ICC Note:
The Christmas season is a time in which many doors are opened up for the Gospel in Nepal. Two years ago, the Nepali government declared Christmas a national holiday. Since then, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists and Muslims have been able to use the holiday as a time to reconcile and commune with each other. Unfortunately, with the rise to power of Hindu nationalists in Nepal, Christmas being an official holiday for all Nepalis may soon be brought to an end.
12/10/2013 Nepal (Asia News) – Preparations for Christmas are being transformed into an opportunity for encounter and reconciliation among Christians, Hindus and other religions living in Nepal. On the streets of Kathmandu, hotels, restaurants, shops and homes are already decorated for Christmas. In the souvenir shops among the best-selling greeting cards are those with the image of Jesus and the Virgin Mary. Bookshops are displaying Bibles and books on Christianity.
Fr. Robin Rai, pastor of the Cathedral of the Assumption in Kathmandu , said that dozens of volunteers , Christians and Hindus, have worked together to decorate the church. The priest says that the parish is “teaching young people Christmas carols to accompany the festivities.” As every year the Christmas celebrations are expected to attract thousands of people, which confirms the growth of Christianity in Nepal after years of Hindu monarchy and discrimination against Christians. Bhim Raim, a catechist, explains that young catechumens who are preparing for baptism are the “most active”.
After the fall of the monarchy in 2006, to revive tourism, the government decided in 2011 to make Christmas a national holiday. This has allowed Christians to expose images and sacred ornaments in stores and outside churches and homes. Catholics in the country are over 10 thousand, 4 thousand to 6 thousand more than in 2006, the year the secular state was declared.
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