with members of the Indigenous community over a small parcel (93 decimals, which is .01 acres) of state-owned land. Rezaul Islam, son of Abdul Quader of the nearby village of Ghoraband, claims to own the land.

According to the police officer: "On April 19, at noon, about 200 people led by Islam and his uncle Azad attacked the temple and graveyard with the intention of taking the land. They attacked the temple with sticks, rods, and sharp weapons and cut down 10-12 trees in the graveyard. A house was also vandalized during this time.”

He added that when members of the Indigenous community resisted, they were beaten up and injured.

Saiful Islam also said that after the police received information, they went to the spot and dispersed the attackers. Additional police were deployed to control the situation. The vandalized property and other evidence were seized.

When asked about his involvement in the attack, Rezaul Islam said: “I bought 41 decimals of the land in 1999 and another 48 decimals in 2023 from someone else. The remaining land belongs to the graveyard.” But he denied the allegations that he attacked Indigenous people, saying: “We are not involved in this attack. I do not know who or what carried out this attack.”

Christians account for less than half a percent of the population of Bangladesh and religious minorities are only 8% of more than 180 million people in the Muslim-majority south Asian nation of Bangladesh.

Father Antony Sen, convener of the Justice and Peace Commission of Dinajpur Diocese, said he believes minorities are often made victims of violence because of injustice and the lack of will on the part of government officials to address it.

“Such incidents will be resolved only when the government of the country is humane and solves every incident fairly. The government must solve the problem of these Indigenous people with land,” Sen told EWTN News.

He said the problem is not only with privately-owned land but also that Church lands are also threatened as local influential people make attempts to occupy it. Sen said they will soon hold discussions with government officials to try to resolve the situation.

The attack in Birganj is not the only example of violence against Indigenous people and religious minorities in Bangladesh; most of it is centered on land grabbing.

In 2001, a bomb attack took place during Sunday Mass at Most Holy Redeemer Church in the southern district of Gopalganj, killing 10 and injuring over 50 Catholics.

On Jan. 24, 2015, a group of Muslims armed with homemade weapons and firearms attempted to forcibly cultivate tribal lands in Dinajpur.

On Nov. 6, 2016, in the Gobindganj area of Gaibandha district, tribal homes were set on fire and three Christians were killed.

The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCUC) annual report in 2025, on violence against religious and ethnic minorities, recorded over 1,000 cases of human rights violations.

The interreligious forum’s findings were based on media reports from July 2023 to June 2024. During this period, 45 members of minority communities were murdered and there were 10 attempted murders and 36 death threats.

A native of Pangasinan, Peralta grew up with a deep love for Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of Manaoag, affectionately called by devotees “Apo Baket,” a local term that literally means “Old Lady” but conveys deep reverence for the Blessed Mother as a venerable matriarch.

After marrying her husband, a serviceman in the United States Navy, Peralta relocated to California, where they began raising their family. Despite the distance from her homeland, Peralta said her Marian devotion remained central to her life, especially during moments of suffering.

Her faith was put to the test when doctors diagnosed her with malignant tumors in her thyroid. During that difficult period, she turned constantly to prayer before a replica of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of Manaoag enshrined at her parish church in San Diego.

“There was no single day that I didn’t pray to Our Lady of Manaoag and to Our Lord Jesus, who is really our healer,” Peralta recalled.

After undergoing a series of medical tests, she said her physician was surprised when a subsequent biopsy showed no trace of cancer.

According to Peralta, she initially kept both her diagnosis and her healing private. But her story eventually came to light when a fellow Filipino-American parishioner approached her one day after Mass saying she had dreamt of the Blessed Mother inviting her to visit her shrine in Manaoag.

The parishioner shared that she had purchased a plane ticket to the Philippines for the visit. Peralta, who had also quietly arranged a trip with her husband to give thanks for her healing, was struck by the unexpected confirmation.

News of her recovery quickly spread within the close-knit Filipino Catholic community in San Diego, and she soon found herself sharing her testimony with fellow Marian devotees.

On April 22, Peralta and her husband will be among the millions of pilgrims in Pangasinan marking the centenary of the canonical coronation of the image of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of Manaoag, enshrined at the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag.

A canonical coronation is a formal act of the pope typically expressed through a papal decree or bull that bestows the pontifical right to “crown” a specific, highly venerated image of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary, or St. Joseph.

A devotion rooted in centuries of faith

The devotion to the Lady of Manaoag traces its origins to a reported apparition in 1605 when a farmer is said to have seen the Blessed Mother holding the Child Jesus atop a tree located on the present-day site of the basilica.

According to long-standing tradition, the farmer heard a voice calling him by name. Following the sound, he saw a radiant cloud resting on a leafy tree. From there, the Blessed Mother identified herself as the Lady of the Rosary and asked that a shrine be built in that place so that the faithful could come to seek her maternal protection.

Word of the apparition spread quickly among neighboring communities, drawing pilgrims to the site. Over time, the area came to be known as “Manaoag,” a term derived from the local expression “Dimad Virgen ya Mantataoag,” meaning “to the place where the Virgin calls.”

Missionary activity in the region was first undertaken by Augustinian missionaries who accompanied Ferdinand Magellanʼs expedition. Later, administration of the mission was entrusted to the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), whose members eventually built the church dedicated to the Blessed Mother.

The centuries-old ivory image of the Virgin Mary housed in the basilica has since become one of the most beloved Marian images in the Philippines. Devotees widely attribute to her powerful intercession countless testimonies of healing, protection, and answered prayers.

The image was solemnly crowned in April 1926 by Archbishop Guglielmo Piani, then the apostolic delegate of Pope Pius XI to the Philippines, in recognition of the deep and enduring devotion of the faithful.

Centennial celebration of faith

The centenary celebration marks a historic milestone for Filipino Catholics and Marian devotees worldwide.

Father Felix Legaspi III, OP, basilica rector, said in a statement that the celebration commemorates a century of faith and grace experienced by pilgrims who continue to entrust their lives to the Blessed Mother.

“This historic celebration marks 100 years of faith, devotion, and grace for countless pilgrims and devotees who frequent the shrine of the Blessed Mother, asking for her unwavering help and intercession,” he said.

A series of novena Masses is being held in preparation for the April 22 commemorative liturgy marking 100 years since the 1926 canonical coronation.

The solemn pontifical Mass will be presided over by Archbishop Charles John Brown, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, and concelebrated with Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas. Cardinal Jose Advincula, archbishop of Manila, will be the homilist. National and local dignitaries are also expected to attend the celebration.

A devotion shared across oceans

Devotion to the Lady of Manaoag continues to flourish not only in the Philippines but also among Filipino communities abroad.

Peralta is one of many Filipino-American devotees who helped establish associations in the U.S. dedicated to Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of Manaoag, including the Devotees of Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag-San Diego.

The group gathers annually to celebrate the Blessed Mother’s feast in May at San Rafael Parish in San Diego as well as during October, the month traditionally dedicated to the holy rosary.

This year, many Filipino-American pilgrims have traveled to Manaoag to join people from across the Philippines and around the world to honor “the lady who calls.”

For Peralta, returning to the shrine is more than a pilgrimage — it is an act of gratitude.

Her story, like those of countless others, reflects a faith rooted in trust and sustained by prayer — a devotion that continues to draw generations of believers to the shrine where, according to tradition, the Virgin Mary once called her people to come.

The Diocese of Broken Bay announced April 14 that it has appointed London-based Níall McLaughlin Architects to design the new cathedral and surrounding campus at Waitara, on Sydneyʼs upper north shore. The diocese describes the project as the first Roman Catholic cathedral in Australia in more than a century to be master-planned from inception as a complete, integrated complex.

The announcement was the final major project decision taken under Archbishop Anthony Randazzo before his expected relocation to Rome.

Pope Leo XIV named Randazzo, 59, prefect of the Vaticanʼs Dicastery for Legislative Texts on March 25, the feast of the Annunciation, also granting him the personal title of archbishop. He continues to serve as apostolic administrator of Broken Bay until the move.

“While my responsibilities have expanded to serve the universal Church in Rome, my commitment to this vision is unwavering,” Randazzo said in a statement issued through the diocese. “The appointment of Níall McLaughlin Architects signals we are moving ahead with confidence to create a community legacy for generations to come.”

The 7.7-hectare Cathedral Precinct Project will succeed the dioceseʼs current cathedral, Our Lady of the Rosary, which was designated as the bishopʼs seat in February 2008 after succeeding the smaller Corpus Christi Church at St. Ives.

The new precinct will rise on the same Yardley Avenue site and integrate the existing St. Leoʼs Catholic College campus, a pastoral center, parish hall, a new home for the diocesan charity CatholicCare, residences for the bishop and clergy, and diocesan offices.

Erected as a diocese in April 1986 by Pope John Paul II, Broken Bay this year marks its 40th anniversary and serves around 250,000 Catholics across 26 parishes spanning Sydneyʼs North Shore, the Northern Beaches, and the upper Central Coast — a territory of 2,763 square kilometers (1,067 square miles).

A ‘virtuous circle’ of faith and education

In its own communications, the diocese has framed the project around what it calls a “virtuous circle” of Catholic life — the integration of liturgy, formation, and education on a single site, from baptism through secondary schooling.

The architectural concept draws on the natural setting of the Hawkesbury River, which unites the dioceseʼs parishes, and on the local sandstone bluffs of the surrounding bushland.

In comments to EWTN News, Níall McLaughlin Architects said the brief was for “a building that is led by the liturgy” — one designed around the celebration of the Eucharist by “a fully conscious participating community.”

The architects approached the project by studying the geography. “When we looked at a map, we realized it is the drainage basin of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River system,” the practice said. “We came to understand that the Hawkesbury River does not divide the Diocese, but instead binds it together.”

The river, the practice said, “reveals layers of sedimentary rock that speak to deep geological time.” The design also seeks to represent the Blue Gum High Forest, which “lives alongside these waterways.”

The resulting vision is “a cathedral interior flanked with sandstone bluffs, the roof held up by tree-like structures and the floor engraved with all the rivers of the diocese” — what the practice describes as “an authentic Australian architecture rooted on the lives, faith, and landscape of Broken Bay.”

Renderings released by the practice show twin slender sandstone-clad spires rising above a public forecourt, with a timber-framed entrance portal centered on a cross. Inside, an exposed lattice of cross-braced timber members vaults the length of the nave, with raw sandstone walls and geometric stained glass.

The diocese said the design draws explicitly on the spirit of Laudato Si', the 2015 encyclical of Pope Francis on care for creation, prioritizing sustainable timber and stone and preserving the existing Blue Gum High Forest on the site as a public amenity.

A practice known for sacred architecture

Níall McLaughlin Architects, established in 1990, was selected following an invited international design process. Its founder, the Irish-born and London-based Níall McLaughlin, received the Royal Institute of British Architects' Royal Gold Medal in January — one of the disciplineʼs highest international honors, awarded annually in recognition of a lifetime contribution to architecture.

The practice has built several sacred and contemplative spaces, including the Bishop Edward King Chapel for Ripon College in Oxford, a 2013 Stirling Prize finalist; the New Library at Magdalene College, Cambridge; and the Auckland Castle Faith Museum in northern England.

In February the firm was announced as winner of the international competition to design the Museum of Jesus' Baptism at Bethany Beyond the Jordan, the UNESCO World Heritage site on the east bank of the River Jordan traditionally identified as the place of Christʼs baptism. That museum is targeted to open in 2030 to mark the bimillennial of the baptism of Jesus.

The Broken Bay brief, the practice told EWTN News, was for an architecture that “could only be made for this place” rather than one resembling other churches. Now, as design begins in earnest, the practice said it is having “lively discussions with the bishop and his advisors” about “how the liturgy and the sacraments can find appropriate architectural form for this special place.”

McLaughlin spoke about the Broken Bay project on April 14 at the Rothwell Public Lecture series at the University of Sydney. “We are delighted to work on this significant project to help create an enduring spiritual, civic, and cultural precinct that places the faithful at its center,” he said.

The Australian firm Hayball has been appointed as executive architect on the project. Funding will be drawn from a combination of institutional capital and a dedicated philanthropic appeal, and the diocese said design work will now move into approval pathways that will determine the construction timeline.

This story was updated on April 27, 2026, with additional comments from Níall McLaughlin Architects.

“A decade into Xi Jinping’s Sinicization campaign and nearly eight years since the 2018 Holy See-China agreement, Catholics in China face escalating repression that violates their religious freedoms,” Yalkun Uluyol, a China researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in an April 15 report. “Pope Leo XIV should urgently review the agreement and press Beijing to end the persecution and intimidation of underground churches, clergy, and worshippers.”

Human Rights Watch said it conducted interviews with “nine people outside the country who had firsthand knowledge of Catholicism in China” for its report, who said the 2018 Vatican-China agreement has “provided an overarching structure for the authorities to pressure underground Catholics.”

Witnesses in the report said Catholics in China felt the agreement left them with “no other choice but to join the official church” and that those who have remained in the underground Church “felt betrayed by the Vatican.”

Human Rights Watch also highlighted the Chinese government’s persecution of Catholic bishops and clergy, citing instances of detention and forced disappearance as well as China’s move to ban Catholic priests from teaching or evangelizing online.

“Catholic clergy released from detention continue to face harassment,” the report said. “One person said in January that a priest he knew was barred from having bank accounts, SIM cards, and a passport, and thus has ‘no means of survival and can barely make ends meet for even a day or two.'”

“The Vatican’s agreement and policy regarding the Catholic Church in China in recent years has been disastrous,” Nina Shea, Hudson Institute senior fellow,  told EWTN News. “Faithful Catholic bishops are subjected by the government to being disappeared, detained indefinitely without due process, sidelined but ‘recognized’ or being actively threatened with detention if they resist swearing fealty to only the Chinese Communist Party and not Rome.”

Shea, who also serves as director of the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, urged Pope Leo XIV to lead a global prayer vigil for Chinese bishops who have been forcibly disappeared or detained.

“Pope Benedict XVI designated May 24 as the World Day of Prayer for the Church in China but it’s been virtually forgotten in the last few years and never robustly embraced by the Vatican, which probably sees it as implicit criticism of the CCP, something it is loath to do,” she said.

Celebrating the chrism Mass on Holy Thursday at the Minor Basilica and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, commonly known as Manila Cathedral, Advincula quoted a recent study, saying: “About 18% reported that they are psychologically distressed,” meaning “almost one in every five priests is undergoing a mental difficulty or emotional burden.”

He reminded clergy to acknowledge their human vulnerabilities and weaknesses, calling on the faithful to support clergy through prayer and understanding.

According to data from the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), as of 2025, there are more than 10,000 priests serving 73.6 million Catholics. The Philippines is Asiaʼs largest Catholic country.

Lay faithful support for the clergy

Advincula urged lay Catholics to stand with priests as they carry out their ministry.

“To be faithful, we need your understanding and your prayers,” he said.

Advincula thanked communities for their continued support, despite what he described as the “obvious limitations” of clergy, which include challenges such as limited resources and the need for more active engagement from the laity.

The cardinal thanked priests and the faithful for their shared responsibility in continuing the Churchʼs life and mission.

He said human connections are essential to restoring hope and sustaining missionary work.

Pope Leo XIVʼs April prayer intention

Advinculaʼs remarks coincided with the Holy Fatherʼs April prayer intention, which is “for priests in crisis.”

“Let us pray for priests going through moments of crisis in their vocation, that they may find the accompaniment they need and that communities may support them with understanding and prayer,” Pope Leo XIV said.

Echoing the popeʼs words, Advincula urged Catholics to pray for priests, especially those facing loneliness, doubt, and exhaustion.

“When a pastor faces some kind of weariness at any time, the Church is not supposed to judge but rather to walk beside him,” he said.

A parish priestʼs struggle with addiction

EWTN News spoke with two priests who have faced mental health challenges and described how they overcame them.

Father Mark (a pseudonym used to protect his identity), a 52-year-old parish priest in the southern Philippines, serves a parish with more than 40,000 Catholics. He has been there for the last five years.

Over the years, Father Mark felt exhausted by pastoral duties. He gradually developed loneliness and distress, which affected his mental well-being. Over time, he began to consume alcohol more frequently and eventually became addicted.

As his health conditions and addictions affected his personal life and pastoral duty, his religious superiors made him take a break from pastoral care and placed him in a Church-run rehabilitation center near Manila for a year.

After a year of medication along with prayer, social connections, and discernment, he is free of addiction and back to pastoral work in a different parish in the central Philippines.

He said he learned a valuable lesson from his imperfections, especially about balancing personal care — physical, spiritual, and emotional.

A rural missionaryʼs ordeal

Father Marcilino, a 47-year-old priest, used to be a rural missionary in the northern part of the country.

He used to minister to 70,000 Catholics across eight chapels and one parish, alongside two younger priests.

“At some point, I got disinterested in my pastoral work and lost zeal for it,” he said.

“I did not have any vices as such. I felt a kind of spiritual dryness in my priestly life,” he said.

When his priest companions noticed his mental distress and lack of participation in community prayers and mealtime presence, they encouraged him to take a few months' break from pastoral responsibility with the knowledge of their superiors.

His superiors sent him for a three-month refresher course on psycho-spiritual enrichment.

After spending three months in the program, he returned to the parish with renewed zeal as a person and pastor.

“I have realized that priests like me face pastoral exhaustion or compassion fatigue caused by many factors,” he said. “It is necessary that we take precautions and efforts to monitor our mental well-being as we are interested in rendering our pastoral service to others with hope and compassion,” he added.

He thanked his superiors and those who continually support him in his missionary endeavors.

“My struggles with mental health issues taught me a valuable lesson that I am not a superhuman being,” he said. “I need to be aware of my limitations, especially worry, anxiety, stress, and depression to some extent.”

“We are all works in progress and rely on Godʼs grace to carry out our pastoral work for the common good,” he said.

Mental health in the Philippines

An estimated 7 million to 12.5 million Filipinos suffer from mental health conditions, according to research published in the Lancet Regional Health.

The National Capital Region Police Office reported on March 25 that suicide cases in Metro Manila more than doubled in the first three months of 2026, with many cases stemming from emotional distress, financial pressure, anxiety, depression, and relationship issues.

Meanwhile, the country does not have adequate mental health professionals, and the government is making efforts to strengthen mental health services, such as increasing funding for mental health programs and training more professionals to meet the growing demand.

Everyone must take care of their mental health amid the many challenges of life and work, Christopher Lim, a professional psychologist, told EWTN News.

Over the years, Lim has counseled several people, including priests and religious sisters, who have faced mental health challenges.

One piece of advice he gives is that anyone can develop mental health concerns at any time, regardless of their current mental well-being.

“Timely professional help is key to mental health,” Lim said.

“It was Father Francis who recommended that all the charitable and welfare programs of the archdiocese be named under ‘Sathwanam’ (Compassion). His aim was to provide the best treatment with the least expense, and he worked hard for that,” said Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Thrissur, inaugurating the memorial at the Jubilee Mission Medical College (JMMC) that Alappatt established at the archdiocesan hospital in the heart of Thrissur.

Alappatt, who died of complications from diabetes at the age of 72 on April 8, was a singular figure in the Catholic Church in India: He was ordained in 1995 at the age of 41 after joining the seminary to fulfill a childhood dream, having already earned a medical degree from Kozhikode Medical College.

‘Half priest’

“Even when he was a medical student, he was called ‘padi achan’ (half priest) for his lifestyle, and I was also touched by him,” recounted Dr. Susheela Jacob, who was a professor at Kozhikode Medical College when Alappatt was a medical student in the 1980s, during the memorial.

“Scenes of trade in blood around the hospital prompted him to launch a blood donation campaign with batchmates [classmates], and he founded the Kerala Blood Donors Forum as a medical student,” Jacob recalled.

“I was regularly in touch with him, and when he started the medical college, he invited me, and I gladly joined in 2005,” said Jacob, a pathologist who is presently lab director at the JMMC Hospital. She spoke to EWTN News on April 14.

After his ordination, Alappatt transformed even remote parishes into centers of blood donation awareness and paved the way for the Kerala state government to record the blood group of each student in school certificates.

As director of Jubilee Mission Hospital, he expanded it into a medical college — approved by the central government — in 2004 and doubled the hospitalʼs beds to more than 1,500, making it one of the largest hospitals in Kerala. The facility is known for subsidized treatment for the poor and free medicines for snakebite victims.

Interreligious tributes

“Father Alappatt had a special doctorate in human relations. He knew how to move people,” said K. Rajan, a Hindu and minister in the Kerala state government, at the memorial. “Whenever he invited me for a program, I could not decline.”

“Father Francis was my classmate in school and surprised me [in the late] 1990s coming back to me as a priest. Then he turned my guru (teacher) in life,” said T.S. Pattabhiraman, a leading Hindu businessman of Thrissur.

“He became a family friend and had a unique marketing strategy [to get financial support]. Whenever I went to invite him for a family marriage or other functions, he would seek support for his free dialysis, treatment for snakebite victims. Whenever he needed help, he would call me. I could never say ‘no’ to him,” recalled Pattabhiraman, who is one of the trustees of the interreligious forum Alappatt founded to promote religious harmony.

Popular for his pioneering blood donation movement in Kerala — as well as his interreligious and health awareness programs, in addition to his role as founding director of the Catholic medical college — Alappatt was named chairman of the Indian Red Cross Society.

“In honor of Father Alappattʼs compassion for those affected by kidney disease, I am happy to announce today that Jubilee Mission has decided to set up a renal transplant center, and it will be called the Father Francis Alappatt Memorial Renal Transplant Centre,” announced Auxiliary Bishop Tony Neelankavil at the memorial, evoking thunderous applause.

Free dialysis and parish support

“Father Alappatt introduced and motivated parishes and families to support free dialysis as part of parish feasts and family celebrations like marriage or baptism. We got support for more than 12,000 free dialysis [treatments] in 2025,” Father Reny Mundankurian, the JMMC Hospital director, told EWTN News.

After leaving Jubilee Hospital in 2010, Alappatt served as vicar general of the Archdiocese of Thrissur and also helped improve smaller diocesan hospitals and health care initiatives in the archdiocese.

A prolific writer, he authored 50 books on health, social harmony, the environment, and human relations. A dozen of these were written after he became seriously ill, restricting his movement.

‘He showed God to the world’

“Father Alappatt showed God to the world through his loving service,” said Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil, head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, in his homily during the April 10 funeral service at the Basilica of Our Lady of Dolours parish in the heart of Thrissur.

“He never worked in mission centers, but he showed with his life how life can be turned into missionary work,” said Thattil about his fellow parishioner, as both of them hail from the Dolours Basilica parish, which is celebrating its centenary year.

True to his commitment to health care, Alappatt donated his eyes, and after the funeral service — attended by half a dozen bishops — his body was not taken to the cemetery but placed in the JMMC mobile ambulance to be transported to the hospitalʼs anatomy department.

“I support the smoke-free and vape-free policies in church premises for the good of all,” Maria Christina Jomen, a parishioner of St. John the Baptist Parish in Jimenez, Misamis Occidental, told EWTN News. “Having a healthy environment is a responsibility for all, especially in places of worship.”

The church, some 755.89 kilometers (469.69 miles) south of Manila, is among the parishes implementing the smoke-free policy in response to health initiatives from the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in collaboration with local governments.

On April 2, the executive secretary of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Health Care, Camillian Father Dan Vicente Cancino Jr., issued a statement directing parishes nationwide to adhere to smoking bans as a sign of respect for sacred spaces. The Department of Health later circulated a video message from Cancino on its platforms.

Cancino said tobacco use leads to preventable disease, premature death, and suffering, and called on all parishes to strictly enforce smoke-free and vape-free policies. The bishops' conference has voiced alarm at the prevalence of smoking and vaping among Filipinos, particularly among the young.

“This initiative is in accordance with our existing laws, and the move is also out of respect for the sacred and concern for community health,” the priest said, noting that smoking in public places such as churches endangers both individual and community health.

“These habits pose serious threats to both individuals and the community. I hope that all our parishes and communities strictly enforce smoke-free and vape-free policies in accordance with existing laws,” Cancino said.

“We understand it is not easy. But with Godʼs grace, liberation is possible. We can do it,” he added.

A long-standing precedent

The National Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, Parañaque City, Manila, has enforced a no-smoking policy on its premises since 2015, partly in response to Pope Francis' encyclical on care for creation, Laudato Si'.

Other parishes have moved in step with municipal anti-smoking ordinances in cities including Baguio, Davao, Balanga, and Iloilo, pairing health-conscious campaigns with what Church officials describe as “green” initiatives to protect public health and the environment.

Smoking and vaping in the Philippines

According to the World Health Organizationʼs 2025 Global Report on Trends in Prevalence of Tobacco Use, roughly 1 in 5 Filipino adults — about 19.7% of those aged 15 and over — currently smoke, with the rate among men (35.6%) more than eight times higher than among women (4.2%).

The 2021 Philippines Global Adult Tobacco Survey, conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority and the Department of Health with WHO support, similarly found that 18.5% of Filipino adults currently smoke tobacco. WHO estimates that smoking causes roughly 88,000 deaths in the Philippines each year.

Data from the Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology indicate that 4.8% of Filipinos aged 10 to 19 smoked in 2023, up from 2.3% in 2021.

The World Health Organization has reported that, globally, children aged 13 to 15 are using e-cigarettes at higher rates than adults. The Philippine Department of Health has urged the public to reject vaping products, warning they are not a safer alternative to cigarettes and citing the rising trend of nicotine use among young Filipinos.

“We Christians in Bangladesh run many educational institutions,” Archbishop Bejoy N. DʼCruze, OMI, of Dhaka said. “Along with academic subjects, we focus on morals, values, and good character. When we hear about online classes, we become worried about where this system will take our students.”

The archbishop made the remarks while exchanging Easter greetings with Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, secretary-general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, on Easter Sunday. He said Catholic school principals and headmasters remain deeply concerned about the impact of online learning on children.

The proposal comes as Bangladesh faces energy shortages linked to global instability in the Middle East. To reduce electricity consumption and ease pressure on infrastructure, the government is considering partial online learning in selected educational institutions. However, Catholic leaders say the experience of online education during the COVID-19 pandemic revealed serious limits, especially for students' academic and moral formation.

Students and parents voice concerns

Students say online classes make it harder to understand lessons and stay focused.

“I have difficulty understanding lessons when classes are online,” said Sonnet Gomes, a student at a missionary school in Dhaka. “I want to go to school and take classes physically.”

Referring to her experience during the COVID-19 lockdowns, Gomes said online learning created both academic and health-related problems. “When we had online classes during corona, it was not good for us. Now there is no health risk. If needed, we can reduce class hours instead of moving everything online,” she said.

Parents, especially Catholic parents, also strongly oppose online classes. They worry about screen addiction, lack of supervision, and the financial burden placed on families.

“I donʼt want online classes,” said Priyanka Gomes, a Catholic mother in Dhaka. “During corona, I was forced to buy my son a smartphone. With online classes, children stay on their phones all day. They play games, use social media, and become addicted.”

Teachers: ‘Online classes are not effective’

Catholic teachers echo these concerns and say online learning often leads to poor attendance and weak engagement.

“If the government orders online classes, we will obey,” said Cornelius DʼCruze, vice principal of Heed International School in Dhaka. “But honestly, online classes are not effective. Many students skip classes. Parents go to work, and children spend most of the time on their phones.”

According to the Catholic Directory of Bangladesh, the Catholic Church in the country runs one university, 17 colleges, 60 high schools, and nearly 300 primary and technical schools. Well-known institutions such as Notre Dame College, Holy Cross College, St. Gregoryʼs High School, and St. Joseph Higher Secondary School are among the countryʼs most respected academic centers.

Government says proposal still under review

Government officials say the move toward online or blended learning is necessary under current conditions.

The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education recently organized a seminar at the International Mother Language Institute in Dhaka to discuss how to continue education during the energy crisis.

Education Minister A.N.M. Ehsanul Hoque Milon and State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Bobby Hajjaj attended the seminar. Students, teachers, and guardians from various institutions in the Dhaka metropolitan area shared their views on the proposal.

The education minister said online classes would not be introduced nationwide at once but would begin on an experimental basis in selected institutions.

“Various crises in world history have opened new possibilities,” Milon said. “Education must continue in new ways. We should not see everything as a threat. We can also see opportunities.”

The government is considering a hybrid system combining physical and online classes in selected schools and colleges, including Viqarunnisa Noon School and College and Ideal School and College in Motijheel.

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar announced on Easter Sunday, April 5, that the government had constituted a committee to examine the March 25 judgment of the Federal Constitutional Court validating the marriage of 13-year-old Maria Shahbaz to 30-year-old Shaheryar Ahmad.

Bishop Samson Shukardin of Hyderabad, president of the Pakistan Catholic Bishops’ Conference (PCBC), voiced skepticism about the initiative.

“These issues often subside by the time such committees make their reports public. The process is deliberately delayed so that people forget,” he told EWTN News.

“This is fundamentally a religious freedom issue. Consent is often coerced from minors. We await a genuine response from the government. Many Muslim clerics support us but have avoided joining public protests,” he added.

A father’s account

According to Maria’s father, Shehbaz Masih, his daughter was abducted, forcibly converted to Islam, and married without consent.

A certificate issued by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) submitted by the family states that Maria was 13 at the time of the marriage — below the legal minimum age of 18. The family has since taken refuge in a shelter and was unavailable for comment.

The case dates back to July 2025, when Masih, a resident of Lahore, reported that his daughter had been abducted by a Muslim man after stepping out to a nearby shop.

Dismissing a petition filed by the father seeking custody, the court ruled that the marriage was valid under “Muhammadan law” and that the husband held lawful guardianship.

Protests and backlash

The judgment triggered widespread reaction on social media, along with protests, press conferences, and conventions across the country. At least three Catholic bishops, along with the PCBC, issued statements urging authorities to review the ruling.

The backlash prompted government engagement with the concerns of the country’s Christian minority, estimated at 1.37% (3.28 million people).

Addressing an interfaith Easter gathering in Lahore, Tarar assured Christian leaders of his support, saying the committee’s recommendations would be submitted to the Ministry of Law and Justice within a week.

Legal dimensions

Meanwhile, Punjab Minister for Minorities Affairs Ramesh Singh Arora said his department was forming a parallel committee to examine the legal dimensions of the case.

Mary James Gill, a Christian lawyer, former lawmaker, and executive director of the Center for Law and Justice who serves on the committee, welcomed the move as a “genuine concern to find a way forward.”

“It is highly encouraging that a state representative personally took up the issue. However, we are still in a consultative process,” she told EWTN News, noting shortcomings in both the lower courts and within the affected community.

“The petition was filed under Section 491 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which pertains to habeas corpus, and not to determining the exact age of the girl — a question that remains disputed,” Gill said.

“Regrettably, no such verification was carried out in the lower courts. In cases where documentation is ambiguous, magistrates and sessions judges tend to rely on in-person statements, consent, and their own observations.”

She noted that the Christian Marriage Act of 1872 governs the solemnization of marriages involving one or more Christians.

“Similarly, the personal laws of both Christianity and Islam in Pakistan remain silent on the age of conversion. Church leaders need to revisit and update these frameworks. At the same time, parents must place greater emphasis on the ideological and moral formation of their children,” she added.

In an April 6 letter to the law ministry, Anthony Naveed, deputy speaker of the Sindh Assembly, urged the federal government to address “serious legal gaps” exposed by the ruling and called for uniform amendments aligning provincial laws with Balochistan’s legislation, which explicitly invalidates child marriages.

A pattern of abuse

For decades, rights advocates have called for stronger legal and administrative measures to prevent the abduction and forced religious conversion of girls from minority communities.

At least 515 cases of abduction and forced conversion of minority girls and women were reported between 2021 and 2025, according to the Center for Social Justice. Hindu girls accounted for 69% (353 cases), followed by Christian girls at 31% (160 cases). Most victims were under 18, with cases concentrated in Sindh and Punjab.

Shukardin said courts in the Muslim-majority country are not consistently applying laws prohibiting marriage under 18.

“The Church is not in favor of marriages involving conversion under such circumstances. We demand safety for our daughters and will continue to raise our voice for underage brides of any religion,” he said.

The crash occurred in the early hours of April 5 in Mariamabad in Punjab’s Wazirabad district, where around 200 Catholics had gathered for a predawn Easter service. Irfan Bashir, a 17-year-old laborer, died of a head injury on April 6.

Officials said the suspect, identified as Muhammad Bilal, remains at large. The vehicle involved in the incident and the driver’s assistant are in police custody, and a case has been registered.

“We are conducting daily raids to arrest the driver,” said Muhammad Ahmad, the assistant sub-inspector who filed the case, attributing the incident to overspeeding.

He added that the vehicle was empty and heading to a poultry farm and claimed the procession was held without prior police notification.

At least 14 injured remain hospitalized in two hospitals in nearby Gujranwala, some in serious condition. Doctors said most victims suffered fractures and trauma caused by the impact and the ensuing panic.

The Punjab government set up a medical camp at the local Catholic church on April 6 to assist victims in Mariamabad, a village of about 100 families comprising both Christians and Muslims.

Disputed claims

Church representatives and community members have disputed police claims that authorities were not informed in advance. Organizers insist prior notice had been given, raising concerns over coordination failures.

Father Shahrukh Nathaniel, who led the sunrise service, said road processions have now been suspended following the tragedy.

“We have asked the government to install speed breakers [in some countries called speed bumps] and barriers outside the church, which is located on a main road,” he told EWTN News. “The faithful usually gather outside after Mass, which increases the risk.”

He said authorities have promised financial compensation for the victims and praised the establishment of a medical camp amid shortages in government hospitals, while urging the swift arrest of the driver.

‘It was the worst Easter’

Among the injured is the father of Mark Mathew, a ninth-grade student who was setting off fireworks at the front of the procession when the truck struck. His father, a furniture maker, suffered a fractured leg and is bedridden, while his mother sustained injuries to her knee and eye.

“I feel lucky to be alive,” Mark said. “It was the worst Easter, visiting injured relatives and friends in hospitals.”

Rights advocates say the case highlights broader concerns over the safety of minority religious gatherings in Pakistan.

Capuchin friar condemns ‘Christianophobia’

In an April 8 statement, Capuchin Father Lazar Aslam, convener of the Justice, Peace, and Ecology Commission, “vehemently condemned this irresponsible and heinous act,” describing it as a “clear Christianophobia-driven hate crime.”

“This was not a mere traffic accident; it was a targeted assault on innocent worshippers at the most sacred moment of their liturgical calendar,” he said. “The driver’s failure to stop or render aid, and his decision to flee the scene, further underscores the malicious nature of this crime.”

He added that “the persistent silence and minimization of such incidents are as painful as the violence itself,” warning that genuine interfaith dialogue cannot exist without truth and safety.

“Until the lives of Christians are treated with equal dignity and those responsible are held accountable, empty words of peace will remain insufficient to heal the wounds of the community,” he said.

Aslam called for immediate justice for the victims and urged authorities to ensure comprehensive medical treatment for impoverished families most severely affected by the tragedy.

In September 2025, a Catholic pilgrim was killed and a teenager injured when gunmen attacked a van carrying devotees to the country’s largest Marian shrine in Mariamabad. The group was traveling through the Sheikhupura district to attend the annual Sept. 8 feast of the Nativity of Mary, which draws thousands each year.

Archbishop Khalid Rehmat, OFM Cap, 57, was installed as head of the Archdiocese of Lahore on March 28 in a ceremony that acknowledged a period of “particular difficulties and challenges” following the removal of Archbishop Sebastian Shaw, OFM, in August 2024 — an unprecedented development in the country’s Catholic history.

During the liturgy, Vicar General Father Asif Sardar read the Urdu translation of the papal bull, which referenced the trials faced by Pakistan’s largest Catholic diocese, home to an estimated 577,000 faithful.

“We devote all our energies to the governance of the ship of the Church, which for different reasons is sometimes assailed by waves, requiring the guidance of both ourselves and the devoted pastors appointed by us. For this reason, we have turned our attention to the metropolitan see of Lahore,” he said, quoting Pope Leo XIV.

The remarks were widely interpreted as an indirect reference to Shaw, who was appointed apostolic vicar of Quetta and installed at St. Mary’s Catholic Church on March 24. Prior to that, he had been residing at the Franciscan Friars Minor house in Karachi while on what Church authorities described as a sabbatical.

Allegations against Shaw

Shaw has faced multiple allegations in recent years, including claims of financial mismanagement and misconduct involving Church funds and properties, circulated in media reports and on social media.

In 2017, he drew criticism for allowing a political address by Maryam Nawaz, now chief minister of Punjab, at Sacred Heart Cathedral during an election campaign.

Further controversy emerged in 2021 when a Christian activist shared on social media photographs and documents alleging irregular land transactions linked to Shaw. He declined to comment on the claims when contacted by EWTN News.

In 2022, additional allegations regarding personal conduct surfaced from a suspended priest, though archdiocesan officials dismissed them as unfounded.

Several Catholics, including a former Caritas Pakistan official, had previously submitted complaints to the Vatican concerning alleged abuse of authority and financial impropriety.

‘Things seem to have settled down’

Archbishop Benny Mario Travas of Karachi, who served as apostolic administrator of Lahore during the transition, drew light laughter from the congregation when he remarked that “things seem to have settled down,” noting a decline in complaints reaching the apostolic nunciature.

Archbishop Germano Penemote, the apostolic nuncio to Pakistan, thanked Travas for his stewardship during what he described as a turbulent period.

“The Church in Lahore is invited to experience this moment as a true resurrection — to emerge from chaos into new life, stepping out from the shadows into the radiant light of the risen Lord,” he said, addressing the faithful on the eve of Palm Sunday.

Catholic lay leaders say the path forward will require structural and cultural renewal.

Shahid Rehmat, executive director of the Youth Development Foundation, emphasized the need for greater accountability and transparency within Church leadership.

“The internet has changed the world. Young people are no longer dependent on, nor can they be controlled by, Church leaders,” he told EWTN News, urging authorities to make public the findings of any inquiry into Shaw’s tenure.

“Transparency will help restore trust among the faithful and strengthen the credibility of the new leadership. Christian activists — many formed within Church institutions — have often been labeled disloyal. Recognizing their role could support the Church’s mission for justice and peace,” he added.

Rehmat, a former diocesan coordinator of Catholic Youth Ministry of the Lahore Archdiocese, also expressed cautious optimism about the new archbishop’s leadership.

“He is well known in Quetta and has the potential to make the Church more accessible and outward-looking, while strengthening its struggling commissions,” he said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s backing off from the amendment to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act was promptly welcomed by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI).

The CBCI had mailed a protest letter on March 31 to Amit Shah, the home minister of India, who handles the sensitive subject of foreign donations, calling for the “referral of the bill to a Parliamentary Standing Committee for wider consultation.”

The bill provides for setting up a government authority to seize properties bought or developed on foreign funds if the government license is canceled or not renewed.

The CBCI letter argued that it was essential “to ensure that administrative lapses do not lead to disproportionate penalties such as asset seizure.”

With the Christian heartland of southern Kerala going to the polls on April 9 to choose its new assembly, ruling communists and opposition leaders joined senior bishops holding news conferences dubbing the amendment as “draconian, barbaric, and undemocratic.”

The Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council held an emergency online meeting March 31 and sent a powerful letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing “deep concern regarding certain provisions” within the proposed amendment.

“The amendments, as presently understood, may create possibilities for misuse of authority, which could adversely impact many voluntary organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and auxiliary institutions — including places of worship — that have been established over decades for public service, irrespective of caste or religion,” the Kerala bishops cautioned.

More than 18% of Kerala’s 37 million residents are Christians.

The bishops asked Modi to refer the amendment bill “to the appropriate Parliamentary Subject Committee for further study, stakeholder consultation, and detailed discussion.”

“We are relieved now that the bill has been postponed and it will certainly provide an opportunity to address our concerns,” Father Thomas Tharayil, the deputy secretary of the Kerala bishops, told EWTN News on April 2 from Kochi.

Contribution act licenses of several dioceses, congregations, and charitable organizations have been “canceled without any proper reason,” Tharayil said.

Since the BJP came into power in 2014, thousands of licenses of church and Christian social action groups have been canceled or not renewed along with those of secular advocacy groups, including international nonprofits like Amnesty International, Bread for the World, and Greenpeace.

The FCRA Online dashboard of the government gives details of the curbing of the license with nearly two-thirds of around 50,000 accounts either canceled or not renewed.

The BJP government in 2020, meanwhile, made it mandatory that all licensees  open a designated “FCRA Account” only at the main New Delhi branch of the government-controlled State Bank of India.

An online campaign to revise the controversial bill has drawn thousands of signatures. The campaign argues that foreign donations “play a crucial role in supporting development projects in India, with billions of dollars in aid helping to alleviate poverty, support education, and improve public health.”

About 200 Catholics gathered April 3 at the Jesus Worker Center in the Zirani area of Gazipur to watch fellow parishioners dramatize the 14 stations, from the condemnation of Jesus to his burial and resurrection.

The participants — young men, women, and elderly Catholics who work in nearby factories — performed the reenactment at the center, which serves roughly 1,700 Catholics scattered across the surrounding industrial zone.

Binodh Bless Mardy, 28, is one of them. An Indigenous Catholic, Mardy has worked at E.O.S. Textile Mills Limited for about eight years. He tries to join the Christian community in his free time and took part in the Good Friday reenactment as a narrator.

“Since I don’t get much time off during Easter and my home is far away, I try to attend all the Easter Sunday events here instead of going to my village,” Mardy told EWTN News.

Mardy’s home village is about 250 miles away, in Dinajpur Diocese in northern Bangladesh.

He said he is not always able to attend Mass during Holy Week before Easter. “When I get time off, I don’t always get to Mass. And when I try to get time off, I can’t always manage it. So I pray at home,” he said.

A center for Catholic workers

The Jesus Worker Center was established in 2009 by the Archdiocese of Dhaka for the spiritual care of Catholics working in the area’s garment factories and other private industries. About 1,700 Catholics live in different neighborhoods under the center’s pastoral reach.

Father Biswajit Bormon, assistant parish priest at the center, said he and three other priests provide spiritual care to Catholic workers across a 20-square-kilometer (about 7.7-square-mile) area.

“Laborers come here from different parts of Bangladesh and work in different companies. Most of them do not get Sunday off, so we give them more time on Fridays,” Bormon said.

During Lent, the priests visit at least seven subcenter locations to offer Mass and hear confessions. They celebrate as many of the Holy Week liturgies as possible across the area.

“Where seven or eight families can gather in a place, the priests go and celebrate the Mass and take care of them spiritually. And those who are around the center come to the center. The Way of the Living Cross is staged by those around the center,” Bormon said.

‘The joy of celebrating with family’

Milon Kormokar has worked in the Zirani area for about 15 years and currently works for Rahimafrooz, a Bangladeshi industrial company. He lives in a rented house with his wife and two children.

Kormokar does not go home for Easter. His home parish is the cathedral parish of the Diocese of Rajshahi, about 190 miles from Zirani — a six- to seven-hour bus journey.

His company gives one day of personal leave, but that is not enough to travel home, so he celebrates Easter at the center instead.

“There are many of us Christians here; we celebrate Easter Sunday with them, but the joy of celebrating with our families is not available with others,” Kormokar said.

“Priests work very hard to take care of us spiritually. They often go door to door to check on the families, pray, and hear confessions,” Kormokar told EWTN News.

Beyond spiritual care

The center’s mission extends beyond sacraments. The priests also assist Catholics who are sick and help arrange accommodation for new arrivals in the area. A day care center at the Jesus Worker Center allows Catholic parents to leave their children in care while they work.

Bangladesh’s roughly 600,000 Christians make up less than 1% of the country’s approximately 178 million people. The Catholic community, with about 400,000 members, is the single-largest Christian group and includes a large proportion from the country’s Indigenous communities.

Both Mardy and Kormokar said they believe the Church should advocate the government to declare at least two days of public holiday around Easter so that Christians who work far from home can travel to spend the feast with their families.

Bishop Socrates Mesiona, chairman of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, said the Church monitors families of overseas workers in parishes nationwide.

This effort enables parishes to provide migrant families with pastoral care and material help, along with government agencies, he said.

Meanwhile, parishes and Church institutions are praying the “Oratio Imperata” (Latin for “Obligatory Prayer”) for peace in the Middle East in all their Masses and prayer gatherings.

In a message, Bishop Broderick Soncuaco Pabillo, the apostolic vicar of Taytay in Palawan, said migrants and others must trust more in God as the world faces oil crises amid the war in the Middle East.

He urged OFWs not to lose hope in God and support the needs of families in the Philippines.

“It is worrisome that OFWs in the Middle East and their safety and jobs are at risk. The remittances they send to their families will be greatly affected,” he said. “The price of oil and essential commodities is increasing. Let us not lose hope, because we will face this scenario with prayer and faith.”

Another bishop, Ruperto Cruz Santos of Antipolo, urged OFWs to care for their safety with precautions, avoiding risky areas and staying informed about local situations.

“Let us remain vigilant in prayer and steadfast in hope. May our voices rise to heaven, pleading for an end to violence and the coming of lasting peace,” he said.

He advised OFWs in the Middle East to stay indoors and in workplaces, avoid unnecessary travel, and follow instructions from embassy officials and government officials.

Given the current war situation, numerous OFWs face uncertainty, displacement, and separation from their families.

About 2.4 million Filipinos reside in the Middle East, mainly in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait. They work in construction, health care, and domestic services and are at high risk following the conflicts, which may lead to job loss, reduced income, and increased vulnerability to exploitation.

Nearly 1 million Filipinos live in the UAE, while Saudi Arabia has over 813,000; in Qatar, 250,000; and in Kuwait, over 106,000.

The Middle East remains a critical source of remittances for the Philippines, with a large concentration of workers in the Gulf region.

“Since the oil boom in the 1970s, Filipinos have been working there doing various skilled and semi-skilled jobs,” Jeremaiah M. Opiniano, executive director of the Institute for Migration and Development Issues, told EWTN News.

“Like during the pandemic and other episodes of conflict (e.g., Israel and Palestine), naturally affected Filipinos seek shelter. They try to tell their loved ones back home not to worry, but both parties are worried,” he added.

Plight of OPWs

The Philippines heavily depends on the Middle East for oil. The government has declared a state of national energy emergency following a rise in domestic fuel prices, which has impacted industries, transportation, logistics, trade, and agriculture. Moreover, workers and consumers face challenges in the crisis.

Christina Reys, 52, a mother of four adults from the Bicol region, is distressed because her son Rolando, a seafarer, is stuck in the Persian Gulf along with his crew, as their ship carrying oil cannot sail due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

“The ship cannot pass. We are worried for Rolando and his crew. We are seeking divine guidance and protection amid the war,” she told EWTN News.

Since the onset of the war, the crew has remained on the ship, clinging to the hope of returning home.

According to Reys, the local parish is assisting her and her family with material and spiritual guidance, providing food, shelter, and emotional support to help them cope with the challenges they face during this difficult time.

The safety and livelihood of over 2 million Filipinos in the Middle East are at risk as well.

Repatriation

The government has begun repatriating Filipinos in high-risk areas like Iraq and Syria. As of March 30, as many as 3,347 OFWs from the Middle East returned to the Philippines via chartered flights, according to the Department of Migrant Workers, who said the repatriation efforts will continue for an unforeseen time.

Once an OFW has returned home, the government provides financial aid, medical assistance, and travel fares to the individual’s home province.

If this crisis in the Middle East escalates and jobs are affected, there may be some job displacements and possibly disruptions in sending remittances, said Opiniano, who is also a professor at the Dominican-run University of Santo Tomas.

Stakeholders wishing to assist OFWs in the Middle East can do so by maintaining regular communication, helping their families save for emergencies, participating in repatriation efforts if desired, and continuing to pray.

All the more, families back home may want to maximize their memberships with the Social Security System, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG Fund should the family need resources, besides temporary aid from charity organizations and others, Opiniano explained.

Dalit Christians account for more than two-thirds of India’s approximately 35 million Christians, and the ruling has generated widespread concern in the community.

“The Supreme Court’s judgment on Dalit Christians is very much misleading to the general public, because it is an individual case and doesn’t come on our ground,” the Commission for Scheduled Castes of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) said in a March 31 statement.

On March 24, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court ruled in Chinthada Anand v. State of Andhra Pradesh that a person cannot simultaneously profess a religion other than Hinduism, Sikhism, or Buddhism and claim membership in a Scheduled Caste.

The case involved a Christian pastor born into the Madiga community, a Scheduled Caste in Andhra Pradesh, who sought protection under the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act after alleging he was assaulted with caste-based slurs. The court upheld a lower-court ruling quashing his complaint, finding that his conversion to Christianity resulted in the loss of his Scheduled Caste status.

Father Bijoy Kumar Nayak, secretary of the CBCI Commission for Dalits, told EWTN News that “this is not a verdict on our decades-old demand. The court made this observation while dismissing the appeal of a convert pastor who sought protection under the Atrocities Against Dalits.”

“We have been fighting for the last 75 years … for the constitutional rights that were denied by the presidential order of 1950. Our case is in the honorable Supreme Court … the appeal of the cause based on the constitutional rights,” the commission said.

Despite the ruling, the commission expressed confidence in an eventual resolution. “We have hope in God as well as in judiciary that the justice will be done to the Dalit Christians,” the commission’s statement said.

What is at stake

“Dalit,” literally meaning “trampled upon,” refers to communities at the bottom of India’s traditional caste hierarchy, historically treated as “untouchables” and relegated to menial jobs such as scavenging while living in segregation from upper castes.

In 1950, the Indian government issued a presidential order designating Hindu Dalits as “Scheduled Castes,” making them eligible for free education, a 15% quota in government jobs, and reserved seats in legislatures. Those protections were extended to Sikh Dalits in 1956 and Buddhist Dalits in 1990 but have been denied to Muslim and Christian Dalits.

Christian and civil rights groups have challenged the constitutionality of this exclusion. A petition filed in the Supreme Court in 2004 demanding an end to discrimination against Dalit Christians remains pending before a three-judge bench.

Franklin Caesar Thomas, the Dalit Catholic lawyer who filed the 2004 petition, told EWTN News from southern Tamil Nadu state that the latest ruling has no bearing on the broader constitutional challenge.

“This order has created a lot of confusion and fear among the people. But it does not have any legal impact,” Caesar Thomas said.

He noted that past inquiry commissions, including the Justice Ranganath Misra Commission, “have clearly stated that conversion to Christianity does not end caste discrimination in society.”

Government commission still pending

However, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party government that came to power in 2014 demanded a fresh inquiry during the continued court hearing. A new commission under Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, a former chief justice of India, was established in October 2022 to study the social status of converts. The commission has yet to submit its report, with the latest deadline set for April 10.

The concern generated by the Supreme Court’s remarks was evident in Indian Currents, a Catholic sociopolitical weekly, which published several critical articles about the verdict.

“The recent judgment of the Supreme Court to continue the marginalization of those in the peripheries based on their religious identity is revelatory in itself,” the magazine’s editorial said.

A decades-long struggle

Since 1990, when Buddhists were included in the Scheduled Caste category, the Catholic Church in India has waged vigorous campaigns for the same recognition for Christian Dalits, with Aug. 10 observed annually as a “black day” with protests across the country. Thousands of demonstrators have been brought to New Delhi each year, led by bishops, to press the demand.

During a 2013 march to Parliament, police in New Delhi sprayed dirty water from water cannons on protesting priests in cassocks and other Dalit Christian demonstrators — images that Dalit Christian advocates say illustrate the institutional bias against their cause.

The CBCI’s biennial assembly in Bangalore in February 2026 reiterated the Church’s position.

“The denial of rights to Dalit Christians continues for decades as an indirect form of discrimination, despite numerous appeals for equality and justice. We express our concerns about the denial of rights to the minorities, as such acts weaken the democratic fabric of our society,” the assembly’s statement said.

“Maundy Thursday is a very joyful day for our priests. It is the day of the priesthood and the day of the institution of the holy Eucharist,” said Monsignor Gabriel Corraya of the Archdiocese of Dhaka in an interview with EWTN News. “On this day, Jesus shared the Last Supper with his 12 disciples and entrusted them with his priestly life and ministry.”

Corraya, 69, said Holy Thursday holds special spiritual importance because it calls priests back to the origins of their vocation. The day, he explained, renews not only memories but also commitments.

“For us priests, Maundy Thursday is very important,” he said. “On this day, we renew our priestly promises before our bishop. It reminds us that we are participants in the great sacrifice of Jesus Christ.”

He said the ritual washing of the feet, a defining feature of Holy Thursday liturgies, reveals the heart of priestly service. Recalling Jesus kneeling before his disciples, Corraya said the act remains a lasting lesson in humility and action.

“Jesus came into the world to serve,” he said. “By washing the feet of his disciples, he showed that service must be proven not only through words but through actions. Though he was a teacher and master, he washed their feet. To me, no act of service is small. Washing feet is perhaps one of the most human things we can do.”

‘A blessed year’

This year marks a milestone in Corraya’s own priestly journey. On Jan. 24, he was elevated to the rank of monsignor, an honor conferred by Pope Leo XIV. He describes the title not as personal distinction but as an acknowledgment of service.

Ordained a priest in Dhaka in 1986, he was among a group of deacons ordained during the pontificate of St. John Paul II. In 2026, he marks 40 years of priesthood.

“This is truly a blessed year in my life,” he said. “The greatest gift I have received is the priesthood itself. The monsignorship is simply a recognition of that service. As I wear this attire, I pray not for the garment, but that God may clothe my heart with humility, faith, and love.”

Forming bishops

For many years, Corraya served as rector of the major seminary in Dhaka, forming generations of priests in Bangladesh. Several of his former students have since become bishops, a source of gratitude rather than pride, he said.

“I always loved seeing one of my students ordained as a priest,” he said. “When one of my students, Sebastian Tudu, became bishop of the Diocese of Dinajpur, I was very happy. Even today, though he is a bishop, he treats me with great respect as his former rector.”

Corraya currently serves as parish priest of Golla Parish and vice president of Caritas Bangladesh. In those roles, he sees both the wide reach of priestly ministry and its growing challenges in a rapidly changing society.

“There are many areas of service in this country, and priests are involved in many responsibilities,” he said. “One major challenge today is the identity of the priest. People’s way of thinking has changed. Often what we expect does not happen. Living our priesthood faithfully in the modern era can involve suffering.”

He added that priests must also examine themselves honestly. “Many times, we priests are unable to give full witness to the ideal of Jesus,” he said. “Christians come to Jesus when they see that ideal lived. His service speaks louder than words.”

Social media, he said, has become both a challenge and an opportunity. “This is the era of social media,” he said. “If priests do not update themselves, it becomes difficult. Sometimes the distance between priests and the faithful grows, and this is a challenge we must address.”

To respond, senior priests gathered in Dhaka on March 25 to reflect on adapting to contemporary realities. “We discussed how we can update ourselves with the times, and that effort is ongoing,” he said.

A minority Church

Although Catholics remain a small minority in Bangladesh, Corraya said priests generally enjoy peaceful coexistence with members of other religions. “We have good relationships with people of other faiths,” he said. “Occasionally, isolated extremist incidents cause concern, but overall we share a bond of harmony.”

Bangladesh faces a modest shortage of priests, especially as new parishes open and missionary needs expand. “Fewer young people are entering seminaries,” he said. “We are addressing this by appointing vocation promoters to encourage young people to consider the priesthood.”

As the Church observes Holy Thursday — often called Priests’ Day — Corraya offered a message to clergy worldwide: “Priests are part of God’s great plan. Priesthood is a precious gift from God. My prayer is that all priests may remain healthy and walk closely with the faithful entrusted to them.”

The Bangladesh Christian Association organized the demonstration in front of the National Press Club in Dhaka, calling on Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to add Easter to the government’s official holiday calendar.

Easter Sunday falls on April 5 this year. Bangladesh’s roughly 600,000 Christians — less than 1% of the country’s approximately 170 million people — currently receive only one public holiday for a Christian feast: Christmas Day.

Catholic bishops support the demand

The Catholic Church in Bangladesh has also voiced support for the campaign.

Archbishop Bejoy N. D’Cruze, OMI, of Dhaka, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh, expressed his solidarity with the demand for a holiday on Easter in an interview with EWTN News on March 30.

“Since we do not have a government holiday on Easter Sunday, we cannot all celebrate this day together. Many cannot go to the villages, and we cannot all observe the religious customs that are in place before Easter,” D’Cruze told EWTN News.

“I also demand from the government to declare a public holiday on Easter so that we Christians can celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ together in family, social, and religious ways,” the archbishop added.

‘A heavy heart’

Bangladesh Christian Association President Nirmal Rozario said the demand for the holiday is long-standing.

“We have come here with a heavy heart and are standing in front of the Press Club. Easter Sunday is very important to us after Christmas. Jesus is the only person in the history of the world who has risen after death. We are demanding a public holiday on this important and significant day, Easter Sunday,” Rozario said.

He added that the Christian community “has made considerable contributions to the formation of Bangladesh” in the areas of education, health services, and development, and questioned why the government has not granted the holiday.

Rozario called on Rahman to add Easter Sunday to the government holiday calendar beginning next year and to grant a holiday for this year through an executive order.

Unequal holiday allocations

Muslims, who make up roughly 91% of the population according to the 2022 census, receive multiple public holidays for their major religious celebrations, including several days for Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. Hindus, who constitute about 8% of the population, have two days off for their main religious festival, Durga Puja.

Christians, however, have only one public holiday — Christmas Day.

Manju Maria Palma, secretary of The Christian Cooperative Credit Union Ltd. in Dhaka, a 48,000-member organization, was present at the human chain.

“Christ was resurrected on this day. This day is very important. If this public holiday is given, not only the Christian community will benefit but also our brothers and sisters of other religions will understand the significance of this day,” Palma said.

Lawmaker expresses hope

EWTN News contacted at least three members of Parliament, including Abdul Aziz, a member of Parliament from the Natore-4 constituency, which includes a historic Christian settlement.

Aziz told EWTN News: “Since we respect all religious ceremonies, including Christian activities, and since Christians have expressed their demands, our government will definitely consider the matter.”

He also expressed hope that the government will soon discuss the issue of a holiday on Easter Sunday.

After the government of recently elected Prime Minister Tarique Rahman of Bangladesh announced on March 14 that it would offer a monthly allowance for priests, the Bangladesh Catholic Bishops’ Conference has officially decided to decline it, according to Crux.

“We humbly decline to accept the proposed allowance for priests,” said Archbishop Bejoy D’Cruze of Dhaka, president of the conference.

The allowance is meant for all clergy, no matter the religion or denomination, and is the first in the country of 180 million inhabitants — only about 600,000 of whom are Christian.

The bishops said they were grateful for the government’s effort but that they prefer to rely on the generosity of the faithful to continue their spiritual and pastoral work.

Seoul archbishop delivers Easter message urging Christians to ‘defend life amid war’

In an Easter message, Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-taick, who leads the Archdiocese of Seoul in South Korea, urged Christians to “defend life amid war, suffering, and moral uncertainty,” calling the faithful to make concrete, life-giving choices rooted in the hope of the Resurrection.

LiCAS news reported that Chung quoted from the Gospel of Luke as well as from Pope Leo XIV and urged the faithful “‘to remember all who suffer, pray for them, and stand in solidarity,’ especially those facing threats to life amid war and violence.”

Chung called for “the faithful to become witnesses of the Resurrection” and highlighted the upcoming World Youth Day in Seoul in 2027, saying it “will be a time of grace for us to newly experience the joy of the Resurrection.”

Young Catholics in Central Java trained in Laudato Si’

Young Catholics recently gathered in Yogyakarta, Central Java, from various cities, including Surabaya, Jakarta, Cilacap, Surakarta, Semarang, Malang, and Yogyakarta for a three-day training aimed at “forming a new generation of ecological advocates grounded in faith,” according to LiCAS news.

The training was provided by the Laudato Si’ Movement Indonesia in collaboration with the Catholic Atma Jaya University Yogyakarta as part of a broader effort to teach young people how to be ecologically aware and responsible while also deeply grounded in their Catholic faith.

Indonesian becomes 57th language of Holy See’s official news platform

Vatican News has announced that Indonesian will become the 57th language by which news will be available on Vatican News, the news portal of the Holy See. The decision, made on March 25 with a Memorandum of Understanding agreement between representatives of Indonesia and the Holy See’s Dicastery for Communication, will mean “more people will be able to receive the pope’s message in their own language.”

Angola opens registration for 2027 World Youth Day in South Korea

Angola, where Pope Leo will visit April 18–21, has officially launched the registration process for participation in World Youth Day (WYD) 2027 scheduled to take place in Seoul, South Korea, with Church leaders urging young people to approach the international gathering as a profound spiritual experience rather than a simple opportunity for travel, ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, reported Thursday.

Speaking during the unveiling of the official registration website on Tuesday, March 24, Francisco Bernardo, a member of the national organizing committee, underscored that participation in WYD is fundamentally an experience of faith.

Second church built in Mosul after ISIS

In Iraq’s Christian heartland of Qaraqosh, the recent consecration of St. Ephrem Syriac Catholic Church and its altar has become more than a liturgical milestone, according to ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News.

Syriac Catholic Archbishop Benedictus Younan Hano of Mosul said opening the church in a time of war is itself an answer to destruction, a declaration that Christians remain committed to building rather than tearing down.

Celebrated on the feast of the Annunciation, March 25, the dedication of the second church to be built after ISIS occupation also carried a message of perseverance for Iraq’s Christians, who continue to affirm their roots and presence in their historic homeland. Pope Leo XIV sent his blessing for the occasion, encouraging the faithful to remain steadfast in faith and hope as they rebuild their churches, their country, and their future.

Freedom restrictions in Christian area in Syria

In Damascus, Syria, a sit-in at Bab Touma drew Syrians from different religious and social backgrounds who said they were pushing back against measures they see as an assault on public freedoms and the country’s plural character.

ACI MENA reported that protesters insisted their action was not about alcohol, despite public speculation, but about what they described as an expanding pattern of interference in personal life and an overreach of authority during Syria’s transitional period.

Their slogans rejected sectarian sorting of neighborhoods and warned against imposing a single social model on a historically diverse society. Church leaders were largely absent from the protest, though the Melkite Greek Catholic Eparchy of Bosra, Hauran, and Jabal al-Arab issued a statement cautioning that such decisions risk undermining citizenship, social cohesion, and the long-standing unity of Damascus.

The Diocese of Joypurhat was established March 25, carved out of territories belonging to the dioceses of Rajshahi and Dinajpur and made a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Dhaka. The announcement was made by Archbishop Kevin Randall, apostolic nuncio to Bangladesh.

Father Paul Gomes, 63, a priest of the Diocese of Rajshahi and rector of the Holy Spirit Major Seminary in Banani, Dhaka, has been appointed the diocese’s first bishop.

Gomes was born in the Diocese of Rajshahi on Sept. 3, 1962. He studied philosophy and theology at the Holy Spirit Major Seminary and earned a bachelor of arts degree from Notre Dame College in Dhaka. He later completed a master’s degree and licentiate in dogmatic theology at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Philippines. He was ordained a priest on Dec. 29, 1992, and has served in pastoral and academic roles across the Rajshahi Diocese ever since, including as vicar general and rector of the Good Shepherd Cathedral in Rajshahi before returning to seminary leadership.

Speaking to Radio Veritas after the announcement, Gomes said he would work to strengthen the faith, education, moral and social values, and overall development of the faithful in the new diocese.

“There is no infrastructure here except for the parishes. I have to build a new bishop’s house and other infrastructure, and I hope to complete it with everyone’s cooperation,” Gomes said.

‘An Easter gift from Pope Leo XIV’

The new Joypurhat Diocese has 10 parishes and two quasi-parishes, serving approximately 23,000 Catholics, the majority of whom belong to Indigenous communities.

“I think the new bishop and the diocese are an Easter gift from Pope Leo XIV to us. I hope the new bishop will carry out his pastoral work properly with our laypeople,” said Hilarius Mardy, a father of two.

Mardy told EWTN News that lay Catholics would provide every kind of support within their means to the new bishop, but he added that the development of the diocese would require cooperation from Catholics across Bangladesh, not only within the new diocese.

Questions over Indigenous representation

With the erection of Joypurhat, Bangladesh now has nine Catholic dioceses. Less than 1% of Bangladesh’s approximately 180 million people are Christian; the country’s roughly 400,000 Catholics include a large proportion from Indigenous communities.

However, the appointment has prompted some differences of opinion. A 55-year-old Catholic who asked not to be named said an Indigenous bishop would have encouraged more Indigenous people to enter religious life.

“I think the bishop who has been appointed is qualified, but was there no qualified Indigenous priest? If not, then it is a failure of the Church,” the Catholic said.

Although Gomes has been formally appointed, his episcopal consecration is scheduled for June 5 in Joypurhat, Chancellor Father Premu T. Rozario of the Diocese of Rajshahi told EWTN News. Since no bishop’s house yet exists, the installation will take place at a local parish church near the city of Joypurhat.

“I am very sad to hear about the death of Harish Rana, first victim of euthanasia in the country,” Archbishop Raphy Manjaly, the chairman of the doctrinal commission of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, told EWTN News March 26.

“Catholic Church considers life sacred from conception to natural death. No one has the right to take the life of other human being,” said Manjaly, archbishop of Agra, a city in northern Uttar Pradesh state known for the Taj Mahal.

“It is strange and a contradiction that the medical science that is supposed to support life assisted to take away life,” lamented Manjaly, referring to the March 11 order of the Supreme Court that “the medical treatment, including clinically assisted nutrition and hydration (CANH) being administered to the applicant, shall be withdrawn/withheld.”

Rana, an engineering student, had been in a vegetative state since 2013 following a fall from the balcony of his fourth-floor accommodation.

“The Church is shocked and appalled by this verdict,” Manjaly said. A previous Supreme Court bench, led by the chief justice of India, had rejected the same family’s demand for euthanasia.

Calls for palliative care

Acknowledging that “it is difficult for the family and I do not condemn them,” the prelate said: “What is required is more and more compassionate institutions to offer palliative care to terminally ill patients. [The] Church has several institutions. There are many people of goodwill also doing it.”

He cited the 2011 verdict of India’s apex court in a similar case — a plea for mercy killing for Aruna Shanbaug, a nurse in a comatose condition for 37 years after a brutal assault in a Mumbai hospital while on duty. In that ruling, the Supreme Court said: “Right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution does not include the right to die.”

Shanbaug was 25 in November 1973 when a sweeper at the hospital where she worked sexually assaulted her and strangled her with a dog chain, interrupting the flow of oxygen to her brain and inducing the coma.

The mercy killing plea “to die with dignity” was then opposed by the attorney general of India — the highest law officer in the government — as well as the staff of King Edward Memorial (KEM) Hospital in Mumbai, where Shanbaug had been leading a “persistent vegetative life” under their care. She died of pneumonia in 2015.

“The whole country must learn the meaning of dedication and sacrifice from the KEM hospital staff. In her 37 years [of comatose existence], Aruna has not developed a single bed sore,” the Supreme Court said at the time.

Pro-life activists raise alarm

“A deep sense of unease is spreading across sections of Indian society following recent developments that could redefine the meaning of life and dignity in the country,” Sunny Kattukaran, one of the country’s prominent lay pro-life activists, told EWTN News.

“India has upheld life as sacred for ages — protected not only by law but also by deeply rooted cultural and spiritual values. Yet today, there are growing concerns that evolving legal interpretations and scientific advancements are moving faster than the ethical boundaries that once guided them,” said Kattukaran, who leads Christian Movement of India with pro-life activities.

With the media glorifying the decision of the Rana family to donate his corneas and heart valves for transplant, Kattukaran cautioned that “more and more such euthanasia demands will come up now.”

Several news outlets hailed the Rana family’s organ donation in headlines like “First euthanasia case sparks organ donation push” that have gone viral on social media.

“The Church welcomes organ donation, which is a noble gesture. But nobody should be put to death for harvesting organs,” Manjaly cautioned.

“Government and all those who have a duty to prevent abuses and crimes in this field need to be ever vigilant, including the media,” he added.

In a March 23 message, Archbishop Joseph Arshad of Islamabad-Rawalpindi praised the army “for their sacrifices in defending the country’s borders, saying the nation will always remember the bravery and dedication of its soldiers.”

“The country remains secure due to their unmatched sacrifices, allowing citizens to live in freedom,” he added.

The statement coincided with Pakistan National Day and came a week after Kabul accused Islamabad of striking a drug rehabilitation hospital in the Afghan capital, killing and injuring patients undergoing treatment.

Pakistan declared “open war” with Afghanistan at the end of February after months of escalating border clashes. Airstrikes by Pakistan targeted suspected militants, while Afghanistan’s Taliban reportedly responded with drone attacks.

Both sides have traded blame for the violence, with Islamabad accusing Kabul of sheltering “anti-Pakistan terrorists,” particularly Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, which it holds responsible for attacks including a recent suicide bombing at a mosque in the capital.

Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said a temporary ceasefire — from March 19–24 — was arranged at the request of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey to ease tensions.

Catholic bishops call for dialogue

Bishop Samson Shukardin of Hyderabad, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan, supported the ceasefire.

“We call for peace and an end to war. Together with Pope Leo XIV, we urge both sides to sit and dialogue. At the same time, we stand in unity with the nation and all government departments, including the army,” he told EWTN News.

“Our loyalties lie with the progress of the country and the safety of our borders. We call for unity. Except on political issues, the Church must comment on military matters to guide the community along the right path. The state is also keen to hear the perspectives of religious leaders.”

Activist urges balanced approach

Luke Victor, a Christian advocate and human rights activist, endorsed the bishops’ call for unity but emphasized the need for a balanced approach.

“We appreciate defensive actions of our military but denounce overreach into politics. Likewise, we condemn enforced disappearances and election manipulation. Truth, justice, and human rights must remain our first priority,” he said.

Pakistan’s military has long been accused of intruding into civilian affairs, having directly ruled the country for nearly half of its 78-year history while continuing to wield significant influence behind the scenes.

Relations soured since 2021

Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have soured since Pakistan initially welcomed the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 as the “logical conclusion” of the U.S. withdrawal. The Pakistani government now accuses Taliban authorities of sheltering militants, a charge Kabul denies.

Pakistan was ranked the most terrorism-affected country in the Global Terrorism Index 2026, recording 1,139 deaths, 1,595 injuries, and 1,045 attacks in 2025 — a nearly 6% rise in fatalities and a sharp increase in hostage-taking cases.

Afghan Christians face risk

In November 2023, Victor joined politicians in filing a Supreme Court petition challenging a caretaker government directive to deport all “illegal immigrants,” a policy seen as targeting Pakistan’s estimated 4.4 million Afghan residents. The court disposed of the petition in January 2025.

“Many Afghan converts to Christianity had served with U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan. They could not openly declare their faith because of potential stigma or reprisals from their Muslim families,” Victor said.

“Afghan Christians should have been placed under the care of Church authorities as refugees. Their forced deportation to the Taliban was a death sentence. While praising the military, Church leaders must also demand protection for such minority groups.”

On a recent Sunday at Tejgaon Church in Dhaka, Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) missionary Brother Lucio Beninati invited parishioners to join Potho Shishu Sheba Sangathon, a volunteer-run ministry he founded nearly 20 years ago to accompany children who sleep in rail stations, bus terminals, and city sidewalks. His appeal moved dozens. In the weeks that followed, more than 50 Catholics submitted their names to begin weekly service.

“You can almost see children lying on the sidewalks everywhere in Dhaka,” said Catholic volunteer Mukta Rozario, who joined the ministry for the first time this Lent. “I always wished I could do something for them. Today, I finally played with them, talked with them, and felt so much joy. I hope to return every week.”

The ministry works with some of the most vulnerable children in Bangladesh — girls and boys who have fled violence at home, been abandoned by parents, or migrated alone to the city in search of work. With no guardians, many end up sleeping beside train tracks or market stalls, surviving through begging, carrying loads, or becoming entangled in petty crime, drug trafficking, or exploitation.

Teacher Maria Baroi, another new volunteer, said her time with the children transformed her Lenten journey. “These are not ‘street children’ to me. They are children living in helplessness,” she said. “If even one of them returns to a stable life because someone cared, that is a blessing.”

Volunteers gather at railway stations — especially Dhaka’s Kamalapur — to offer informal lessons, games, art activities, storytelling, and emotional support. They also provide basic health care, accompany sick children to hospitals, and help reunite those who want to return home. If returning home is not possible, the team arranges shelter in orphanages or rehabilitation centers.

“In the eyes of society, these children are often rejected,” said volunteer Samuel Mondol. “But serving them is pure joy. This is selfless service, and I want to continue it long after Lent.”

A mission rooted in love

Beninati, a 70-year-old Italian missionary, has spent decades working with abandoned children. Before coming to Bangladesh, he served seven years in Brazil, where he first learned street-child outreach. He later spent 24 years in Bangladesh before relocating again in 2022. From Jan. 6 to March 3 this year, he returned to Dhaka to strengthen the volunteer network.

“When parents abandon them, there is no one left to care,” he said. “But love can change a life. Good behavior, compassion, and accompaniment — these are the tools that bring a child back to normal life. Without love, no one can return.”

The organization operates without foreign funding. Every cost — from medical emergencies to sports equipment to educational materials — is covered by the volunteers themselves.

One of the most moving testimonies involves Tamim, a young Muslim who once worked as a porter at Kamalapur Railway Station. He lost contact with his family and suffered a severe accident while getting off a train, leading to the amputation of one leg. Volunteers helped him receive treatment at the Center for Rehabilitation of the Paralyzed, where he also received a prosthetic limb and enrolled in mobile phone repair training. Last year, he played with his team in the National Wheelchair Basketball Championship — and they won.

“If it weren’t for Brother Lucio and the other volunteers, I would still be sleeping at the station,” Tamim said.

Another child, Muslim Rakib, fled home at age 8 after being beaten by his stepmother. Now 10, he regularly meets volunteers at the station. “Here we play and draw,” he said. “We get medicine. As long as they are here, we feel safe.” He hopes to go home soon.

A ministry for all religions

Although the ministry was founded by a Catholic missionary, nearly 90% of its volunteers are Muslim. The service has become a bridge of harmony in a country where Christians are a small minority.

Muslim volunteer Shafiqul Islam said the interreligious unity is one of the group’s greatest strengths. “Serving these children feels like serving God,” he said. “Here we are Muslims, Hindus, and Christians. We respect each other’s faith and work together for the welfare of children. Our harmony has grown through this service.”

Catholic teacher Bridget Corraya, who joined the ministry 20 years ago, said her motivation comes from her own story. “I grew up in an orphanage run by the Congregation of Our Lady of the Missions [RNDM Sisters],” she said. “I received so much love. Serving street children is how I repay that gift.”

Transforming Lent through service

For many Catholics in Dhaka, this Lent has taken on new meaning through their encounters with the children. Playing, teaching, and simply listening have become acts of penance, charity, and spiritual renewal.

“Lent is not only about sacrifice or fasting,” Beninati reminded the faithful. “It is also about serving — especially those who have no one.”

As more volunteers join the mission, the ministry hopes to expand its work across Dhaka. But its heart remains simple: one encounter at a time, one child at a time, offering dignity to those the world often overlooks.

The four Catholic brothers were among more than 150 Christians arrested by police days after twin suicide attacks on St. John’s Catholic Church and Christ Church on March 15, 2015, which killed at least 19 people and injured hundreds. The attacks were claimed by Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, an offshoot of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

The bombings sparked mob violence that mistakenly killed two Muslim men, who were later identified and detained through raids and video evidence.

Masih, now 28, said the trauma of prison changed him forever.

“They hurled abuses at us, beat us with strips cut from vehicle tires, and in jail we were given old dried roti [flat bread],” he told EWTN News. “Water from the greasy toilet taps was served for drinking. Family meetings were allowed only after a month. It was a hellhole on earth.”

He and his brother Sadaqat Perwaiz — popularly known as Monty — were released after six months in Central Jail Lahore. One brother, however, remained among 42 Christians and one Muslim charged in the lynching case.

Devastation beyond prison

The protracted court proceedings devastated the family’s four-decade-old milk business, saddled them with mounting debts, and forced the sale of their 680-square-foot home.

Their worries deepened after two Christian inmates, Inderyas Masih, 36, and Usman Shaukat, 29, died in custody under suspicious circumstances during the trial. Police claimed tuberculosis and a heart attack, respectively, while families and the British Pakistani Christian Association reported bruises and unexplained injuries.

In January 2020, an anti-terrorism court acquitted the remaining 39 accused after blood money (Diyat) of 25 million rupees ($89,800) was paid to the victims’ families by Pastor Anwar Fazal, a prominent Christian televangelist.

Under the Qisas and Diyat Ordinance 1990, introduced during Gen. Ziaul Haq’s Islamization process, courts calculate compensation based on the financial capacity of the convict and the victim’s heirs, with a minimum value linked to 30,630 grams of silver.

Monty died of a heart attack in 2022, leaving behind two children aged 10 and 14. His faded poster still hangs in front of the family’s closed milk shop.

“He was a stout man, known for his strong community ties and friendly nature in our neighborhood. Prison left him very lean and weakened by an infection that caused his legs to swell beneath the knees and bleed,” Masih said.

Today, Sunil Masih sells vegetables from a wooden cart in front of the same shop, now leased to a real estate dealer. He hopes to marry once his new business stabilizes.

‘The gift of a hero’

On March 15, police guarded churches in Youhanabad, which houses more than 150,000 Christians, as the community observed the 11th bombing anniversary.

At St. John’s, parishioners lit candles and placed flowers beneath a banner honoring Akash Bashir, the 20-year-old security volunteer who died preventing a suicide bomber from entering the church during that Sunday Mass.

“Salute and gratitude to the martyrs of Youhanabad,” read the banner near the Marian grotto. In January 2022, the Vatican recognized Bashir as a servant of God, making him the first Pakistani Catholic on the path to canonization.

Father Akram Javed, parish priest of St. John’s, thanked police for security.

“A group of 30 local volunteers carry on Akash’s mission, protecting the church and worshippers. The bombings were a terrible tragedy, but in that darkness, we received the gift of a hero,” he told EWTN News.

‘The bombing was a national tragedy’

Pentecostal politician Aslam Pervaiz Sahotra, who spent five years in prison, sees the anniversary as a moment of reflection for Pakistan’s 3.3 million Christians, many of whom continue to face discrimination, economic hardship, and lingering trauma.

“The bombing was a national tragedy from which the authorities learnt nothing. We continue to suffer losses due to terrorism, with sporadic attacks targeting minority communities and security forces,” said the 65-year-old head of the Massiha Millat Party (Christian Nation Party).

He alleged prison authorities tried to manipulate him, introducing Muslim prisoners to persuade him to stay passive.

“Despite back pain from four displaced vertebrae, my time in prison strengthened my faith and resolve for activism. The trend of arresting Christians for alleged blasphemy to appease angry crowds will continue unless investigations are conducted on merit,” he added.

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, in its 2025 annual report, said religious freedom in Pakistan continued to deteriorate, recommending it be designated a “country of particular concern,” citing blasphemy-related prosecutions, mob violence, and forced conversions targeting Christians and other minorities, and a growing climate of fear and impunity.

“Bangladesh is an underdeveloped country and due to financial reasons, many people in this country do not go to the doctor at the primary stage of any health issue, only when the problem becomes big — and this is the case with tuberculosis patients,” said Italian Sister Roberta Pignone, 55, a member of the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate, popularly known as the PIME sisters.

Sister Roberta has been serving tuberculosis (TB) patients at the Damien Hospital in the Khulna Diocese, in the coastal area of Bangladesh, for about 25 years. People in the coastal area constantly struggle with natural disasters and salinity to survive, and they often avoid seeking care for minor illnesses.

“On behalf of the hospital, we distribute awareness leaflets in various public places, and if someone has symptoms of TB, we bring their samples and test them. It is seen that about 90% have tuberculosis and they are not aware,” Sister Roberta told EWTN News.

In this hospital, patients are provided with free accommodation and food, and if someone can afford it, they pay some expenses to the hospital.

Social stigma and late diagnosis

Sister Roberta said that although the Bangladesh government maintains there are not a lot of tuberculosis patients in the country, many cases still go undetected. She also noted that many doctors fail to recognize tuberculosis symptoms in patients because the disease is not given priority by the government.

Sister Roberta’s friends and relatives from her home country, Italy, and from other countries provide financial support for the hospital’s operations.

“I have not had any financial problems yet; I am continuing God’s work in some way or another. As long as my community keeps me here, I will work happily,” Sister Roberta added.

The Maria Bambina Sisters of Rajshahi Diocese run the Tuberculosis Shelter, which was established by the PIME Missionary Fathers in 1989. Initially, the shelter was run with funding from the PIME Fathers, but now it is operated entirely by the sisters.

Sister Augustina Tudu, 70, has been serving tuberculosis patients at this shelter for about 22 years. Initially, various groups of sisters and fathers would go to villages and bring tuberculosis patients for treatment, but now the patients themselves come for treatment with the help of parish priests and sisters.

Medicine, food, and shelter

In Bangladesh, tuberculosis and leprosy are still not given importance in the early stages. In many cases, these diseases, which are viewed differently by society, are not disclosed, Sister Augustina said.

“We used to provide free accommodation and food to tuberculosis patients, but now we are not able to do that anymore due to the economic crisis,” Sister Augustina told EWTN News. “After the PIME Fathers left this hospital, we are going through a lot of financial crises; in that case, we have to take some money from the patients.”

The TB shelter not only provides medicines but also nutritious food to the patients, “because TB is a disease that requires not only medicines but also nutritious food, and these patients are poor and they cannot eat that kind of food at home,” Sister Augustina added.

Most of the Christian patients from the northern dioceses of Rajshahi and Dinajpur come to this TB shelter for treatment. Of the nearly 150,000 Catholics in these two dioceses, most are from the Indigenous community and are financially poor.

“The Indigenous are naturally in financial crisis and lead an ignorant life, as a result of which TB or tuberculosis is more common among them. We are doing what we can, but due to the financial crisis, we are not able to help them completely,” Sister Augustina said.

According to the National TB Control Programme of the Bangladesh Health Department, 278,607 tuberculosis patients were identified in the country from January to October 2025.

The country’s goal is to eliminate tuberculosis by 2035. Its data indicates that deaths from tuberculosis have been reduced by 90% since 2015.

After the World Health Organization declared tuberculosis a global emergency in 1993, the health department has been working with nongovernmental organizations to control the disease. Tuberculosis diagnosis, treatment, and medicines are all provided free of charge. Still, the tuberculosis situation in the country has not improved.

“We protest this move. We have urged the government to repeal this law. Copies of our [Western Regional Bishops’ Council] statement have been sent to the chief minister and governor of the state,” Archbishop Elias Gonsalves of Nagpur, chairman of the Western Regional Bishops’ Council, told EWTN News on March 23.

“Far from safeguarding religious freedom, this law, in its present form, effectively undermines the very right it claims to protect, i.e., the freedom to choose and profess one’s religion, as guaranteed under Articles 19, 21, and 25 of the Constitution of India,” the Western Regional Bishops’ Council said in its March 19 statement.

Expressing “deep disappointment and strong protest” against the bill, the bishops’ council said sections of the legislation “amount to a direct and unjustified interference in the legitimate religious practices of the Catholic Church, particularly its Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults program. It is equally disheartening that the ruling party has passed this bill [on March 16] without adequate consultation with the communities most affected by it.”

A threat to conscience

The statement pointed out that sections of the legislation “mandate that any individual intending to convert must submit a notice 60 days in advance to the competent authority. ... This provision intrudes deeply into the personal domain of conscience and belief, opening the door to scrutiny, suspicion, and harassment.”

“This section, like most sections in the bill, is manifestly arbitrary and violative of individual’s right to privacy protected by Article 21 [under Fundamental Rights],” the statement cautioned.

Given the serious concern, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India distributed the statement to media across the country.

Laity and civil society

“We are very disappointed that the Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill was passed in haste and rammed through the Assembly owing to the brute majority of the BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] government,” said Dolphy D’Souza, spokesperson of the Bombay Catholic Sabha — a lay forum of the Archdiocese of Bombay.

“One of our demands was to give opportunity to discuss the provisions of the bill, some of which are draconian, which has the propensity to be misused against minorities, women, and interfaith marriages, as is evident from states where this law has been implemented,” D’Souza said in a March 21 statement.

“This law will be a tool used to harass minorities, women, and interfaith marriages and those who want to convert out of their personal choice voluntarily. While the bill is titled Freedom of Religion Act, it curtails this fundamental right,” D’Souza told EWTN News.

“This bill also criminalizes all charitable works including imparting education under the vague terms of ‘allurement.’ It will give unbridled power to [Hindu] vigilante groups and ‘suo motu’ powers to police to harass and intimidate citizens, encouraging violence and attacks,” he cautioned.

A week before the legislation was passed, a coalition of 35 civil rights, social action, Muslim, and Christian groups had condemned the bill as a “threat to constitutional freedom.”

“Article 25 guarantees the freedom to profess, practice, and propagate religion, which includes the right to adopt and change one’s faith,” the groups asserted.

“The political agenda behind this legislation is to polarize and divide communities on religious lines,” said Irfan Engineer, who heads the Center for Study of Society and Secularism, one of the groups that signed the statement.

Hindu nationalists, Engineer said, are using the propaganda of “love jihad” — marriage for the purpose of conversion — to defend the legislation. He pointed out, however, that “the committee appointed by the state government studied 152 interreligious marriages and found no conversion motive.”