The 2nd wave makes 155 Catholic priests, including 38 Keralites – The New Indian Express

0


[ad_1]

Express news service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In what could appear to be a matter of grave concern, up to 155 Catholic priests and three bishops from various dioceses across the country have died after contracting Covid-19 in the second wave of the pandemic in the last one -and- months and a half. Among them, 38 priests were from Kerala.

The highest number of deaths was reported in the Archdiocese of Thrissur of the Syro-Malabar Church where eight priests had died from Covid-19. Following this worsening scenario, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) issued guidelines for ensuring the safety of priests on May 5, said Father Jervis D’Souza, deputy secretary general of the CBCI. The Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC) will issue new guidelines after its three-day virtual conference to be held June 1-3.

The list of deceased priests includes religious and diocesan priests working for the three ritual Catholic churches in India – Latin, Syro-Malabar, and Syro-Malankare. Father Suresh Mathew, editor of ‘Indian Currents’ who compiled the list, said: “The number of priests who have died is above the national average for Covid deaths and we should undertake a thorough study into the reasons for these deaths. death.

I wanted to know the number of priests who died during the second deadly wave of the pandemic. So I started to make the list of deceased priests. I contacted the assistant secretary general of the Catholic Bishops‘ Conference of India and got the statistics.

He added that many of the deceased priests were in their 40s. He also sent the list to every bishop in India to ensure the safety of the priests. Father Jacob Palakkappilly, assistant secretary, KCBC, said the situation must be addressed. “Many priests have died from Covid-19 around the country due to the nature of their work, they have to attend services. As we cannot dissuade them from the services, KCBC had previously asked them to do so while respecting the Covid-19 protocol.

But unfortunately, many priests tested positive and some of them died of the disease. In the northern states of India, the situation is much worse because young priests have also died there. The priests who died in Kerala are mostly elders. However, we are committed to ensuring the safety of priests and we will issue new guidelines for priests after the conference, ”he said. Recently, four priests in the diocese of CSI South Kerala died from Covid-19 after attending an annual retreat in Munnar in Idukki last month.

[ad_2]

Share.

Comments are closed.