Ash Wednesday: Alms for India

MISSION OF DAMAN, INDIA:  Urgent help needed to build community centers in tribal villages! Please donate toward construction of a community center to offer dignity and hope to these precious people of God. Our goal is to fund one community center in the village of Chikalda before Easter.      The tribal people testify to the beauty of strong indigenous cultural identification combined with a strong Christian faith!     Dear Catholic Online Reader, Lent is an opportunity to travel closer to Christ and be open to the Lord's call to deepen our Christian faith. As I discovered on my recent trip to India, there is no better witness to complete trust in the Lord than that of our needy brothers and sisters in Christ.   Throughout tribal villages in Dadra and Nagar- Haveli thousands of families are in dire need. In reality, economic success in India belongs to only about 25% of the population. The deplorable living conditions of so many forgotten people here are difficult to imagine in our modern day. Trapped in a world where resources seem to exist only for the few, the villagers carry on with dignity despite extreme circumstances: No running water, electricity, proper bathrooms or sanitation systems Children sitting on the floor at home and at school to eat and study Families separated, as parents are forced to choose between keeping their children home and offering them an education in a distant hostel. People existing hand-to-mouth, farming their own food with support only from the untiring dedication of local missionaries. While I am humbled by the strength and fortitude of the people, they cannot go on without our intervention!     We have been asked to help, through an urgent plea by the Missionaries of St. Francis Xavier and the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman. Plans are in place to construct 12 community centers throughout these tribal areas. Two buildings are in progress, but the mission needs funding for 10 more.   The community centers provide stability and hope: a place for children to study, families to pool resources and missionaries to minister. These centers will be the only facility in the village with generators for light and heat, where missionaries will lead families in programs to better their communities and living conditions.   Without us, education and social uplift are inaccessible dreams! Please check out our website for more pictures and stories of the plight of the tribal people in India.                    With all my heart, thank you for having the heart of a missionary this Lent. God bless you on your journey this season, and please submit your prayer intentions to me here. It's an honor and a privilege!   Yours in Christ,

 

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