MOTHER TERESA'S BIRTH CENTENARY COMMENCES SANS FANFARE

MOTHER’S BIRTH CENTENARY COMMENCES SANS FANFARE

CAMIL PARKHE
Friday, August 27, 2010 AT 11:10 AM (IST)
Tags: Pune, Mother Teresa, birth anniversary, Missionaries of Charity, Thomas Dabre, Camil Parkhe
The nuns belonging to the Missionaries of Charity congregation, founded by Mother Teresa, launched year-long birth centenary celebrations of their founder, sans any fanfare, here on Thursday.
It was business as usual at the three houses of Missionaries of Charity at Tadiwala Road, Chinchwad and Wakad, where the nuns continued their routine activities of caring for the aged, destitute and special children sheltered at these convents.
The only special feature marking the birth centenary of the Nobel Laureate was the prayers held at the three convents in the morning.
The nuns, commonly referred to as Mother Teresa sisters, also attended religious services at the nearby churches where special mass was offered for the early sainthood of their founder, who was referred to as a living saint during her lifetime.
Mother Teresa had visited the Missionaries of Charity convent at Tadiwala Road and St Patrick’s Cathedral during her visit to the city.
Pope John Paul II had declared the Macedonia-born nun as ‘Blessed’, a stage prior to declaring her as a saint.
As per the Church’s tradition, some more proved miracles are required for declaring the Blessed Mother Teresa of Kolkata as a saint.
Pune Bishop Thomas Dabre had directed all churches in Pune diocese, comprising Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad and nearby four districts, to offer special masses to seek expedition of the process for the Mother’s canonisation.

Be more sensitive to challenged persons

Be more sensitive to challenged persons
Sakaal Times
Friday, September 17, 2010 AT 07:33 PM (IST)
Tags: Disability, Physically challenged people
How sensitive are we to the problems faced by the disadvantaged and the physically or mentally challenged people? Most of us will consider ourselves to be 'fairly' sensitive. A couple of recent incidents has made me wonder if it is really the case.
Last week, I was waiting to get into a city bus as a group of rural folks struggled to alight from the rear door of the bus. A young woman was helping an elderly blind couple to get out and jostling with commuters impatient to get in. “Can't you people alight from the front door,” shouted one irate passenger at them. The woman, who had managed to lead the aged couple out, retorted, “Can't you educated people allow some leeway to the old and the blind?” The illiterate woman's remark left us dumb, too stunned to react.
An incident narrated by my teacher wife has lingered in my mind for long. She and some teachers were waiting for a physically challenged student to complete writing his answers during the SSC examination. All other students had left the examination hall after the expiry of the examination period. This student was given an extra half an hour in accordance with the rules of the secondary education board. The school teachers were not aware of the fact that physically challenged students are entitled to an extra half an hour during examination until the student had produced the board's letter to that effect.
As the boy hurriedly continued to draw graphs holding the scale in his deformed hand, the teachers waited impatiently. “Kay katkat ahe, nahi (What a nuisance)! By now, we would have left for home but for this boy...” one of the teachers said.After a few minutes, the boy finished his paper, looked quite apologetically at the teachers who had taught him for the past few years and said, “Miss, I would not seek extra time for the language and social science papers. It is only for science and geometry papers where I have to draw figures and for that I need extra time.”
My wife recounted that tears came to her eyes as she heard the boy's apologetic remark. “No beta , you take your own time, we won't mind,” she said. I, too, was moved greatly when I heard about the incident. Indeed, we surely need to willingly make an extra effort and be sensitive too all children, especially to the disadvantaged ones.

Comments
On 20/09/2010 12:20 prakash bhalerao said:
Simply moving. Much to learn from the medically challeged. sensitivity belongs to heart

On 19-09-2010 21:46:52 Vijay Shejwal said:
In this world of rat race and materilistic values, we have certainly lost sense to persons around us even our near and dear once I dont no way we are so indefferent to our fellow human beings?

THREE LAKH ATTEND HAREGAON’S MATMAULI YATRA

THREE LAKH ATTEND HAREGAON’S MATMAULI YATRA

Correspondent
Tuesday, September 14, 2010 AT 10:42 AM (IST)
Tags: Ahmednagar, Haregaon, Christians, Matmauli yatra, church, yatra
Over three lakh Christians from different parts of the State participated in the two-day Matmauli yatra, which concluded at Haregaon in Shrirampur taluka of Ahmednagar district on Sunday.
The Matmauli yatra is celebrated at the St Teresa Church every year on the Saturday and Sunday after September 8, the feast of Mother Mary's birthday.
The high mass at the yatra was celebrated by Amravati Bishop Lourdes Daniel on September 11 evening in the presence of over hundred priests from Pune, Nashik and Aurangabad districts.
This was the 62ndyear of the Matmauli yatra launched by a German Jesuit Gerhard Baadar in 1948 for the poor faithfuls, who could not afford to attend Mount Mary feast at Bandra in Mumbai.
The golden jubilee anniversary celebrations of the yatra was held two years ago.
Over the years, the number of faithfuls attending the yatra has swelled to a few lakhs, creating tremendous pressures on the government administration and the church. For the last few years, the Church authorities have been appealing to the devouts to leave the Church premises soon after attending the religious services.
Church authorities on Saturday cancelled the procession of the statue of Mother Mary in view of large assembly of pilgrims and narrow village roads, thus giving much relief to the police.
The week-long annual feast of Mount Mary held at Bandra in Mumbai for a week, starting on the Sunday after September 8, is the largest congregation of the Christian community in the State.
The Haregaon yatra, on the other hand, is the largest assembly of Christians in western Maharashtra and Marathwada. Haregaon pilgrim centre is therefore, often described as the Pandharpur of the Marathi-speaking Christians.