Monthly newsletter of the Diocese of Durgapur Donation: ₹ 5/-Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty March 2017

Ankita Bhattacherjee: T h e 1 5 t h O r d i n a r y Diocesan Council of the Diocese of Durgapur, Church of North India, was held for three days

t h t hf r o m 1 7 – 1 9 February, 2017 at the St. M i c h a e l ' s a n d A l l Angels' Cathedral, at the D i o c e s a n B h a v a n Campus in Bidhan Nagar, Durgapur.rttt

The council was convened under the Chairmanship of The Rt. Revd. Dr. Probal Kanto Dutta, Bishop Diocese of Durgapur, CNI, who said; "The Council as a body, is

not only a forum for business discussions, essential for running an organised structure, but is primarily a platform to c o m e t o g e t h e r a s dedicated brothers and sisters in Christ, learn from the Word of God, and prepare ourselves to responsibly steward a church of more than twenty two thousand". yuii

R e v d . D r . P r a t a p C h a n d r a G i n e , a n o r d a i n e d m i n i s t e r, Principal of Serampore Theological College, sufficed the spiritual need of the council,

through his Bible Study sessions every morning on the central theme of the council - "My faith by my action." James 2:18iuio

The Council went on smoothly for the three days, with the different wings of the Diocese presenting their reports. On the 3rd day of the

thCouncil on Sunday, 19 F e b r u a r y , t h e nomination committee suggested names for the v a r i o u s c o m m i t t e e members, all of whom w e r e u n a n i m o u s l y accepted by the house. tyyi

The Office Bearers for the next term are: 1. The Rt. Revd. Dr.

Probal Kanto Dutta - Bishop and Chairman

2. Revd. Sumanta Naru - Vice President

3. Mr. Kamakhya Biswas - Hony. Secretary

4. Mr. Subrata Gorai - Hony. Treasurer

XV Ordinary Diocesan CouncilDiocese of Durgapur, CNI

Attack on the Church in Samadi

Inauguration of New Hostel in Malda

thAkash Das: On 4 March,

2017, the Moderator for

t h e U n i t e d R e f o r m

Church, West Midland

Synod, Revd. Steve Faber

graced our Diocese with

his visit. It was his first

trip outside the United

Kingdom.

He preached us

the sermon during the th

service held on the 5 of

March. In his sermon he

spoke about forgiveness

and the healing power of

this simple act.

iuot h

On the 6 of

March, a team of eight

m e m b e r s o f t h e

D i o c e s a n s t a ff

accompanied Rev. Faber

on his trip to Malda

where he was to meet

with the girls who reside

in the safehouse in

B a l d a h u r a a n d t o

inaugurate the Colin

Joyce Building.

ad The Colin Joyce

building was added to

the exis�ng safehouse in

order to accommodate

more individuals who

are vic�ms of trafficking.

thBinod Hansda: On 13

F e b r u a r y, 2 0 1 7 , a

res ident of Bar ikul ,

B a n k u r a , S u s h a n t a

K isku, attacked the

S a n t h a l M i s s i o n

Pa s t o ra t e d u r i n g a

prayer session in the

chapel's office. With

abusive words and a

sword he had stomped

up to the altar and

destroyed the cross,

after which he threw the

f l o w e r v a s e s a n d

candelabras away. He

a l s o d e st ro ye d t h e

hymnals and another

cross.

ooo

When a member

of the congregation,

M a h e n d r a M u r m u ,

heard the commotion in

the church, he went to

see what was going on.

After seeing the crazed

attacker, he tried to shut

the door which was

when he realised that

the attacker had broken

the door down upon his

entry. When Sushanta

n o t i c e d M a h e n d r a

trying to stop him, he

chased after him with

the sword. Mahendra

w a s l u c k y t o h a v e

escaped with his life.

ssd

Present at the

scene were two more

eye witnesses, Binod

H a n s d a w h o i s a

member of the Church,

and Satish Tudu from the

village. They could not

intervene in this attack

because they were

i n t i m i d a t e d b y t h e

sword.

hhh

By the time our

priest, Revd. Kaleb Tudu

reached the scene of the

cr ime, the attacker,

Sushanta Kisku, had

escaped on his bicycle.

H e t h e n w e n t o n a

rampage in the next

v i l l a g e , w h e r e h e

attacked the house of a

believer, Kanchan Besra

who was at the school

where he is a teacher.

When Sushanta didn't

find Kanchan at home, he

threatened Mr. Besra's

wife and said he would

kill Besra, before he left.

This attack on our belief

and our church has left

every believer in the area

shaken and scared. We

h a v e l o s t

property worth

R s . 1 5 , 0 0 0 .

Right now our

only desire is to

be free from

this tyrannical

o p p r e s s i o n

and to freely

pract ice our

religion without fearing

threats and attacks from

anyone else. We also

wish to see this man

punished for his attack

a n d h i s h e i n o u s

behaviour, so that we

don't have to witness a

rel ig ious r iot in our

villages.

2March 2017 Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty

Chief Editor: Ankita BhattacharjeeEditorial Board : Caroline Tan, Tarun Pal, Prosenjit ChowdhuryEditorial Assistance: Akash Das, Rev. R.C Kisku, Raja MosesPublished by Rt. Rev. Dr. Probal Kanto Dutta on behalf of Diocese of Durgapur, CNI, Diocesan Bhavan, Dr. Martin Luther King Road, Bidhan Nagar, Durgapur - 713212,District Burdwan, West Bengal, India.Ph. & Fax: +91-343-2536220

newsletterdeep@gmail.com

ditorialE

Pope Francis (one of the

most dynamic Popes

e v e r i n my h u m b l e

o p i n i o n ) r e c e n t l y

published a list of things

we can fast from during

t h e l e n t s e a s o n .

Traditionally Lent has

been associated with

giving up meat in an

effort to recall to mind

the 40 days of fasting

that our Lord underwent

in the desert. What we

don't realise is that just

giving up meat is not a

very Christian way to

recall our Lord's life and

His suffering. This is

where Pope Francis'

d i c t a t e s b e c o m e s

applicable in our modern

lives. He asks us to:

- Ankita Bha�acharjee GSECH Receives Permanent Licence

The extended building

will now accommodate

20 individuals and has a

separate quarter for

visi�ng guests.

sd

The inaugura�on

began with a welcome

d a n c e b y t h e l o c a l

women and the washing

of the feet. A small

service was held in a

makeshi� tent on the

campus of the hostel

followed by a fun-filled

a�ernoon where the

members of the various

churches performed

t r a d i � o n a l A d i b a s i

dances and the children

shook to the latest

Bollywood tunes.

fgbdsh

A tradi�onal Bengali

lunch brought the day's

fes�vi�es to a close.

Raja Moses: The Good

Shepherd Eye Clinic and

Hospital (G S E C H) is

proud to announce that

w e h a v e r e c e i v e d

national license from

the National Council for

Clinical Establishment.

This body overlooks the

re g i s t rat i o n o f a n d

regulation of all clinical

establishments in the

country with a view to

prescribe the minimum

standards of facilities

and services provided by

them.

Earlier the

G S E C H h a d a

probationary license

f r o m t h e B u r d w a n

Health Department; but

now we have received a

permanent medica l

license and national-

level-recognition. The

Counci l selected 12

health service providers

among 50 registered

not-for-profit clinics in

the Burdwan district,

based on the ratings and

the scores accumulated

by each c l in i c , and

GSECH was one among

them. These ratings are

based on the reports

sent by the clinics each month.

t hCaroline Tan: On 9

March, 2017, the corner

stone for a new chapel

w a s l a i d i n t h e

Marsalduar Girls' Hostel

campus. This chapel will

cater to the spiritual

needs of the residents of

the hostel. The corner

stone was laid by our

Bishop, the Rt. Revd. Dr.

Probal Kanto Dutta, in

the presence of the

Moderator of the United

Reform Church, West

Midland Synod, U.K,

Revd. Steve Faber.

The ceremony

began with a smal l

prayer service in the

c o u r t y a r d o f t h e

M a rs a l d u a r h o ste l ,

f o l l o w e d b y t h e

breaking of the earth

ceremony for laying the

foundation. The Bishop

then laid the corner

stone for the chapel.

Many of the present

attendees volunteered

to donate money for the

building of the church.

Laying of Corner Stone for New Chapel

Record-Breaking number of patients at GSECH

th thNiraj Lal: 14 and 15

February, 2017 saw the

Good Shepherd Eye

C l i n i c a n d H o s p i ta l

a t t e n d t o r e c o r d -

breaking number of

pat ients . Whi le the

e a r l i e r r e c o r d e d

numbers averaged to a

20 – 25 per day, it had hit

a double and stood at 45

patients on both days.

Since then the average

number of patients per

day has increased to 40

per day.

We had conducted 17

s u c c e s s f u l cata ra c t

o p e r a t i o n s a n d

attended to 45 OPD patients last month.

In a world filled with

hatred and war, hunger

and poverty, fasting from

meat or giving up our

favourite food is no

longer the way to follow

Christ (it's best left back

in the Middle ages). It is a

world where we have to

c o n s c i o u s l y a n d

c o n s c i e n t i o u s l y b e

Christians through our

thoughts, words and our

deeds. It is no longer

enough to just own the

badge of baptism to

claim closeness with our

L o r d i f w e a r e n o t

w o r k i n g t o w a r d s

building a relationship

with Him through our

efforts. This lent let's

l o o k f o r w a r d t o

celebrating the life and

sacrifices of our Lord by

f o l l o w i n g t h e s e

mandates in order to

lend more credibility to

o u r a c t i o n s . L e t u s

prepare to welcome the

R i s e n L o rd t h ro u g h

prayer, doing penance,

mortifying the flesh,

rep entan ce o f s in s ,

almsgiving, and self-

denial.

Fast from HURTING WORDS and say KIND WORDS.

Fast from SADNESS and be filled with GRATITUDE.

Fast from ANGER and be filled with PATIENCE. Fast from PESSIMISM and be filled with HOPE. Fast from WORRIES and TRUST IN GOD. Fast from COMPLAINTS and contemplate

SIMPLICITY. Fast from PRESSURES and be PRAYERFUL. Fast from BITTERNESS and fill your heart with

JOY. Fast from SELFISHNESS and be

COMPASSIONATE to others. Fast from GRUDGES and be RECONCILED. Fast from WORDS and be SILENT so you can

listen.

Pope F�NCIS on LENT 2017

March 2017 Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty 3

rdSukanya Mandi: On 3

February 2017, a Bike

Rally was organised by

D u r g a p u r D i o c e s a n

Y o u t h F e l l o w s h i p

Committee. The theme

was “Biking with Jesus”,

and the a im was to

spread the of love and

peace of Jesus Christ to

every one.

Youth from the churches

of Purulia, Sarenga and

Bankura participated in

this rally. They travelled

from their respective

churches to Bankura,

from where they rode

together to the Diocesan

campus in Durgapur. The

onlookers on the roads

were amazed at the

graceful display of bike

riders riding in unity

which gave us immense

joy as they realised that

we were a Church group.

A small prayer meeting

was organised at the

D i o c e s e w h e r e o u r

be loved B ishop, Rt .

Revd. Dr. Probal Kanto

Dutta was present along

with our friends from

o v e r s e a s a n d t h e

Diocesan staff. Th is

overwhelming response

to our efforts was a nod

o f e n c o u r a g e m e n t

towards our efforts

w h i c h g r e a t l y

encouraged us . The

inspiring words by our

fr iends from abroad

added more vigour to

our endeavour. We hope

t o c o n t i n u e t o b e

inspired and to inspire in

t u r n t h e c o m i n g

generation to spread the

love and peace of Jesus

C h r i s t t h r o u g h o u r

endeavours.

Rev. Pankaj Pande: A

spec ia l 3 -days long

prayer meeting was

organised by United

Christian Prayer for India

(UCPFI) in Hyderabad

t h i s m o n t h . T h e

objective of this prayer

meeting was to bring

together Christians from

different denominations

and from every part of

India in order to ideate

on how to spread the

love of God and the

tenets of Christianity in

the country through

w o m e n a n d y o u t h

leadership. The Bishops,

Pastors and faithful from

Catholic, Protestant and

evangelical churches

p a r t i c i p ate d i n t h e

prayer service which

included praise and

worship, penitential rite,

reflection on the word of

God and intercessory

prayers.huiou

LT Jayayendan, Rajen

M a t t h e w P r a m u k h

conducted a Bible-study

session during which he

enlightened us on the

path which we can take

in order to spread the

word of God amongst

His believers and among

everyone else whose

lives we cross. He also

spoke to us about the

importance of including

women and the youth in

this mission.

dsg

Rev. Sudhir Hembrom,

Mr. Raja Moses and

Youth representative,

Sudip Singh participated

in this prayer meeting,

a l o n g w i t h m e , a s

represen-tatives from

the Diocese of Durgapur.

We would not have

received this beautiful

opportunity to interact

with God's people from

all over the country,

were i t not for the

encouragement of our

Bishop, the Rt. Revd. Dr.

Probal Kanto Dutta, and

for that we are grateful

to him. Our learning

from this meeting will

h e l p u s b e b e t t e r

soldiers of God and also

help us to spread his

message of peace and

love and to establish His

kingdom on earth.

UCPFI Meeting Diocesan Youth Unite for Bike Rally

Believers Baptism In Bankura Pastorate

thPankaj Pande: On 26

February, 2017, 3 ladies

and a gentleman from

the Bankura pastorate

renewed their vows of

Christianity through a

baptism in the 100-year-

old pond in Bankura

Christian College.

A three-month course

was organised for the

believers in order to

teach them about the

love of Christ. Through

this course they came to

accept Jesus as their

personal saviour. They

shared the belief that

with their baptism they

with their baptismal

renewal they will give up

all the sin-filled ways of

their past life and be

reborn in Christ as His

true believers.

They have been inspired

b y t h e B i b l e v e r s e

Matthew 28:19 and have

b e e n i m m e r s e d

themselves in the works

of the Church and their

congregation. We pray

t h a t t h i s h a p p y

celebration fills their

lives with renewed hope

and the light and love of

our Lord.

Sports Day and Picnic at St. Michael's School Bankura

thOn 29 January, 2017,

St. Michael's School

Bankura celebrated the

a n n u a l s p o r t s d a y

amidst great pomp and

excitement. The sports

arena was decorated

with festive bunting and

the Teacher-In-Charge

of the school welcomed

everybody to the field.

Presbyter-in-charge of

Bankura, Bishnupur and

Baramara pastorates,

Revd. Debojit Das was

the Chief Guest at the

event. In his opening

speech he spoke about

the importance and

usefulness of sports in a

student's life.

As the opening act, the

students performed

gymnastics and aerobics

with great precision,

fol lowed by several

sport acts like frog leap,

biscuit run, spoon-and-

marble race and inter-

house relay race among

others. The parents also

participated with great

enthusiasm. The event

came to a close with the

distribution of gifts by

the Chief Guest, Rev.

Debojit Das, followed by

a vote of thanks from

the Teacher-In-Charge

and the singing of the

National Anthem.

After the event, the

parents, teachers and

students got together

for a picnic which had

fun games like musical

chair, which put a smile

on everyone's face.

Sewing Diploma Exams

r dRaja Moses: On 3

M a r c h , 2 0 1 7 t h r e e

students from the St.

Mary's Sewing School,

D u rga p u r, to o k t h e

S e w i n g D i p l o m a

Examinations. When

their results are out,

they will be awarded a

certificate in Sewing and

they can start their own

businesses or apply for

jobs as seamstresses or

tailors in shops.

A n o t h e r b a t c h o f

students, from the St.

Mary's Sewing School,

Simonpur, is undergoing

training to take the

S e w i n g D i p l o m a

Examinations in August,

2017.