Fr Paul is a Polish missionary. He arrived in Bangladesh in 2010 as one of the first Salesians. He works in the Salesian mission in Lokhikul. His mission is to proclaim the Gospel to the Garo, Uraon, Shantal and Pahan tribes.
The people of Bangladesh celebrate Christmas without twinkling lights. There is no Christmas tree, no buying of gifts. Instead of the traditional Christmas dishes on the table there is rice in a container that looks like a bowl from which all help themselves with their hands.
Bangladesh is a Muslim country. Christians are a minority. In recent years, the political situation has been very difficult and tense. Sometimes, for security reasons, the Salesians have to celebrate the Christmas Mass of the Night much earlier than usual. Moreover, many Christians do not have days off work to celebrate Christmas.
In Bangladesh they don’t have the custom of decorating the Christmas tree, but the missionaries take care of the Christmas atmosphere and preparations as they wait for the birth of Jesus. They organize Christmas gatherings and give food to poor families. In this way they manage to create the spirit of Christmas.
Xaver Ekka is a Catholic who belongs to the Oraun tribe. He says: "We built a crib in a central place of the village. We put the baby Jesus in it and on 25 December we gathered near the temple and celebrated together. Muslims and Hindus came to see our dances. We met again in the afternoon, this time around the crib. We sang and danced together and ate a rice cake called "Pitha", prepared specially for Christmas, and we had tea. When night came we all returned to our homes."
