Articles
Ecumenism is non-negotiable
Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai | 29-Jan-2025
Ecumenism is non-negotiable When we say that something is non-negotiable, we mean that it cannot be compromised or watered down. Its message and mission must be forthright, sincere and enduring. Ecumenism, commonly understood as Christian Unity, comes .....
Walking Our Sacred Land: Renewing Indigenous Catholic Identity Amid Crisis
Opinion | Articles | James Pochury | 20-Jan-2025
As excavators churn up the sacred soil of our ancestral lands, the stakes grow clearer: this is not just about losing territory but about the erasure of identity, culture, and faith. In the Northeast of India, where the earth carries the stories of our an.....
Celebrate Diversity
Opinion | Articles | Cedric Prakash | 19-Jan-2025
It is late evening, the day after Uttarayan (15 January), traditionally called ‘vasi uttarayan’. It has been a dull, cloudy day; the wind has been fairly good though. Since yesterday thousands have been on building –tops, flying their kites and many other.....
Corporate Greed is not Nation building
Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan | 17-Jan-2025
Today two industrialists have become the talk among the social media, both in India and in abroad. One person is Mr. N.R. Narayana Murthy of Infosys and the other person is Mr. S.N. Subrahmanyan of Larsen & Toubro (L&T). Months after Infosys co-founder N.....
The heat is now on Christians in Northeast India
Opinion | Articles | John Dayal | 08-Jan-2025
India’s bishops, as much as its civil society, possibly missed an ominous warning in a report in the Kathmandu-based portal Himal Southasian about the growing support within tribal communities in the northeastern states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh for .....
School drop-out rate is a serious concern
Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan | 05-Jan-2025
I had an opportunity to work with Functional Vocational Training and Research Society (FVTRS) from 2008 to 2014. The focus group of FVTRS was always school dropout students. Local NGOs became partners of FVTRS to provide skill training to school dropout s.....
"Celebrating 50 Years of Fr. Niphot’s Walk with Indigenous Wisdom"
Opinion | Articles | James Pochury | 02-Jan-2025
For five decades, Fr. Niphot Thianwihan of Chiang Mai, Thailand, has walked side by side with the Indigenous Karen people, learning and living their profound wisdom. His journey resonates deeply with the realities of the tribes and Indigenous peoples of N.....
True Spirit of Christmas is to Give, Unite, and Hope
Opinion | Articles | Peter F Borges | 22-Dec-2024
What does Christmas mean to you? Is it the sparkle of lights that adorn every street, the joyful hum of carols in the air, or the warm aroma of freshly baked cakes and sweets wafting through your home? Is it the excitement of unwrapping presents, the laug.....
A Reflection on Christmas
Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan | 16-Dec-2024
Four months ago, I conducted a few sessions during a retreat held at Christeen Retreat Centre, Kottayam, Kerala. The participants consisted of a bishop, priests, nuns and lay Catholics. The topic that I dealt was: Cross, Death and Resurrection. I presente.....
Undoing the Culture of Silence
Opinion | Articles | James Pochury | 14-Dec-2024
"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." (Martin Luther King Jr.) When the youth of ICYM Northeast recently walked the hallowed grounds of Old Goa, touching the sacred relics of St. Francis Xavier and .....
Why is the Pope’s Visit to India thwarted?
Opinion | Articles | John Dayal | 07-Dec-2024
The prophetic Monsignor, Benny D’Aguiar, wrote in The Examiner, India’s oldest newspaper which he edited, of Pope Paul VI’s visit to Mumbai in 1964 to attend the International Eucharistic Congress: “There has never been anything like it within living memo.....
CHRISTMAS: A History or a Mystery?
Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai | 07-Dec-2024
Where was the Holy Family when Herod ordered the killing of the children in Bethlehem? As we approach Christmas, this question began to haunt me. It forced me to look deeply into the infancy narratives in both Mathew’s and Luke’s gospels. As a layman with.....
Have Religions become the opium of the people?
Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan | 22-Nov-2024
KJ Yesudas has been a legend in the field of music. We can never forget his mesmerising voice. One of his prophetic songs in Malayalam was titled: Manushyan Mathangale Srishtichu. He sang this song on various platforms. This song is very thought-provoking.....
Shocking Statistics versus thoughtless slogans
Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan | 14-Nov-2024
I wish to begin this write-up with certain alarming statistics: • 129 million Indians are living in extreme poverty (World Bank) • In the 2024 Global Hunger Index, India ranks 105th out of the 127 countries. • One farmer/farm labourer dies by suicide.....
New Delhi – New York, Via Newcastle
Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai | 11-Nov-2024
What’s new? In recent times, a lot. Let me begin with the adage “Don’t carry coal to Newcastle”. This is because Newcastle, in north east England, was known for its industry and coal fields. Hence any attempt to send coal there would be superfluous. Can.....
Embracing True Christianity: A Call to Authentic and Prophetic Action
Opinion | Articles | Benjamin Chang | 07-Nov-2024
Often people claim that they have abandoned their traditional religion and embraced Christianity. Many people think that it is a great victory. Yes, there are many good elements that exist in our society but there are also some social evils that eat into.....
All Saints Day’ and ‘All Souls Day’
Opinion | Articles | Benjamin Chang | 01-Nov-2024
Catholic Church observes ‘All Saints Day’ on November 1 as a day to honor all the saints in heaven and ‘All Souls Day’ November 2 to pray for the souls in purgatory. ‘All Saints Day’ is intended to honour the memory of countless unknown and uncanonized s.....
Formation needs transformation
Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan | 01-Nov-2024
I was intrigued by the revelations Bishop James Thoppil of Kohima, chairman of the northeast bishops’ formation commission, made during the meeting of the formators of northeastern region held from October 21-23, 2024 at Mount Tabor Retreat Centre in Dima.....
The validity of Catholic Baptism
Opinion | Articles | Benjamin Chang | 27-Oct-2024
The Catholic Church has always understood baptism differently. It teaches that baptism is a sacrament that accomplishes several things, the first of which is the remission of sin, both original sin and actual sin—only original sin in the case of infants a.....
Upholding Gandhian Values of Truth, Justice and Nonviolence for Journalism Today!
Opinion | Articles | Cedric Prakash | 23-Oct-2024
It is good to be here at this the 29th Annual Convention of the Indian Catholic Press Association (ICPA). I wish to place on record my deep and sincere gratitude to the Executive Committee of the ICPA and all others concerned for giving me the joy and pri.....