Mumbai priests capture imagination, bring in spirit of Christmas

Mangalore Today News Network

Mumbai, Dec 25, 2017: A group of priests in a Mumbai parish prepared a five-course dinner for their parishioners as part of their effort to raise fund to help the poor.

The idea follows up the call of Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Bombay to initiate programs to support poor and marginalized in line with Pope Francis’ constant plea to Catholics to help the poor, particularly to poor and migrants.

Cardinal Gracias wanted each parish of the archdiocese to initiate programs so that they could grow beyond the “cold charity” of donating to collection boxes.

The cardinal’s call prompted priests of the Cathedral parish of the Holy Name and Archbishop’s House to come up with the idea of a fundraising dinner, particularly since one of the priests is an All Star chef.

The five-course formal dinner  aimed to provide a fine dining experience for the parishioners to raise funds for Katkaris of Raigad, a marginalized community.

The entire meal was prepared and served by the priests themselves with a little help from a couple of Chef friends, said a release from the archdiocese.

They were also assisted by the trainees from the Hotel Management & Catering Technology division of St. Andrew’s College’s in Bandra.

A short film, projected during the breaks between courses, kept everyone in the picture about the work being done with the Katkaris from education to the general advancement of this migrant and most marginalized community.