Catholics displaced by last year’s ethnic violence in India’s northeast have found renewed hope as they opened the first church built for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Manipur.
The newly constructed St. Joseph Church in Munpi village, located in Singngat town, Churachandpur district, welcomed hundreds of faithful on October 18 during a blessing ceremony.
In a report by AsiaNews, retired Archbishop Dominic Lumon of Imphal said the ceremony was “a moment of grace, a moment of great joy.”
The prelate said people were forced to leave their villages and churches because of conflict, “but now they have a house and a place of worship,” adding, “This will contribute to their healing, their relief, and their sense of stability.”
Archbishop Lumon said the initiative reflects how “rehabilitation of the people has taken place in this area,” adding that “a local Catholic donated the land, and the diocese built homes for the displaced.
The Pereiras voluntarily contributed 80% of the construction costs. It was a moment of great happiness, a moment of immense grace.”
The church’s construction was made possible by Jeronimo Pereira and his wife Mary, a Catholic couple from Goa, who “contributed generously by donating a significant sum of money for its construction.”
“We were deeply moved,” Pereira said, “by the community’s need for a place of worship, and our family wanted to provide them with a suitable church.”
He added that their inspiration came from the “invaluable work done by Street Providence Goa,” an NGO that serves the homeless and disadvantaged by providing food, clothing, and medical care.
The church will serve Catholic families displaced from Singtom village in Chandel district, one of the communities uprooted by recent violence.
Veteran catechist Peter Kammang and his brothers have donated farmland to help resettle the families, while local residents joined efforts in land reclamation, brick-making, and house construction.
On the same day, the community also blessed new facilities donated by supporters and the archdiocese, including a grotto dedicated to Our Lady, a large cross, and a 50,000-liter drinking water tank for IDP families.
The archdiocese has since declared October 18 as “Munpi Pilgrimage Day” to commemorate the event annually.
Father Athanasius Mung, the parish priest, said the new church holds deep meaning for their community.
“We are about 100 families, all internally displaced. This recently built church was named after St. Joseph because their village church, dedicated to St. Joseph, was burned down,” he said.
“So far, the diocese has built 50 houses, 26 are under construction, and we still need to raise funds to build 24 more,” he added. “I too belong to the Kuki Zo tribe, and my family is also displaced from our village.”
Violence between the Meitei and Kuki ethnic groups erupted in May 2023 and has since flared up periodically, leaving nearly 300 people dead and displacing thousands.
