North East Catholic Research Forum

The North East Catholic Research Forum is saddened by the demise of Pope Francis and join the Catholic community in mourning his death in prayer.

Latest from us

Synodal Church: A Need to Walk the Talk

Opinion | Articles | Joseph M Thohrii |

Pope Francis has declared that Synodality is what God expects of the Church in the 21st Century. He has put his own transformative stamp on the meaning and conduct of synods, saying that a synod involves mutual listening in which everyone has something to.....

India Cries for Justice

Opinion | Articles | Cedric Prakash |

In India, the cries for justice, are becoming louder and longer! They come from different segments of society and particularly from those who continue to be exploited and excluded! These cries are heart-rending: anyone with an iota of conscience will hear.....

Bad Apples, Sad Couples, Glad Tidings

Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai |

Fortunately I belong to a small parish where just a handful of people come for the Sunday evening Mass. It is therefore a time of quiet reflection for me. These reflections then are based on the first two readings of the first Sunday of Lent. The first.....

Maturity to Debate

Opinion | Articles | Paul Lelen Haokip |

Debate is a form of articulating one’s conviction or standpoint to convince the floor based on facts and ground zero applications. When a society can debate maturely on topics such as Development, Literacy, Majoritarianism, Forest, Tribes, Democracy, Unif.....

Catholic Church Tithes and Collections

Opinion | Articles | Benjamin Chang |

Catholic Church is a Universal Church and the Indulgence (collection of money) was practiced in some parts of Germany. Thanks to Martin Luther, a Catholic monk for going against the Catholic Church. It was his protests that led to Counter Reformation in t.....

War between Flying and Walking Creatures: A Mizo folk tale

Current Updates | Culture | Luke Sangkima |

(Chungleng Leh Hnuaileng Indo) Once upon a time, a tortoise kept watch over the nest of a serpent. One day a barking deer came and challenged the tortoise to compete for jumping over the nest. The tortoise declined the offer saying he cannot risk destroy.....

The Season of Lent

Opinion | Articles | Benjamin Chang |

Ash Wednesday marks the onset of the Lent, the 40-day period of fasting and abstinence. Ash Wednesday is so called because of the imposition of ashes on the foreheads of the faithful, marked with the shape of a cross, which serve as a reminder of the call.....

Politically religious or religiously political?

Opinion | People's Edit | G.L. Khing |

Human beings are political and religious by nature. The combination of both enables the smooth functioning of the State. The sharp contrast between the two brings chaos, fear and violence. As the trumpet of election blows, there emerges a contrasting soun.....

The Church and Family

Opinion | People's Edit | Joseph M Thohrii |

The Catholic vision describes the family as a community of life and love. Family life is sacred and its activities are holy because God’s love is revealed and communicated through these activities. As a result, families can come to believe that God dwells.....

Lay people are not Guests in the Church, says Pope Francis

Current Updates | Editorial Pick | Editorial team |

The Church is a home that priests and laypeople need to care for together, Pope Francis said on Saturday. “It is time for pastors and laypeople to walk together, in every area of the Church’s life, in every part of the world,” he said in the Vatican’s Ne.....

Holistic Education for Peace in Northeast India

Opinion | Articles | Paul Lelen Haokip |

Northeast India boasts of rich biodiversity, but peace is still a longing. Insurgency, inter-tribal hostilities, boundary disputes, and trust deficits abound galore. Inhabitants of these eight states of India are vulnerable to media influence, political p.....

Indian Synod: Forward or Backward?

Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai |

Synod, what’s that? Are we suffering from collective amnesia? The next round, the Continental one, is slated for 24th – 27th February. For Asia it will be held in Bangkok, Thailand. If I correctly recall, our Asian bishops had earlier met in Pattaya, anot.....

Immunological Thinking

Opinion | Articles | Victor Ferrao |

Humans have gone through several ages of affliction. There was a microbial age that ended with the discovery of antibiotics. Thanks to immunological science and technology, we have left it behind although covid-19 virus threatened to usher it again. The.....

Nongstoin Diocese gets a New Bishop

Current Updates | NE Brief | NECARF Rep |

Bishop Elect of Nongstoin Diocese,Rev. Fr. Merwin

According to a press release issued by Rev. Fr (Dr) Stephen Alathara, the Deputy Secretary General of CCBI, Rev. Fr Wilbert Marwein has been appointed as the new Bishop of Nongstoin Diocese. The communiqué also adds that Fr. Wilbert Marwein was born on 1.....

Editorial

The Pope didn’t Sulk or Shun

The Vatican News released a video of Pope Francis extending Easter greetings to a multitude of people at St. Peter’s Square in Rome, which was one day before his final journey to the eternal world. A close look at that video reveals that the Holy Father w.....

The CBCI blinks yet again

The Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), regarded as a father figure by an estimated 23 million Catholics in this country, has yet again shown lack of wisdom while taking decision on crucial matters. While the organization may like to downplay som.....

Persecution as an Opportunity

The history of the church is replete with stories of persecution; the crucifixion of Christ itself being the greatest of all. Rome, where the Vatican, the supreme seat of the Pontiff, stands today, in fact was one of the foremost places where Christian pe.....

Weaving a Christian Relationship

His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama, in his book, Toward A True Kinship of Faith, wrote, “I have boundless respect for my Buddhist faith, but to see it within the context of its brother and sister religions has afforded me a vision of the grandeur and exten.....

We hope the Church Hierarchy is listening

According to the media report, the son of a pastor, Ramesh Baghel, has been prevented from burying the dead body of his late father in the village cemetery because some Hindutva activists from his village did not allow the burial to take place. He appeale.....

The Twin Pillars of the Catholic Church

Dealing with the differences between the laity and clergy, the two pillars of the church, is a perpetual problem for the Catholic Church. Though the problem is real and sometimes threatens to tear apart the cohesiveness of the synodal church, it has alway.....

It is time Christians learn to read things between the lines

The recent statement from the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court, proposing a regulatory body to oversee church properties akin to temple boards and waqf boards for Hindus and Muslims, undoubtedly raises concerns. However, given the number of controve.....

Look within, before gazing afar

Pope Francis has already announced the names of 21 new Cardinals who will officially assume the new role on December 8th, 2024. Following their appointment as cardinal-elects, the Holy Father wrote a short but powerful letter to all these men, who would s.....

The AICU needs to explore beyond its current boundaries.

The All India Catholic Union, which is the apex body of lay Catholics in India, was born well ahead of India's independence. It is a union with inclusive representation, upholding the Catholic faithful's mandate from all three rites of the Catholic family.....

Wayanad: Another wakeup calls for Mankind

Wayanad in Kerala is considered to be one of the rural districts in the state that has many attractions: a wildlife sanctuary, lush green forest cover, high altitude comfort, home to animals including Asian elephants, tigers, and leopards, and mesmerizing.....

Democracy has finally triumphed

The Parliamentary Elections 2024 have been one hell of an epic exercise, not because they were conducted in a country known as the world’s largest democracy, but simply because of the manner in which the entire exercise was carried out. Between the first.....

Unleashing Unity: A Synodal Mandate for the Catholic Church in Northeast India

As India engages herself in a general election since April 19th and braces for results on June 4, 2024, the air is thick with anxiety. The potential return of the Modi-led BJP, with its fascist undertones and anti-minority stance, threatens the very fabri.....

Previous Articles

A Brief History of Roman Catholic Church in Mizoram

Opinion | Articles | Luke Sangkima

In the history of Christianity in North East India, Mizoram is one state where the faith entered very late on its soil as compared to other neighboring states. In this region, the advent of Christianity followed the British flag, except in the Ao area of .....

Cardinal Poola: The first Dalit Cardinal has a task cut out.

Opinion | Articles | John Dayal

Cardinal Poola: The first Dalit Cardinal has a task cut out. India has just elected a tribal woman as the republic’s president. And this week, it will see its first Cardinal from a group that was, till 1947, considered untouchable — whose very shadow wou.....

Have Religions become the opium of the people?

Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan

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.....

Advent Adventure

Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai

The Advent season is upon us. It is a preparation for Christmas, depending on our priorities. The Hindi word for Advent is Aagman. It is the same word used at airports for Arrivals. Advent means just that – the coming or arrival of somebody or thing. .....

Penny for your Penance

Opinion | Articles | Chhotebhai

There are two common English phrases where the word “Penny” is used – “A Penny for your thoughts”, and “Going to spend a penny”. The first is obvious; the second means going to relieve one’s bladder. That could cost a penny in a British public convenience.....

Catholics of Zhavame: Faith triumphed over persecution

Opinion | People's Edit | Team NECARF

This poignantly touching story of grit and determination shown by the early Catholics of Zhavame village in Nagland, was carried in the publication of the 9th Nagaland Catholic Youth Movement Convention. We picked not because it tells stories of persecuti.....

‘Transitus’ of Francis: End of an Era and a Great Legacy Pope Francis (1936-2025)

Opinion | Articles | George Plathottam

The world mourns for Pope Francis at his ‘transitus’, to use a word that is both rich in meaning and familiar to the Church and the Franciscan spiritual tradition to describe one’s passing. His death, no doubt, is the end of a remarkable era. He leaves b.....

Mathematics: The Next Microscope of Life

Opinion | Articles | Victor Ferrao

Science has a deep relation with mathematics. Today even life sciences depend on quantitative measurements and correlations. Charles Darwin, the father of evolution is said to have expressed his regrets when he said, ‘ I have not proceeded far enough .....

A Reflection on Christmas

Opinion | Articles | M L Satyan

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.....

The Hug of a Humbug!

Opinion | Articles | Cedric Prakash

Few will not remember Judas Iscariot and the role he played in the betrayal of Jesus! For those who don’t know or don’t remember, these passages from Sacred Scripture will help put things in perspective: And while they were eating, he said, “Truly I .....

NISCORT Online Course

Education | College | NECARF Rep

NISCORT is conducting an Online Certificate Course in Media for Grauates. Those interested to join may contact the Institute.....

Current Updates

Christian Today in Conversation with Dr. John Dayal.

Editorial Pick | Editorial team |

As India marks its 76th Republic Day, the Christian community faces what many describe as an unprecedented crisis of religious freedom. Recent appeals to both President Draupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paint a troubling picture: over 720 in.....

Statement of Concerned Catholics

Editorial Pick | Editorial team |

On Thursday 4 April 2024, Pope Francis in a very incisive message to the participants in the First Colloquium between the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, held in the Vatican said, “We n.....

Pope Francis says he is frightened by escalation in war

Editorial Pick | Editorial team |

Pope Francis in an interview

In an interview on an Italian TV program, Pope Francis laments the risk of escalation in war, says he has no plans to resign, announces Apostolic Journeys to Polynesia and to Argentina, and reflects on ‘Fiducia supplicans’, saying “the Lord blesses everyo.....

Our Baptism made us children of God: Pope Francis

Editorial Pick | Editorial team |

Pope Francis during Sunday Angelus

During his Sunday Angelus on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, Pope Francis reminds faithful that the day they were baptized, we became children of God forever, and this date of great grace must be remembered and celebrated. At our Baptism, we became.....

Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil receives World Peace Award 2023

NE Brief | NECARF Rep |

Archbishop Menamparampil receiving the award

Archbishop Emeritus Thomas Menamparampil of Guwahati, whose name is synonymous with a crusader of ‘Peace and Reconciliation’, has been awarded the prestigious Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam World Peace Award 2023 on the occasion of the United Nations International H.....

Synodal myopia in the light of Synodality in the family and apostolates

Editorial Pick | Editorial team |

Recent statements by prominent ecclesiastics raise important questions about certain assumptions that isolate synodality from theological, ecclesiological, canonical, and practical realities.(The Catholic World Report) This essay is occasioned by (1) the.....

Opinion

After Francis, Who?

Articles | Chhotebhai |

Focus now shifted to the Camerlengo (the papal custodian till the election of the new pope). It was now his duty to follow the guidelines for the election of a new pope as specified in Universi Dominici Gregis (UDG), promulgated by Pope John Paul II on 2.....

The Messenger is Gone, but not the Message

Articles | M L Satyan |

After a very long period, God selected a modern, pro-poor Francis Assisi in the form of a pope to reform the church that was rusting. Definitely, he too had been seriously reflecting on the contrast between the wealthy Vatican and the acute poverty outsid.....

The Pope didn’t Sulk or Shun

Editorial | John S. Shilshi |

The Vatican News released a video of Pope Francis extending Easter greetings to a multitude of people at St. Peter’s Square in Rome, which was one day before his final journey to the eternal world. A close look at that video reveals that the Holy Father w.....

A day after He went, memories of Pope Francis come piercing with Realization

Articles | James Pochury |

The news broke quietly, like a whisper lost in the noise of our indifferent world: Pope Francis had passed away. For many, it was a passing headline. For those who understood what he represented, it was the end of an era. And for those of us shaped by rig.....

In Pope Francis’ death the world is orphaned!

Articles | Cedric Prakash |

In Pope Francis’ death the world is orphaned! In the death of Pope Francis, the world has lost one of the greatest personalities of modern times! We are saddened that he is no longer in our midst! He was truly a compassionate pastor with a warm, lovi.....

‘Transitus’ of Francis: End of an Era and a Great Legacy Pope Francis (1936-2025)

Articles | George Plathottam |

The world mourns for Pope Francis at his ‘transitus’, to use a word that is both rich in meaning and familiar to the Church and the Franciscan spiritual tradition to describe one’s passing. His death, no doubt, is the end of a remarkable era. He leaves b.....

Education

Job Fair in Don Bosco Kohima

College | NECARF Rep |

Job Fair Notice

For kind attention of young boys and girls who are interested in getting recruited in different Comnpaies......

Step in to the World of Journalism and Mass Media

College | NECARF Rep |

Niscort Media College

For those who aspire for the world of Mass media.....

Avail Early Bird Discount in Media Studies

College | NECARF Rep |

Admission Notice

NISCORT, one of the Premier Media Colleges in the National Capital area, announces admission for several graduate and post-graduate level courses in Media studies. Interested students may visit www.niscort.com for details......

NISCORT Announces three different courses in Journalism and Mass Communication

College | NECARF Rep |

aa

For those Interested in Journalism studies, the above affordable courses comes as a boon.....

NICORT Media College Announces Short Courses in Media fields

College | NECARF Rep |

Annoucment

NICORT Media College Announces Short Courses in Media fields.....

For those interested to make a Career in Mass Media and Journalism, NISCORT provides the opportunity

College | NECARF Rep |

NISCORT opens Admissions for Course in Mass Media and Journalism

NISCORT opens Admissions for Course in Mass Media and Journalism.....

Top