• KOTTAYAM KERALA

    NAT21National/ReligionChurch readies to celebrate first Indian saint's canonisationKottayam Kerala, Oct 4 IANS Former Indian president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, head of the Congregation of Oriental Churches in the Vatican, will be the chief guests at St Mary's Church in Kerala's Bharanaganam this November after Sister Alphonsa is declared the first Indian saint by the Cathloic church.The canonisation of the Kerala nun will take place after a 55-year-long process at Vatican Oct 12. It is at this church in Pala near Kottayam where the mortal remains of Sister Alphonsa are kept and several miracles have taken place.Father Paul Thellekat, official spokesperson of the Syro Malabar Catholic Church, told IANS that since all the top Catholic Church leaders are in Vatican to take part in the canonisation, that day there will be no function at St Mary's Church."Instead, from Nov 7 to Nov 9, at St Mary's Church there will be special prayers and it would be the Cardinal from Vatican who will be leading the special mass. Kalam will deliver a special speech on Nov 9," he said. Sister Alphonsa becomes the first native Indian to be canonised. An Italian priest, a nun from Switzerland and a lay woman from Ecuador will also be canonised the same day.Thellekat added that though Gonsalo Garcia of Bombay was martyred by crucifixion on Feb 5, 1597, at Nagasaki in Japan and canonised by Pope Pius IX on June 8, 1862, he is often referred to as a Portuguese saint because his father was Portuguese.Blessed Alphonsa's name for canonisation was cleared by Pope Benedict XVI on June 1, 2007.Alphonsa was born in Kudamaloor, a village near Kottayam, to Joseph and Mary on Aug 19, 1910.Having lost her mother at a very young age, she was brought up by her maternal aunt and educated by an uncle who was a priest. She faced several health problems, which eventually claimed her life on July 28, 1946.--Indo-Asian News Servicesg/pb/jg354 Words04101437
    2008-10-04 05:02:11

  • First results show Ecuadoreans back new charter AP

    AP - Rafael Correa's avowed quest for an &quotequitable, just" Ecuador won a major boost as voters approved a new constitution that will help the leftist president consolidate power and e...
    2008-09-29 07:23:10

  • Correa claims victory in Ecuador's constitutional referendum

    INT9International/PoliticsCorrea claims victory in Ecuador's constitutional referendumQuito, Sep 29 DPA A new constitution promoted by leftist Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa was approved by a large majority in a referendum Sunday, according to exit polls issued at the close of voting. Although no official results or turnout figures were immediately made public, a visibly moved Correa declared a "landslide" for the "yes" vote on a newly drafted constitution, which was his most important election promise. A poll made by survey firm Cedatos found that 66.4 percent of respondents favoured the new text, while another survey firm, SP, put the "yes" vote at 70 percent. A quick vote count carried out with a different methodology by the non-governmental organisation Participacion Ciudadana said 63.2 percent of the voters would favour the proposed new text. The new constitution requires a majority of votes cast to pass. "This change belongs to everyone," Correa said. He called on Ecuadorians to unite behind "the citizens' revolution," and stressed that the result is "a thrashing for those who thought they owned the country". Opposition leader Jaime Nebot, mayor of Guayaquil - the largest city in Ecuador and also its financial centre, noted that majorities are not always right, and he pointed out that the "yes" vote only garnered an estimated 47.3 percent of the votes in Guayaquil. Ecuadorian Security Minister Gustavo Larrea called the referendum a "historic event" but noted that despite the new constitution, "there are full guarantees to express" any view in the Andean country. If official results confirm its passage, the new text will strengthen presidential authority - including the chance for one re-election - and reduce private property rights, among other changes. Ecuador would then follow the footsteps of Venezuela and Bolivia, who have sought more social justice through a larger state, greater control of the economy and an increase in handouts for the poor. "I will be here as long as you need me," Correa said of a likely re-election. If approved, this would be Ecuador's 20th constitution since becoming a republic in 1835. More than nine million Ecuadorian voters were expected to cast ballots Sunday. No major incidents were reported, according to electoral authorities and international observers. Official results were expected to be made public within a few hours after the close of voting stations. If the new constitution is approved, it will entail early presidential and legislative elections. It would also establish free healthcare and education, and a more direct form of democracy, while it would give the president control over monetary policy - rather than the central bank, as was the case until now. The dollar, which is Ecuador's only official currency since 2000, is not mentioned in the proposed new text. Correa had said the new constitution would end "the long night of neo-liberalism" and kick off a "civil revolution" in the direction of "21st century-socialism". Ahead of the referendum, the opposition charged that Correa wants to increase his powers and has blasted the draft constitution as a copy of the "dictatorship" of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez that will scare off foreign investment and hamper broader economic success.--DPAskp/jg576 Words29091005
    2008-09-29 00:02:08

  • Ecuador votes over constitution

    Ecuador votes on a new constitution the president says will ease poverty but critics say makes the state too powerful....
    2008-09-28 09:55:09

  • Ecuador seizes dam company assets

    President Rafael Correa orders a Brazilian construction firm's assets to be seized in a row over the closure of a major dam....
    2008-09-24 03:30:07

  • Chevron lawyers indicted in pollution case

    Two Chevron Corp. lawyers fighting a landmark pollution lawsuit in Ecuador have been indicted by that country's prosecutor general, a move the company says proves the government is trying to tampe...
    2008-09-13 16:33:14

  • Man: Airline Lost My Dead Wife's Body

    A man who tried to send his late wife's body to their native Ecuador for burial is suing American Airlines and a funeral home, claiming her remains were sent to the wrong country. ...
    2008-09-10 21:41:16

  • NYC man says airline lost his dead wife's body AP

    AP - A man who tried to send his late wife's body to their native Ecuador for burial is suing American Airlines and a funeral home, claiming the carrier misplaced his wife's remains for four d...
    2008-09-09 16:27:09

  • American Airline's typo lost wife

    Miguel Olaya said he made arrangements to send the remains of his wife, Teresa, to their native Ecuador after she died in late March of cancer at age 57. Instead, American Airlines mistakenly shipped ...
    2008-09-09 04:26:09

  • Opec to decide when to cut oil supply

    By Adam PlowrightViennaSept 8: The question facing the Opec oil producer group which meets today Tuesday is when, not if, to cut its oil production target as crude prices slide in the face of weakenin...
    2008-09-08 17:04:13
COUNTRIES    US STATES    US CITIES    CLASSIFIEDS    EVENTS    YELLOW PAGES    MAJOR CITIES    CATEGORY SITES     AVOO SEARCH     WORLD NEWS    POLLS     YSpan