Manipur, a Missal for Zou Catholics

A small community of 5,000 Catholics in the Indian state will be able to celebrate the Eucharist in their native language. A sign of hope for the Indian State that has been wounded by violence for almost two years. The translation is the work of Fr Mark Aimeng, who more than forty years ago became the first local priest.

Imphal (AsiaNews/Agencies) - In the north-eastern state of Manipur, the small community of Zou Catholics now has its own Missal to celebrate the Eucharist in its native language.

In a ceremony  last Sunday that brought a moment of hope in this Indian State that has been shaken by ethnic violence for almost two years, the third and final edition of the liturgical book was officially delivered to the approximately 5,000 Catholics of this ethnic group.

As the Indian Church's website Catholic Connect reports, this is a significant step in preserving and strengthening their faith in their native language, marking a historic moment in the religious and cultural journey of this community.

The translation is the work of Fr Mark Aimeng, the first Zou Catholic priest. It comes after the first two provisional editions, published in 2011 and 2017 and approved by the Archdiocese of Imphal, which needed to be perfected: the current version, therefore, is considered definitive.

Ordained on 16 December 1983 in the parish of St Joseph, Sugnu - one of the churches destroyed by the Meitei in June 2023, at the beginning of the conflict in Manipur - Fr Aimeng has devoted more than four decades to serving the Church.

He founded and directed the Zo language service of Radio Veritas Asia. He currently ministers at St Mary's Parish, Tuibuang. Besides the Missal, he has also translated the Hymns that Catholics of this ethnic group use in their liturgies.

During the ceremony held on Sunday, the general secretary of the Zou Catholic Literature and Liturgical Committee, Dominic Khammeng, emphasised the importance of the Missal for the Zou Catholic community. ‘Having a Missal in our local language was a long-standing aspiration of our community. We are grateful to Fr Mark who realised it for us.