Bengaluru, Dec 19: Reaffirming the need to hear the voice of the poor and feel their pain, Archbishop Rev. Peter Machado said that “our love for the poor and less privileged and marginalized, and voiceless will bring us to receive the God’s blessings”.

Addressing a gathering of over 200 priests at the annual priests Christmas Fellowship, hosted by him at his house here on Wednesday, he said that no poor should be left out from feeling that they were not loved by God.  

“Christmas is always a time to re-focus our attention who are less privileged. People of all religions, with a heart filled with love, will share, care and comfort those who need to feel they are not discounted by the God”, he said.

The Archbishop called for greater concern for those who became homeless and lost because of natural calamities. He contemplated on how people could rehabilitate ‘as much as we can’ to help those in distress, he said.

The Prelate appealed to avoid lavish spending on religious celebrations and saving money for the poor instead. “Jesus Christ was born among the poor and helpless in a stable in Bethlehem which indicated that He chose to identify with the poor”, he said.

Peter Machado, who is the new Archbishop of Bengaluru since May 31, 2018, released the annual report of the activities of the Bangalore Multi-purpose Social Society (BMSSS). BMSSS director Fr. Navin coordinated the activities of the Archdiocese which has already raised over Rs 1 crore for flood victims of Kodagu.


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Tehran/Doha: Iran’s President Massoud Pezeshkian has warned that attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure could lead to “uncontrollable consequences” affecting the entire world.

In a post on X, Pezeshkian said he “strongly condemns” the strikes that targeted the South Pars gasfield earlier in the day.

“Such aggressive actions will not achieve anything for the American Zionist enemy and their supporters. Rather, they will complicate the situation and could lead to uncontrollable consequences that will affect the entire world,” he said.

Meanwhile, Qatar’s Ministry of Interior has urged residents to remain indoors due to what it described as an elevated security threat.

Authorities have not provided further details, but the advisory comes amid growing concerns over the safety of energy infrastructure and civilian areas in the region.