The Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar in eastern India’s Odisha state is currently gathering information and evidence on the martyrdom of some 100 people who were killed in the brutal anti-Christian violence that erupted in the state on August 25, 2008.
As reported by Vatican news, His Grace Archbishop John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar appointed Father Purushottam Nayak to research and prepare a dossier on the martyrs, a process before formally initiating the cause of their martyrdom and sainthood at the diocesan level. After the diocesan process, the cases will be handed over to the Vatican for further examination and verification.
Fr. Nayak is heading a 7-member team, all priests including him, in this task of gathering evidence on the martyrdom. His team follows a prescribed procedure in gathering information. This includes a critical biography of the martyr candidate, a report on the virtues , such as faith, hope charity and generosity, reports on holiness and favours received, if any, through the candidate’s intercession and any possible obstacle to the cause. The team also has to gather information on all public writings on the candidate or his/her martyrdom and make a list of witnesses , both favourable and not favourable to the cause of martyrdom. Fr. Nayak said that the practical difficulties they face in gathering information is locating the victims who have been displaced and scattered after the 2008 persecution. The team tries to reach out to them through relatives, parish priests, catechists and lay people. Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar Archdiocese also plans to have a memorial for the martyrs of other Christian denominations and Hindus.
The initiative is taking place 10 years after Hindu extremists unleashed untold atrocities on Christians, mostly in Kandhamal District, blaming them for the August 23 murder of Hindu leader Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati and four of his disciples. Even though Maoist rebels claimed the assassination, the carefully orchestrated violence continued unabated for months.
Source: en.vaticannews.va
