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Priest in Haryana watched mother’s funeral online, weeks later church webcasts his burial for kin in Tamil Nadu
Father Michael Boniface of the Simla-Chandigarh Diocese, who was the in-charge of St Antony’s Church in Kaithal, suffered a cardiac arrest on Tuesday evening and was declared brought dead at a private hospital in Kurukshetra
The lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus has not only transformed the way people live, but the way they die as well.
A month back when a 46-year-old catholic priest was saying the prayers online at St Antony’s Church in Habri village of Kaithal district, Haryana, more than 2,600 km away somewhere in Tamil Nadu his 75-year-old long-time ailing mother passed away.
The hapless priest had to contend with watching his mother’s funeral online, unable to get a glimpse of her for the last time.
On Tuesday late evening, however, a cardiac arrest snatched away the life of the priest. And this time, his father and brother, sitting in Vallavilai village of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, had no choice but to watch the priest’s funeral online that took place at 1pm on Wednesday at the Sector 25 cemetery in the presence of eight catholic priests.
Father Michael Boniface of the Simla-Chandigarh Diocese, who was the in-charge of St Antony’s Church, suffered a cardiac arrest on Tuesday evening and was declared brought dead on reaching a private hospital in Kurukshetra.
The priest had lost his mother on March 31; she had been bedridden for almost a year after suffering a paralytic attack. Watching her funeral online, the priest had been unaware that his journey, too, will be witnessed by the remaining family in a similar way.
Speaking to the Hindustan Times, the priest’s brother Simon Boniface, who is in Tamil Nadu, said it was a huge irony: “My brother was completely shattered by the death of our mother, but always put on a brave face. Due to the lockdown, we could not even attend his final journey and had to watch it online. It was painful.”
In his obituary message, Bishop of Simla-Chandigarh Diocese reverend Ignatius Mascarenhas said, “His demise is a great loss for the Diocese. Such a young and vibrant priest is gone to eternity. The Diocese is grateful to the family members, especially to his younger brother, who is at home and who cannot come due to the Covid-19 lockdown in the country.”
