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

Akash Das: Sunday, the t h30 of Apr i l , 2017,

witnessed a grand affair in the St. Michael's & All A n g e l ' s C a t h e d r a l , Durgapur. Five deacons, R e v . D n . S h y a m a l M a h a r a , R e v . D n . Rajamani Murmu, Rev. Dn.Bipin Hansda, Rev. Dn. Rabindranath Ray

a n d R e v . D n . Manabananda Halder w e r e o r d a i n e d a s priests. po

It is indeed a matter of great joy for

the Diocese to have

m o r e p e o p l e c o m e

forward and work in the

ministry. When Bishop

Dutta had taken over

the initially turbulent

Diocese of Durgapur, he

had started with only

twelve priests. Today

the number of priests

has expanded to thirty

s i x – a l l o f t h e m

theologically trained

f r o m r e p u t e d

seminaries. po

It is with great joy that the members of

the Diocese of Durgapur

welcomed these five

priests among the fold.

They had served as

Deacons for a year

before they took this

step to serve the Lord as

his priests.

Ordination of Priests in St. Michael's Cathedral

Uniting World Workshop in Darjeeling

Ankita Bhattacherjee: A

joyful congregation of

people whose vision is to

make the world a better

place by aiding in the

quest for development -

that's the best way to

describe the four-day

wo r ks h o p t h at wa s

conducted by the team

from Uniting World, thAustralia, from the 25

thto the 28 of April, 2017.

T h e t h r e e - m e m b e r

team comprised of Jane

Kennedy (Assoc iate

Director, Asia/Africa),

D a n i e l B u c k i n g h a m

( P ro g ra m M a n a ge r,

R e l i e f a n d

Development) and Ellen

S h i p l e y ( M a n a g e r,

Learning Effectiveness

and Compliance). This

year the location was

the home ground of the

E a s t e r n H i m a l a y a n

Diocese, Darjeeling.

F o u r o f u s f r o m D u r g a p u r w e n t a s representatives to this workshop. Our team comprised of Project Coordinator for the C o m m u n i t y D e v e l o p m e n t Programme, Nita Pyne, C a p a c i t y B u i l d i n g Coordinator Tarun Pal a n d t h e D i o c e s a n C o m m u n i c a t i o n Department members Caro l ine Tan and I . Representatives from the others projects of the Uniting World made u p t h e p r e s e n t assembly. The partners of Uniting World came

from the CNI Diocese of A m r i t s a r, f ro m t h e D i o c e s e o f Ea ste r n Himalayas and from the Methodist Church of Sri Lanka.

op

T h e fo u r- d ay interactive workshop fo c u s e d o n d i ve rs e i s s u e s t h a t w e r e c o n n e c t e d t o development. Many of the attendees had been p re s e nt at t h e l a st workshop and they shared their experience and the changes that they had instituted in their projects to achieve b e t t e r r e s u l t s a n d greater success since the last workshop. op

On the first day

we fo c u s e d o n o u r

expectations from the

w o r k s h o p a n d t h e

concerns that we are

f a c i n g , S o u t h A s i a

Partnership Strategy and

the Theory of Change.

One of the biggest tools

f o r a d v o c a c y a n d

progress was this last

topic which focused on

effecting behavioural

c h a n g e t h r o u g h

applicable processes and

through creat ion of

awareness by identifying

triggers to affect change.

T h e t o p i c a l s o l a i d

emphasis on working

with key people (leaders)

in the community and by

appealing to the spirit of

n u r t u r e i n t h e

community members in

order to affect change.

The important learning

that we took away from

this very fascinating tool

w a s t o d e v e l o p a

targeted and focused

plan of action that was

real ist ic in order to

trigger sustainable and

effective development.

On the second day we were divided into mixed g r o u p s i n o r d e r t o p r o m o t e p e e r engagement with those present. We worked on a story provided by the facilitators – identifying the needs and the issues faced by the community in the story. The story was reflective of the communities we all work with and was therefore quite relatable.

On the third day w e l e a r n e d a b o u t M o n i t o r i n g a n d Evaluation from Ellen Shipley. This session h e l p e d u s g a i n perspective about our work and about how we can make our work more accountable. It made us realise the importance of ta k i n g s to c k o f o u r a c t i o n s a n d o u r expenditures in order to f a c i l i t a t e e f f e c t i v e growth and sustainable development over time. The other topics that were given importance i n t h i s s e s s i o n wa s B u d g e t i n g a n d A c q u i t t a l s , C h i l d Protection, Disability I n c l u s i o n a n d Opportunities for Future Collaboration. ppp

On the second day of our stay a day trip was organised by our host, Sanjay from the E a s t e r n H i m a l a y a Diocese, for sightseeing around Darjeeling. The first leg of the trip took us on a toy train ride along t h e e d g e s o f t h e mountains in Darjeeling, u p to G h o o m – t h e highest railway station in India, and covered by roiling fog. The second leg of the journey saw us in a tea estate where we l e a r n e d a b o u t t h e various kinds of teas and the different flushes (blooms) used to make teas. The end of the trip al l of us bought tea packets from the estate and left to return back to our hotel. The more adventurous of us had gone out to a loca l restaurant to try the local delicacies. On the last night of our trip, all of us gat h e re d at a l o ca l restaurant to share a f ina l meal wi th our colleagues from different parts of the world, in order to strengthen the bond of friendship and solidarity that we had built with each other over the week. pp

The week-long trip was a major success because it has helped us in not only learning about new methods to implement in our daily work to make our efforts more productive, but it has also built a sense of unity with people who are doing this kind of work around different parts of the country and t h e S o u t h A s i a n continent. This trip also inspired in us a renewed v i g o u r a b o u t t h e importance of our work and taught us ways to make our jobs more rewarding personally

and professionally.

2May 2017 Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty Two

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

The Rescue of Dulfi Barman

Tuhin Ghosh: On 27April, 2017, the An� H u m a n T r a ffi c k i n g Project of the Diocese of Durgapur had organised an awareness camp for the women of North G o u r i p u r v i l l a g e i n Dinajpur. During the course of the seminar, the AHT team learnt about Dulfi Barman, a r e s i d e n t o f N o r t h Gouripur village, who had been missing for a week. oo

A �e r t h e seminar Purnima Sarkar and I v is i ted Dulfi's family and discovered t h a t s h e h a d b e e n

thmissing since the 20 of April, when she had gone to the weekly market outside their village. When the 45-year-old woman did not return home at the end of the day, her family organised a search party to look for her. Upon inquiring in the market place the family found out that no one remembered seeing Dulfi; but a few people recalled a Maru� van there, which they had not seen in the village before. (A car is very conspicuous in a village l ike North Gour ipur where a majority of the locals are poor, daily-w a g e f a r m e r s a n d labourers. Moreover, Maru� vans in Indian movies and news reports h a v e a l w a y s b e e n a s s o c i a t e d w i t h abduc�ons, which is why it had raised doubts in the minds of the people present in the market.) When the family could

not locate Dulfi, they filed a Missing Person's report with the local police sta�on the next day. u

iA day a�er the AHT team got involved with this case, Dulfi's son Debu informed the team that his cousin from Delhi had called to tell him about a call that the former had received from an uniden�fied caller, asking if someone from their village was m i s s i n g . W h e n t h e cousin replied in the p o s i � v e , t h e c a l l e r iden�fied himself as the driver of the man who had abducted Dulfi. He told Debu's cousin that Dulfi was being held against her will in a village called Bangagao in Assam. He asked the cousin to come and get her the next day when the abductor would be out. He agreed to reach her to Siliguri, which is a midpoint des�na�on for all uphill travel in North East India. pp

Upon receiving this news, the AHT team contacted the Inspector I n - C h a r g e ( I C ) o f Kaliyaganj police sta�on who assured them that he would call ahead to the local police sta�on in Siliguri to provide them with any assistance they w o u l d n e e d . N a k u l D e v s h a r m a o f A H T project and I le� that night with Dulfi's son and her brother to go rescue h e r. A � e r r e a c h i n g Siliguri we had to wait �ll the morning to get more n e w s a b o u t D u l fi ' s whereabouts. Around 11 a.m. we received a call asking us to pick her up from a nearby temple in Gosaipur Overbridge, w h i c h f a l l s u n d e r Bagdogra police beat. The team split up at this point; half of us went to the specified loca�on and the other half went to get the assistance of Bagdogra police (who had been brought into

the loop by Kaliyaganj I C ) , b e c a u s e t h e s i t u a � o n w a s v e r y dubious. Halfway to the p o l i c e s t a � o n w e received a call from Dulfi's brother – who was part of the team that went to look for Dulfi at the specified loca�on – saying he had found her. We then picked them up and reported at the local police sta�on with the ba�ered woman. She h a d b e e n s e v e r e l y punched in her face and had a black eye. The inconsolable lady was t o o t ra u m a � s e d t o speak. When the police heard of her abduc�on, they were considerate and did not ques�on her, saying that since mother and son were reunited, they could leave.

Upon our return we

r e p o r t e d a t t h e

Kaliyaganj police sta�on

to complete all the paper

work in order to close

her Missing Person file

and then took Dulfi back

home.

Writer's Observa�on:

Whoever is responsible

for this heinous viola�on

of Human Rights was

aware of the An� Human

Trafficking Pro ject ' s

involvement, because

the call came a day a�er

we got involved with

loca�ng Dulfi. In India

when a person is lost, he

o r s h e i s g e n e r a l l y

presumed to be dead

because, in a country as

vast as ours, and with

such lax social security

infrastructure, it is very

d ifficu l t to locate a

p e r s o n w h o g o e s

missing. The abductors

never expected that so

much effort would be

expended to locate Dulfi.

So when the police got

involved and AHT project

s t a r t e d m a k i n g

i n d e p e n d e n t

i nv e s� g a � o n s , t h ey

returned Dulfi in order to

protect themselves from the law.

So what?ooo

These two monosyllabic

words have the power to

ques�on, to s�r all the

insecuri�es, beliefs and

faith within oneself. The

four day workshop at

D a r j e e l i n g h e l d b y

Uni�ng World was such

a n e n l i g h t e n i n g

experience for us.

It was here that we

realised the connec�on

between our work and

this word. All the effort

and hardwork, failures,

successes, the one thing

that pushes us forward,

to con�nue the fight, to

con�nue the persuasion

towards our passion, the

one flicker of mo�va�on

that makes us going is

'Hope'.

Hope that our hardwork

will pay off or that the

fruits of our efforts will

be reaped and tasted by

many. The Diocese has

strived to stay ignited as

the beacon of Hope, not

just for the congrega�on

it serves but for the all

the lives it touches. The

works of the Diocese in

the field of community,

child development is

known to a l l but as

individuals how many of

us a�empt to spark a

flame of hope in the lives

of others? How many of

us reach out to our

neighbours, listen to

their problems, those

suffer ing s i lent ly in

despair and poverty as

we are so busy making

amends with our trivial

issues in life?

T h i s w o r k s h o p

introduced us to the

different projects run by

other dioceses in the

region of South Asia for

the benefit of their local

community. What struck

m e m o s t w a s t h e

dedica�on and passion

w i t h w h i c h t h e s e

individuals stood for

their cause against all

odds. The ques�on that

stuck with me was “so

what”?

What will we gain if we

are able to achieve all the

success, luxury and finer

things in life; will we have

others to share it all with

us? If we grow intolerant,

s e l fi s h a n d i s o l a t e

o u rs e l v e s f ro m o u r

neighbours wi l l th is

world grow happier,

developed and safer?

While we are so busy

figh�ng our own wars

can we spare some �me

to listen, see and reach

out to others? Because

some�mes all a person

n e e d s i s a l i � l e

encouragement from

another human being - a gi� of Hope.

ditorialEHOPE

- Caroline Tan

May 2017 Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty Two 3

Ishwar Majhi: I was 10

years old when I joined

the Durgapur Child Study

and Development Centre

in the year in 2007. At the

time I was studying in

Class V. As a student at

the study centre, besides

studies, I was involved in

a lot of activities, like

singing, dancing, sports

and martial arts. It was at

this point in my life that

my relationship with

m a r t i a l a r t f o r m

Taekwondo star ted.

Initially I disliked the

activity like any other

child. I had to maintain

too much discipline, and

as a naughty child who

l i k e d c o n s t a n t

movement, staying still

for even a moment to

gather my energy was a

very annoying prospect.

However, as I grew and

got better at Taekwondo,

I started falling in love

with the art. I competed

at the District level in

2012 and in 2013 I won a

gold medal. The next

step saw me competing

in the State level and

winning a bronze medal

in 2014 and silver in

2015.

ooo

While my training

in Taekwondo started

becoming a priority for

me, my teachers and

guides at the study

centre ensured that I did

n o t g i v e u p o n m y

studies. In 2012 I took my

first board exams and in

2014 I completed my

H i g h S c h o o l a f t e r

c l e a r i n g my H i g h e r

S e c o n d a r y B o a r d

Examinations. At this

juncture in my life, I left

the shelter of the study

centre to go join college

and see the world for

myself; but life had other

plans for me.

G r o w i n g u p i n t h e

sheltered atmosphere of

t h e c e n t r e , I h a d

forgotten how important

money is in the outside

world. This realisation

came crash ing back

when I tried to apply for

admission in several

colleges. My applications

were rejected because I

could not afford the

admission fees. Around

the same time my father

passed away and I had to

take up the financial

responsibilities of my

family. Shattered as I

was, I had to man up and

s h o u l d e r m y

responsibilities as the

oldest son in the house. I

joined car manufacturer

Nissan as a mechanic. At

this time, the Diocese of

Durgapur stepped in to

help me out again. My

mentors at the Diocese

reminded me of my love

fo r Ta e k wo n d o a n d

helped me take the test

to earn my Black Belt in

2016.

Today Taekwondo has

become my profession.

After I earned my belt, I

was invited back by the

Study Centre, this time

as a teacher, to train the

younger ch i ldren in

Taekwondo. Recently I

also signed a contract

with two government-

funded girls' schools to

train the female students

in self-defence. I am

finally doing what I love

and this gives me great

joy. It is very difficult to

find a job that you love

a n d I h a v e f o u n d

contentment in my job;

this would not have been

possible for me without

the help of the Diocese,

and for that I will always

be grateful.

A Journey of Success

Abhijit Tudu: Members of Barikul Pastorate organised a seminar, in St. Mark's Church for the Chris�an community in the area from 21 – 23 April, 2017. The seminar w a s b a s e d o n t h e teachings of Romans 12 : 2 and conducted by Pastors Anil Kisku and Amitav Hansda.

The seminar started with a song and a welcome dance. Rev. Kalep Tudu said an opening prayer before the three-day long sess ion began. P a s t o r A n i l K i s k u exp la ined the main theme of the seminar to the 230 members who w e r e p r e s e n t f r o m various congrega�ons in

the pastorate.

Songs and music filled

the sessions, giving it a

lively, fes�ve feel. The

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

different congrega�ons

p a r � c i p a t e d i n t h e

s e v e r a l m u s i c a n d

preaching compe��ons

and judged on their

presenta�on and won

prizes. On the last day of

the seminar, Rev. Kalep

T u d u c e l e b r a t e d

Eucharist and Pastor Anil

K i s ku p re a c h e d t h e

sermon. Rev. Kalep Tudu

ended the seminar with

a farewell speech and prayer.

Seminar at Barikul Pastorate

Tarun Pal: Community D e v e l o p m e n t Programme of the Diocese of Durgapur and Uniting World have been partners for a ve r y l o n g t i m e , working together to better the lives of the tribal communities under the episcopate of the Diocese. From

th to th17 20 June, we had the honour of hosting o u r I n t e r n a t i o n a l Program Manager for Asia/Africa, Daniel Buckingham, from Uniting World. During his three-day stay in Durgapur, he visited Sarenga where a bulk of our work is carried out. There he met with the villagers and the project staff to get a clearer idea of our work. The villagers welcomed Daniel with

t r i b a l d a n c e p r o c e s s i o n s a n d washed his feet in the traditional welcoming style of the tr ibal communities. o

o “ The water pump providing water to the villages was very effective and the countryside that was previously barren was teaming with life and vegetation. This was i m p r o v i n g t h e l i v e l i h o o d s b y p ro v i d i n g i n c o m e g e n e r a t i n g o p p o r t u n i t i e s fo r people”, observed D a n i e l . H e a l s o noticed the He also s a i d , “ T h e commitment of the village workers was evident, particularly as they all wanted to cont inue to learn throughout the day by

analysing the context o f t h e i r p r o j e c t s t h r o u g h s o m e accessible tools.” This is a very valuable feedback for us and o u r s t a f f , a s i t increases our morale and propels us to continue our work w i t h m o r e e n t h u s i a s m . T h e interactive workshop conducted by him in Sarenga was an eye-opener for all of us as we learned how to identify our needs and t o a d d r e s s t h e m better in the future. In conclusion Daniel noted that the South East Asian partnership is one of the strengths of this program. “A lot of significant change can occur when we work together for a common purpose. Our motivations may be different, but we all ca m e to get h e r to e x p r e s s o u r passionate concern for people who have often been forgotten about. Together we a r e a b l e t o g i v e expression to the God-

Daniel from Uniting World Visits Sarenga

given dignity and value in each and every

person.”

4May 2017 Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty Two

Good Shepherd Eye Clinic and Hospital

w h o i s a t rave l l i n g

minstrel. He begs for his

food from people who

come to listen to his

songs. Dandapat had

been suffering from

cataract in his left eye for

a very long time. Due to

h i s p o o r f i n a n c i a l

conditions, he could not

afford eye care and was

slowly losing his vision. A

month back, he had

heard of Good Shepherd

Eye Hospital from a

friend of his and had

come here, fearing he

will be chased away for

his poor attire and his

living conditions. To his

surprise he found that

he was welcomed here,

and best of all, he was

treated like a regular

p a t i e n t . H e w a s n ' t

separated from the

others because of his

garb or his appearance,

and the staff treated him

with dignity. When he

heard that he could

receive the best of eye

care without forking out

a huge sum of money, he

w a s o v e r w h e l m e d .

When he spoke to us

after his surgery, you

c o u l d s e e t e a r s o f

gratitude and joy in his

eyes. He was profoundly

moved by the patient

attitude of the staff who

t r e a t e d h i m w i t h

respect. “In today's

world no one treats a

poor man with respect,

we are not considered

human enough for that

attitude from others.

This is the first place

where I have received

such humane behaviour

and it moves my heart. I

hope God showers all his

b l e s s i n g s o n t h i s

amazing institution”, he

said.

Our next patient was 72-

years-old Dipti Kumar

Ghosh who is a retired

professor from Visva

B h a ra t i U n i v e rs i t y,

Shantiniketan, Bolpur

(made famous by Nobel

Laureate Rabindranath

Tagore). Mr. Ghosh was

very pleased with the

quality of care and the

atmosphere of peace

and tranquillity that he

found here. He told us in

his feedback that Good

Shepherd Eye Clinic and

Hospital was exactly the

place he was looking for;

he wanted a peaceful

environment to have his

s u r g e r y a n d n o t a

c o r p o r a t e m o n e y -

making factory where

t h e a f t e r - s u r g e r y

services are grudgingly

rendered by cal lous

staff. He was impressed

with the state -of-the-art

f a c i l i t y a n d t h e

compassionate staff at

GSECH.

o

oThe third

patient we interacted

with was Subrata Saha

who was suffering from

refractive errors in his

vision. He had been to

other eye hospitals in

Durgapur which are

owned and run by large

corporations, including

D i s h a , w h i c h i s a

renowned eye-hospital

in West Bengal; but he

never got the quality of

c a r e t h a t h e w a s

seeking. His eye-sight

was not getting better

even after spending

large sums of money. He

had almost given up

hopes of ever having his

vision corrected when

h e h e a r d o f G o o d

Shepherd Eye Clinic and

H o s p i t a l f r o m a

neighbour of his who

had been a beneficiary

of the services of our

hospital. He came here

with very little hope of

getting quality service,

but when he met with

our ophthalmologist, Dr.

Phalguni Mitra, he was

floored. He scheduled a

corrective surgery with ndDr. Mitra for 2 May,

2017. After his surgery,

he was overcome with

joy. “I never imagined I

would get my vision

back,” he said. “I have

spent a lot of money at

well-known hospitals,

but I never received this

much attention, such

good behaviour or such

amazing eye-care,” he told us.

Inauguration of Cathedral Hall

Revd. Samuel Halder: On

3 0 A p r i l , 2 0 1 7 , o u r

Bishop, the Rt. Revd. Dr.

P r o b a l K a n t o D u � a

i n a u g u r a t e d t h e

Cathedral Hall. The need

for a hall had been felt for

a long �me among the

congrega�on in the

cathedral. This issue was

raised in the members

mee�ng in February

2016. oo

i The children

had needed a fixed place

for their Sunday school

sessions; the members

also needed a washroom

and a place for meals and

to gather together. It was

decided that the hall will

be erected on the vacant

lot next to the Cathedral.

This hall will also serve as

a spiritual and social

training centre and the

proceeds from the use of

the hall will go towards

t h e u p k e e p a n d

maintenance of the

Cathedral.

oo

op

The founda�on

stone for the hall was laid thon 5 June, 2016 and

more than Rs. 4 lakhs had

been donated on the

spot by the members of

the Cathedral for the

construc�on of the hall.

More money for the

comple�on of the hall

was raised through a

game of raffle where

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

different churches in the

Diocese par�cipated to

r a i s e a d d i � o n a l

infrastructural funds.

The gi�s were sponsored

by the members of the

Cathedral.

p

pUpon its

inaugura�on a small

prayer ceremony was

held and then our Bishop

thanked everyone who

h a d s o g e n e r o u s l y

contributed to this goal

of building the hall ,

before throwing the

doors of the hall open to

invite everyone in for a

breakfast organised by the Diocese.

Raja Moses: The Good

Shepherd Eye Clinic and

H o s p i t a l h a s b e e n

making great strides in

the field of eye-surgery

and cataract opera�ons.

On 2 May, 2017, the

G S E C H t e a m h a d

c o n d u c t e d c a t a ra c t

surgeries for 20 pa�ents.

When we interacted with

three of the pa�ents who

had come to the clinic for

cataract surgeries the

feedback we received

was overwhelming. Our first feedback was

from Bimal Dandapat

The International Order of St. Luke the Physician presents

2 days Immersion Bible Study19-20 April 2017 At Vidyanagar, Burdwan

Revd. Rabindra Nath

Ray: The second OSL

(Ord er o f S t . L u ke)

training program was

held for two days from th th19 -20 April, 2017 at

the St. Thomas Church,

at Bidyanagar Village in

B u r d w a n b y t h e

leadership of The Rt.

Revd. Dr. Probal Kanto

D u t t a , B i s h o p o f

Durgapur Diocese, CNI.

Where 31 participants

have taken OSL training,

they were coming from

only one congregation.

On the first day training

program was started

with praise and worship

after that teaching was

started according to the

lesson. Revd. Sumanta

Naru (O. S.L director),

Revd. Pankaj Pande, and

Revd. Swapan Darman

was taught them from

syllabus. During two

days they could able to th

teach 26 lesson from

order of St. Luke Syllabus

book. Revd. Swapan

D a r m a n h a s t a k e n

May 2017 Vol.: One Hundred and Twenty Two 5

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y a s a

convener to lead the

p r a y e r g r o u p o f

Vidyanagar St. Thomas

Church. Revd. Sumanta

Naru taught them how

to pray for the sick

person, pray for the

demon possess person,

and how to use the

consecrated oil. During

two days they have

shown demonstration

that how to pray for the

sick person.

On the second

day in the morning they

have taken thanks giving

service at Vidyanagar St.

Thomas Church. Then

a f te r t h a n ks g i v i n g

service Revd. Sumanta

Naru has given them

consecrated oil to use

for the sick person. And

program was come to

end in the evening with

prayer and Benediction.

Te s t i m o n y : M i s s . Hemlata Hembrom was suffering from back pain and teeth problem for long time. Many times she went to the doctors for her medication, but she could not heal.

She had participated in the OSL training session as a trainee. She came to me and said that we should pray for her.

B e c a u s e s h e w a s suffering from back pain and teeth problem. We as a OSL team prayed for her. After prayer she said that she is become heal. There is no pain in her back. She gave thanks to God because of His h e a l i n g t o u c h s h e become heals. (Revd. Sumanta Naru).

Through this training

program they could

realize that OSL ministry

is a fruitful Healing

ministry. By which every

Church believers can

become a Prayer warrior

as well as a ambassador

of Christ.  

Journey in Search of Knowledge and Experience

B i t h i k a K i s k u : T h e C o m m u n i t y Development Program o f D i o c e s e o f Durgapurhad arranged an exposure trip for us – the community workers – from 15 March to 22 March, 2017. We went to Shimla, Kulu and Manali for practical training in order to learn more about different communities and their perspective. This tour was an eye-opener for us. For many of us it was the first time we had set

foot outside our village. For me it was the first time I was travelling by train. It had always been a dream for me to ride a long-distance train, and t h i s wa s my d re a m turning into reality; to t o p i t o f f w e w e re travelling by Rajdhani Express, which is the fastest t ra in in the country. Even though our journey was long – we had to travel another 300 kms or more by car f r o m D e l h i – t h e e x c i t e m e n t o f t h e

journey kept us from being exhausted. We were extremely excited to learn about a new culture and conquer the unknown.

T h e m a i n motive of the trip was to introduce the staff to the outer wor ld and to different culture and traditions. We got the chance to visit different places of Shimla and Kulu Manali. It was a journey of gathering n e v e r - e n d i n g k n o w l e d g e a n d experience.

We are thankful to Our Bishop Rt. Revd. Dr. Probal Kanto Dutta of, to o u r p a r t n e r UnitingWorld, and to o u r v e r y o w n N i t a Madam for making this trip happen.  

Sumita Baski: Durgapur

C h i l d S t u d y a n d

Development Centre t hc e l e b r a t e d i t s 1 1

birthday on 1 May, 2017.

All the students at the

centre commemorated

the day with a small

celebratory programme.

W e d i s t r i b u t e d

handmade invitation

letters to our beloved

Madam, Mrs. Rita Dutta

and to the Diocesan

members to invite them

to our performance.

ooo

We sent up a

small prayer to God,

thanking Him for all the

b l e s s i n g s h e h a s

bestowed upon us in this

decade-long journey

before we began the

e v e n t . O u r y o u n g

brothers and sisters from

the centre recited poems

and sang beautiful songs

to the accompaniment of

v i o l i n s . T h e re we re

songs, poems and plays,

but how could we forget

dance? Any programme

s e e m s i n c o m p l e t e

w i t h o u t a d a n c e

performance. So we had

twodance performances

to liven up the cloudy day

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

c e l e b r a t i o n . T h e

celebration came to an

end with another prayer

by Rev. Samuel Halder.

Our little stars, Puja and

Subhajit were the hosts

for the day.

oop

We joined the

centre in 2006 and now

it's 2017. 11 years have

passed us by so fast; but

with the blessings of our

Madam and our Bishop,

we have achieved a lot in

these 11 years. If it were

not for them, we would

never have seen the light

of hope, a beautiful life

or learnt about the

i m p o r t a n c e o f

e d u c a t i o n . We w i l l

forever be grateful to our

beacons of hope and

guidance for whom we

have achieved so much

and made our own lives better.

DCSDC Celebrates 11 Years

Confirmation in Barikul PastorateRev. Kalep Tudu: On 7 M a y , 2 0 1 7 , f o u r members of Bar ikul Pastorate, reaffirmed their fa ith in Christ through the sacrament of Confirma�on. The f o u r c a t e c h u m e n s , Kalpana Tudu, Sujata Tudu, Susmita Tudu and Jyo�rmoy Tudu received their confirma�ons at

the hands of our Bishop, the Rt. Revd. Dr. Probal Kanto Du�a. Almost 100 believers were present at the ceremony along with the newly ordained p r i e s t , R e v . Rabindranath Roy and me.

oo

iThe candidates

were gi�ed a Bible by the

Pastorate. In his sermon,

the Bishop told the catechumens to strive to

remain a child of Christ

throughout their lives,

just as they claimed Him

as their Lord and Saviour

on this auspicious day.

He also advised them to

read the Bible regularly,

to be ac�ve par�cipants

in the func�oning of the

congrega�on and to

receive Holy Communion

regularly. These ac�ons,

he said, would keep

them in the Lord's grace.

At the end of the service

h e s e r v e d H o l y

C o m m u n i o n t o t h e

congrega�on. We pray

that these children be

blessed by the good Lord

a b o v e a n d a c h i e v e success in their lives.