Jamshedpur : With Christmas around the corner, churches across the city are getting a facelift. Preparations are in full swing among Christian households to welcome the festival and all the good wishes it brings with it.
It�s that time of the year again when Church choirs organise carol singing to spread the festive spirit of Christmas. The cold December nights are finally warming up to the spirit of Christmas as the city gears up to celebrate the birth of Lord Christ.
�We started the month with carol singing and while Christmas is few hours away, groups of people are going around singing carols in the night. We wait through out the year for this occasion,� says Simon D�souza, a young professional.
Like every year the bishop house at Golmuri is being decked up for the celebration where more than 500 people are expected to gather on Christmas day.
On the eve of Christmas day, a mass midnight prayer was organised in elaborate decoration will be done on this occasion at all the churches in city including St Mary’s Church, Bistupur, Beldih Baptist Church, Northern Town and St Anthony’s Church in Pursudih.
Officials of St Mary’s Church said that the tableaux of Jesus Christ would specially be made for this auspicious occasion. The entire premises would also be decorated where people belonging to all section will light up candles on the Christmas day.
Meanwhile a lot of shops in Bistupur and Sakchi are decked up with Christmas and New Year cards, decoration items, not to mention stars and Christmas trees-the city will be painted in red and white to bring in the Yuletide with fervour.
Mouth�watering Christmas cakes have been displayed at famous shops like Relish, Howrah Bakery and Brubeck Bakery. The youth are especially excited to celebrate the occasion with devotion. People are making a beeline for shops to buy attractive Christmas trees, cakes, gifts and decorative bells, despite skyrocketing prices.
“We are in the preparation of the Christmas and we are visiting this stall to buy some items for our Christmas tree and as the rates of the petrol, gas, everything has gone up, so the rates of these items are also reaching the sky. But the items are really good,” said Pawani, a local resident.
Special midnight holy mass was organised at the St. Joseph’s Cathedral and other major churches. Just before the midnight mass, an image of child Jesus was brought by the priest preceded by rows of children holding lighted candles that were placed in the crib set up in the churches.
At the same time, the youth are busy buying novel curios such as personal coffee mugs, pot-pourri or porcelain and artifacts to be given as presentation to their friends. These varieties available from Rs. 15 upwards and are enjoying good sales in the shops in the city.