The Archdiocese of Thalassery in Kerala, Archbishop Mar Joseph Pamplany, has raised concerns over the rising cases of alleged targeting of girls from Christian families through “love traps”. In a pastoral letter, he urged the parents to be cautious against such incidents. The letter was read in the churches under the archdiocese in Kerala on Sunday, August 4.
The letter read, “During this eight-day Lent of Mary, let us fervently pray for the sorrows of parents who feel helpless when their children fall into the traps of religious extremists.” The letter further urged the members of the church to make use of the program to create awareness among teenagers as well as their parents to ensure they do not fall into the “trap” of extremist groups.
It read, “We have envisaged three action programs as a birthday present to St Mary – to protect all believers from extremists, donate land to provide houses for the landless, and to ensure that all residents have proper paths to their houses.”
It further added, “During these times when atrocities against women are on the rise, we should learn to respect women and womanhood as we respect the Holy Mother.” It is notable that last year the department of catechesis of the diocese of Thamarassery issued a handbook that warned about ‘Love Jihad’.
The handbook mentioned that Love Jihad was being implemented in nine stages and went on to explain the same. It also had a section on how to avoid falling into the trap set by extremist groups. Following the controversy over the handbook, the Thalassery diocese withdrew the controversial remarks published in the handbook by the diocese.