Navy to hand over new church in Kachchativu
A newly built Catholic church in Kachchativu island is officially going to be handed over to the Diocese of Jaffna next Wednesday by the navy who were commissioned to carry out construction work on an uninhabited island in the Palk Strait.
The church built by the Diocese of Jaffna at a cost of nearly Rs.15 million is expected to house thousands of devotees from India and Sri Lanka who visit the island once a year for the annual feast of St. Anthony, whom the fisher folk believe to be a “guardian of the sea”.
“We have organized this handing over ceremony within a short period of time to signify the navy’s role in constructing the church and we really appreciate the guidance given by the Navy Commander Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne,” Rev. Fr. J.A. Jeyaranjan, Parish Priest of Delft island whom the maintenance of the Kachchativu church is vested with told the Sunday Times.
The Bishop of Jaffna Rt. Rev. Dr. Justin Bernard Gnanapragasam would be the Chief Guest at the event and the navy commander will hand over the new church to him officially. Northern Governor Reginald Cooray, Jaffna Government Agent N. Vedanayagan and Consulate General of India A. Natarajan will participate as special guests on the occasion. Holy Mass will be held and the Bishop will bless the new church.
Rejecting the allegation that public participation at this event was denied by the church, Fr. Jeyaranjan said that an inaugural opening of the church would be held next March during the period of the feast as the two countries fishermen get together to celebrate the annual feast. “This is merely a handing over ceremony of the church to the Bishop, the official opening is in March.”
Meanwhile the Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu P. Rama Mohana Rao has written to the Indian Central government to allow at least a 100 fishermen to attend the ceremony next Wednesday as “participation in the ceremonies at the Church is an inalienable right of the fishermen of Tamil Nadu”.
In a letter to Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, the Secretary said that the consecration of the new building holds considerable religious and cultural significance for the fisher folk of Tamil Nadu.