World Missionary Sunday with the tribals of the Raigad area

The commitment of the Archdiocese of Mumbai to its mission, in an area of Maharashtra where more than 11% of the population belongs to aboriginal groups, traditionally on the margins of society. P. Malu: "We meet people in their situation, often walking on dirt roads, uphill to get involved in their lives". Crad. Gracias: "We proclaim the message of the Gospel with our lives".

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - The archdiocese of Mumbai will celebrate World Mission Day tomorrow with an eye towards its mission in Raigad, a tribal area which geographically, economically and socially is the periphery of this local Church. A reality that concretely embodies the theme "Ardent hearts, feet on the move" proposed by Pope Francis in his message for this year's event.

Raigad district is located south of Mumbai, in the state of Maharashtra, and has a population of 2.6 million. About 11.58% of Raighad's population belongs to groups categorized as tribal, the majority of which are Katkari. The attention of the card. Oswald Gracias for the mission areas of the archdiocese of Bombay is demonstrated by his numerous pastoral visits to the pastoral area of Raigad: "I met tribals and migrants, villagers engaged with young people, the elderly and families, and I united with the clergy, religious and lay people in their work for education, healthcare, development and growth of these populations", the cardinal tells AsiaNews.

About thirty priests, religious men and nuns operate in the missionary area; but alongside them the work of the laity is also fundamental. All the animators - teachers, health workers and social workers - have been trained and paid by the Archdiocese of Mumbai to carry out this service in the Raighad mission. They also tutor students attending local government schools. "Our mission is to meet people in their situation, often walking on dirt roads, uphill to get involved in their lives", Fr. tells AsiaNews. Godfrey Malu, assistant parish priest of the church of St. Francis Xavier in Mahad, where 23 Catholic families live. “We go to every hamlet of the village to find out about their life, their way of life”.

The archdiocese of Mumbai has also appointed a Wadi Prerika (teacher and basic social worker) who meets and listens to girls aged between 15 and 24, tribal and non-tribal, in informal groups. The aim is 360-degree support: from issues related to menstrual hygiene and health protection, to growth in self-esteem and communication skills. She seeks to discourage the still widespread phenomenon of early marriage by encouraging families to give girls access to higher education and job opportunities for financial independence. “We call on the entire village to meet so that everyone knows what needs to be done for their children's education. We simply make them aware of their lives that they have to work not to depend on other people but to educate their children", explains Fr. Godfrey Malu.

Card. Gracias is considering a 10-year plan for the mission and has assigned a team to study the issue. “In the Raigad mission – he comments – the people are poor, economically backward and not all are Christian, the staff of the Catholic Church is present in a vital way and works in this area with awareness programs and interreligious dialogue. The Church is involved in the new evangelization through the proclamation of the Gospel message with its own life together with other Christian confessions and among people of other faiths. As Pope Francis writes in his message: he himself is the living Word, which alone can make our hearts burn within us, illuminating and transforming them."