India: Students visit shrine of modern Jesuit martyr

Student pilgrims at the Shrine of Servant of God, Fr Herman Rasschaert, in Kutungia, Simdega Diocese of Jharkhand

Sixteen Jesuit students of Theology from the Jesuit Formation Center for Theology (JFCT), Ranchi made a pilgrimage to the shrine of Servant of God and martyr, Fr Herman Rasschaert, SJ to Kutungia in Simdega Diocese of Jharkhand on 26 February 2023. The pilgrimage was an integral part of their course on Islam and Christian-Muslim Dialogue.

Fr Herman Rasschaert SJ was stoned and axed to death while he valiantly tried to protect the lives of Muslims while the rampaging communal mobs were slaughtering hapless Muslims. The Church of Chotanagpur reveres Herman Rasschaert, SJ, as an apostle of peace and martyr for communal harmony.

According to the account of Louis Francken, SJ: "In 1964 there were serious Hindu- Muslim conflicts in Eastern India, including Jharkhand. The impact of these disturbances spread even to the rural areas and the isolated villages in Kutungia were also caught up in the conflict. On the morning of March, the 24th 1964 Fr Herman could hear the frenzied cries of mobs attacking the small hamlet of Muslim families in Gerda. Fr Herman Rasschaert put his life at stake in an attempt to save the lives of Muslim families under siege. The frenzied mob killed him and all the people who had taken refuge in this hamlet."

Fr George Valentine Ekka, the parish priest of Kutungia, where the martyr lies buried, highlighting the relevance of Fr Rasschaert's martyrdom for our times said - "The promotion of Justice and transformation of the world is the constitutive dimension of the evangelizing mission of the Church. Defending the dignity and lives of human persons is integral to the mission of the Church. Fr. Rasschaert's martyrdom continues to inspire us to defend the dignity and lives of people in the present context."

Paulus Minz, one of the students of JFCT pointed out that the promotion of Justice and inter-religious dialogue are two privileged forms of evangelization in the present context. He alluded to Fr Stan Swamy and Fr Herman Rasschaert, as two witnesses of the Gospel of peace, justice, harmony, and love.