Indian Archbishop composes Vatican's Good Friday prayers

This years Good Friday prayers at the Vatican will have a 'desi' touch - as it is being composed by an Indian Bishop.

Penned by the Archbishop of Guwahati, Thomas Menamparambil, the prayers will be used by Pope Benedit XVI for the "Way of the Cross" in the Roman Colosseum on Good Friday.

"These past years the pope, in solidarity with the suffering Christians, has called on Church leaders from persecuted Churches to prepare meditations and prayers to be used at the Good Friday devotion which the Pope will personally preside to mark the suffering and death of Jesus," a senior Vatican expert was quoted saying.

The 72-year-old Archbishop is the first Indian and second Asian to prepare the meditation prayers, where '14 stages' of Jesus Christ are meditated upon.

He told PTI that he would give an Indian touch by blending the concepts of Mahatma's ahimsa and nishkama karma in the prayers. "Ahimsa as a concept is much deeper than non-violence, revealing fullness of its meaning in Jesus as he confronts violence with serenity and strength," he explained

"In my prayers I have tried to be perfectly Christian and also perfectly Indian and Asian," added the Archbishop.