A Journey from Charity to Justice and Peace: Solidarity Immersion in India

January 19, 2011

After returning to Delhi from Jabalpur, we went to the CRS office to visit the staff and for a briefing.

It was a lot of fun - in the beginning we joined the staff in celebrating birthdays, and service awards and had yet another Indian lunch - I love it! Read more...

January 18, 2011

We visited two villages to view the water and sanitation sites supported by CRS.  The entire villages turned out on the road to greet us with flowers, dancing and music.  We were overwhelmed by the love and respect we were shown.  Read more...

January 17, 2011

We arose at 3:30 am to catch a plane for a two hour flight to Jabalpur in the central plains of India.  Since I forgot my bags at the hotel, the next two days and nights were an exercise in simple living.  Read more...

Sunday, January 16

We had Mass this morning at 7 am the Cathedral next door to the Pastoral Center for the Archdiocese of Agra.  We then boarded the train back to Delhi for the night.  This hotel has become a second home for us.  Read more...

Saturday, January 15

On this day, we boarded a train for a 2 1/2 hour trip to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal.  We were lucky to get train tickets - usually, people wait 2-3 months to get a ticket.  It certainly tops jumping on another plane! Read more...

It's Friday, January 14th and today we visited the Mother House of the Missionaries of Charity here in Calcutta.  Bishop Ryan celebrated morning mass.  We saw the many sisters, novices, and visitors from Korea, Australia, and other parts of the world who come to volunteer and participate in the mission and work of the Missionaries of Charity. Read more...

Today, Thursday, January 13 we headed off on a 2 hour journey to visit an agricultural project supported by CRS in the Diocese of Baraiupur.  This is a bit south and west of Calcutta in a village.  The Diocese is quite poor, and home to about 60,000 Catholics.  Christians are a small minority - the predominant religions are Muslim (from Bangladesh) and Hindu.  The Dioce Read more...

On Wednesday, January 12, we visited the CRS office in Calcutta and had lunch with the staff.  CRS is active in 8 offices in India including Calcutta.  Their activity is focused in the North which is the area of greatest need.  They work through 4 primary strategies: livelihood development through microfinance, agricultural programs, and land protection; Read more...

On our first full day in Calcutta, we visited the various houses of the Missionaries of Charity - the order of religious sisters founded by Mother Teresa.  Catholic Relief Services has been a supporter of the sisters for many years - providing bulgar wheat and vegetable oil.  Recently, CRS has initiated new initiatives to provide trainings for the sisters and caregivers. Read more...

I arrived in Calcutta on Tuesday, January 11 in the evening and met up with the group.  Jim DeHarpporte of CRS, Bishop Sylvester Ryan, Tish Scargill & Sheliah Lynch of the Diocese of Monterey, Scott Cooper of the Diocese of Spokane, and Joan Harper retired from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and her husband, Bob.  Read more...