Dalit Journal

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

The Archbishop is coming May 8th!

Holy Family faithful have four weeks to replace an old concrete stage
on church property.

On Wednesday of Holy Week, Fr. Varghese took a bus to Visakhapatnam for a one-hour meeting with Most Reverend Prakash Mallavarapu. The Archbishop offered his "prayers for my mission," said Fr. Varghese. Archbishop Prakash encouraged the missionary, saying "The whole Catholic Church is with you...Be happy and live for Christ."
The Archbishop then offered incredible news. He is coming to Holy Family Church on May 8th to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation. Because prior pastors were elderly and lacked resources, this will be the first time Confirmations have been celebrated at the Yelleswaram church in 10 years! About 200 candidates aged 12 to 45 are expected to step forward.

A team of men joined Fr. Varghese in prayer, and then started out the project
before breakfast. By the time a parishioner arrived with a camera Fr. Varghese
could use to document the process (he lost his camera to Godavari
floodwaters last year), the ladies were taking a shift, tackling the
grimy and hazardous job of breaking through old concrete.

Fr. Varghese has already begun teaching Confirmation classes and parishioners are already preparing for the visit. The aging concrete stage on church property was a project begun by a previous pastor 13 years ago, but never completed. Now bare wires jab into the air and concrete is crumbling. The whole platform is an eyesore and dangerously uneven. Something must be done to fix the situation, or where will the Archbishop, Fr. Varghese and all his people go to celebrate Confirmation? The church is far too small for the event.
However, since the Mission just celebrated Easter little more than a week ago, its funds are now especially low.

Today, teams of faithful began labor on a new stage. Parishioners are also fundraising on the local level...but help is urgently needed for Holy Family to meet costs of preparing its Confirmandis and for hosting the Confirmation ceremony.
Won't you consider helping to cover costs of this special event? Any funds collected over the next four weeks through this site's "Donation" button at right, will go toward the May 8th Ceremony. God bless you for "touching" this remote community of "untouchables" with your prayer and loving assistance.

Views of the old stage:

And down it comes...

Sunday, April 7, 2013

East Godavari papers cover Holy Family's Good Friday service

"This snap came to all the papers of East Godavari District" covering the Good Friday commemoration in his parish, said Fr. Varghese. The script seen here is Telugu, the language of the Andrah Pradesh region.

Easter Vigil 2013 -- He is risen!

Hundreds of villagers traveled to Holy Family Church this year for Easter Vigil Mass, held outside under a tent due to overflow crowds.

Catechumens line up to be received into the Church. The little orphan girl Akhila, who Fr. Varghese adopted six years ago when she was left in his care, is on the far right.

People helped make the celebration beautiful in every way, from decorating and altar serving, to offering readings and providing music.

Holy Family Mission distributes gifts of saris to widows on feast days.

But the greatest gift received by all was the Eucharist, which the beloved Pope John Paul II called the "source and summit of life." Jesus is risen in Yelleswaram, India. Hallelujah!