News & Events

Bishop George appointed Chairman for Evangelization in Asia

The Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conference (FABC) has appointed Bishop George Pallipparambil of Miao Diocese, Arunachal Pradesh, to lead the Office of Evangelization in Asia for a period of three years starting from 1 January 2020. The appointment of Bishop PK, as he is fondly called by the people around the North East Region, comes close on the heels of the appointment of Cardinal Tagle of Manila Philippines as Prefect of Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples by Pope Francis in the first week of this month. The Church in North East region has received the news with joy and much hope for the future. Archbishop Emeritus and former Chairman for the Office of Evangelization of FABC, Thomas Menamparampil expressed happiness joy over the appointment Bishop George for the same office. “Having had an intense experience in the field of Evangelization over several decades in a sensitive corner of Asia, he will be able to make a major contribution to the office entrusted to him”, he said. Bishop George, 65, is also the Chairman Bishop of Youth Commission and Evangelization Commission in the North East Regional Bishops’ Council. Charged with great enthusiasm to spread the message of the Gospel and deep love for the people in the North East Region, Bishop PK is the right person to lead the Church’s work of Evangelization in Asia, said Fr. Johnson Parackal, the President of SIGNIS India North East. As Chairman, Bishop George has his job cut out for the Church during these troubled times across Asia. Upon assuming Office, the new Chairman will be working with Broderick Pabillo, Auxiliary Bishop of Manila, Simon Poh Hoon Seng, Archbishop of Kuching, Josheph Son Sam-seok, Bishop of Busan and Dr. Camillus Fernando from the Colombo Catholic Press, to oversee the work of Evangelization in 19 Member Bishops’ and eight Associate Member Bishops’ Conferences across Asia. The appointment of Cardinal Tagle as Prefect of Congregation for the Evangelization across the world and Bishop George’s for the same Office in Asia augur well for the Church in Asia in general and for India in...

The secret of success of any peace effort is the ability to listen, says the retired Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil of Guwahati. He was speaking on the occasion of receiving the “Ambassador for Peace” award for 2019 from the International Human Rights Council in a glittering ceremony held at India Islamic Centre Auditorium, New Delhi on December 9. “Many think that volubility and vocabulary, a cute approach and a persuasive tongue will convince the parties in conflict. But far more important is a contextual understanding of their more serious anxieties in their complexity and depth. But ultimately, a ‘sympathetic listening’ to their inner agonies alone will open the doors for dialogue,” said the 83-old Church leader. “What we need to acquire most of all is an “ability to listen,” he says. When discussions are rushed through and dictated decisions are pressed hard on the combatants by authorities, peace negotiations stumble, and dialogue makes little headway. But if concern for the anxieties of the affected parties and attention to their eagerness to shape a realistic future dominates the conversation, the horizon brightens up, hearts open out, interactions become fruitful, and realistic conclusions can be reached. Archbishop Menamparampil with his Joint Peace Team had come to the rescue of two and a half lakh refugees in 42 relief camps around Kokrajhar in 1996 after an inter-ethnic conflict that had carried away hundreds of lives and destroyed thousands of houses. More than 400 volunteers from places as far as Mumbai and Pune, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, had come to help, and had worked side by side with those from the Northeast itself for months on end, in close collaboration with the state government, providing food, drink, medicine, clothes and other necessities. Peace work was a continuation of this mighty effort, that came after prolonged negotiations and long eliciting of good will. The Governor and the Chief Minister had lauded this mighty contribution. After that, the Peace Team was called to several places of conflict: Churachandpur, Imphal, Haflong, Diphu, Udalguri, Mendipathar, and Sarupathar in Assam and even Khandmal in Odisha, where major tragedies had caused the loss of hundreds of lives, and a very great loss of houses and enormous amount of property. Asked why these events had not won national attention and international sympathy, the Archbishop said, “Unfortunately, when the affected communities belong to smaller ethnic groups and weaker sections of people, they fail to win the attention they deserve.” “This is the greatest tragedy,” he lamented. But the misfortunes were not any less grievous for that. Apart from direct involvement on peace issues, the Archbishop has written several books and articles on the theme of peace, reconciliation, forgiveness; respect for cultures, defense of traditional value-systems, etc. He has been present at conferences with such themes in the Universities of Wuhan, Nankai, and Hubei in China; Nairobi and Kampala in Africa, recently in Cairo in Egypt, Izmir in Turkey, and several universities in India itself. Apart from sympathetic listening, the Archbishop insists on the importance of being sensitive to the memories of historic injuries that still may be harassing the communities concerned, in-built prejudices, and cultural distances. “In India we are suffering too much from these,” he says. “And in addition, let your opponent know that you respect him, even when you differ from...

In the wake of recent crimes against women across India, a group of children in the last village of Arunachal Pradesh ran for the safety of women in India to conclude their annual sports day celebrations on 4 December 2019. The number crime against women has been on the rise in the recent past. Every day morning greets us with depressing news about atrocities against women. Just when the country was recovering from the Nirbhaya incident in Delhi, similar incidents have started happening across the country in the recent past. The murder of the young veterinary Doctor in Hyderabad and the killing of a school child in Rajasthan in the past week have left us wondering if our country has become unsafe for women and children to live any more, said the Principal of Newman School in Neotan village of Changlang District. Inaugurating the event, he said, “Your running today may not solve this problem. However, your act will spread awareness among yourselves to work towards building up a safer society for women in India”. A group of 200 children participated in the 3 Kilometer mini marathon that began from Government Higher Secondary School in Namphai I and ended at Newman School Neotan. Students from class four to class ten participated in the running that began at 5.30 am and everyone showed enthusiasm to be part of the early running for an important cause. “I woke up at 4am today to be in time for this running today”, said Wangthan Chithan, a tenth grader who won the marathon. “The purpose this running motivated me”. I would grow up to build a better country for the women to live in, said Gideon Khimhun, the youngest participant at the end of the...

A missionary Nun, Doctor Rose Tom, working in Arunachal Pradesh is conferred with ‘International Human Rights” award 2019 for her healthcare services in the last villages of Arunachal Pradesh by a Delhi-based International Human Rights Council on 9 December, at the India Islamic Centre Auditorium in the presence of invitees from all over the country and abroad. Doctor Sister Rose Tom, who hails from Kottayam District in Kerala, a Gynecologist, with more than 33 years of work experience from across the country, is currently working for the last four years at the Krick and Bourry Memorial (KBM) Hospital in Injan village of Changlang District, Arunachal Pradesh. “I am totally humbled by this honour”, said the 67 year old Nun, who belongs to the Sacred Heart (SH) Congregation of Pala Province, Kerala. She came to Arunachal in 2015, responding to the special invitation from Bishop George Pallipparambil of Miao Diocese, to serve in KBM Hospital, the only Church-run hospital in the north eastern state, bordering Myanmar and China. Speaking on the occasion, she said, “Healthcare service is still major concern for the people in Arunachal.” According to a recent report, the Arunachal’s Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is 36 deaths per 1000 births, the highest figure recorded in the state since 2000 and one of the worst in the country. “We are doing our best first of all to educate and spread awareness among the people to reduce the IMR in the state through our mobile clinics and village health workers”, said the awardee, who has done her MD in Padova University, Italy and DGO in Dublin, Ireland. Accepting the award, she said, “This award is for the hundred of health workers like me, who walk for days to care for the sick in the last villages of Arunachal Pradesh”. Bishop George too congratulated Doctor Rose Tom for the honour and said that she rightly deserves the award. “Dr. Sr. Rose Tom, with her years of experience and expertise is a doctor for the people. When she was told of the need for a Doctor in KBM Hospital, she at once relinquished her duty as a medical superintendent in a big hospital in Kerala and moved to Arunachal. She has indeed become a blessing for the people around. More than the health care per se, the awareness imparting role that she plays is more important as many deaths are caused to due to the ignorance of the people”, he said. The missionary Sister receiving the award is not only a big honour for the state but it also highlights the lack of proper healthcare for the people living in hilltops of Arunachal...

The Extraordinary Missionary Month (EMM) of October 2019 announced by Pope Francis was inaugurated with a prayer guide booklet for prayer intentions for the mission stations in Miao Diocese of Arunachal Pradesh in Northeast India. Responding to the Pope’s call to celebrate the month of October 2019 as Extraordinary Missionary Month to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Pope Benedict XV’s Apostolic Letter Maximum Illud, the faithful in the northeastern most region of India inaugurated the month of October with a special prayer intention booklet and Rosary procession across the diocese. Releasing a small booklet prepared for the event, Bishop George Pallipparambil of Miao Diocese said the month should make everyone aware that the primary duty of the Church is to make Christ known to all the people. “I hope this booklet helps everyone to make an extra effort to make this month days of deep reflection on the call of everyone to be a missionary”, he said. The booklet contains a brief reflection for each day of the month and prayer intentions for all the mission stations in the Diocese and concludes with a short prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Miao Diocese has drawn up a huge action plan to make everyone participate in the EMM, that includes animations for Catechists, men and women groups, Eucharistic procession and prayer rally scheduled to be held all over the month of October. People also expressed happiness to be part of this global event of the Church. “Such events of the Church not only make participate but it also makes us aware that we belong to the Universal Church”, said a believer at the end of the first day of...

News & Events

Bishop George appointed Chairman for Evangelization in Asia

‘Ambassador of Peace’ calls for the ‘Ability to Listen’

Arunachal Children run for the safety of women in India

Arunachal Missionary Nun receives International Human Rights Award

Extraordinary Missionary Month inaugurated with a prayer guide in Miao Diocese