Indian Priest Bernard Digal’s was interviewed by me sometime back and his story titled ‘Religious Violence in Orissa’ was published recently in Guardian Weekly. It was reported in Indian press today that Father Bernard Digal succumbed to his injuries in a hospital in Chennai, South India. He was attacked by the Hindu fanatics in the recent riots in Orissa. During the course of the interview I found him to be an affable and loving person. I told him that majority of the Hindus are secular and believe in peaceful co-existence with other faiths. Christianity came to India much before it reached the European shore. One of the twelve Apostle of Jesus, St Thomas first landed in Kerala in about AD 52. When I asked him whether he would be scared to return back to his native Orissa, he replied no and remarked that his life is in the hands of the God. One can now say that Father Bernard Digal is out of reach from the marauding mob of Orissa, resting safely in the hands of God. At end of the interview Father Bernard invited me to visit him at Archbishop of Bhubaneswar but sadly he wouldn’t be around. May his soul rest in peace
Link to full Text of the Interview-
No comments:
Post a Comment