In an Indian church dedicated to St. Thomas, the Apostle to India, more than 250 people — mostly of Indian descent — gathered for Mass with Cardinal George Aug. 21 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Indian Catholic Association of America in Chicago. Mass was held at the Syro- Malabar Cathedral in Bellwood. (The cathedral is the diocesan church of the St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Diocese, an eastern-rite Catholic diocese.) A Latin-rite Mass was celebrated by the cardinal. Founded in 1960, the ICAA welcomes all Catholics from India living in the United States. At first it started out as a student group but grew into wider mission as more Indians immigrated here. The ICAA is part of the Latin Rite Center for Catholics of Indian and Pakistani origin, which is sponsored by the archdiocese’s Office for Asian Catholics and located at St. Timothy Parish, 6326 N. Washtenaw Ave. Men and women, young and old, many dressed in traditional Indian clothing, attended Mass with the cardinal. “For us this is something special,” said Netta D’Souza of the celebration. D’Souza, a parishioner at St. Vincent Ferrer Parish in River Forest, is a longtime member of ICAA and said the early days of the ICAA had more of a spiritual focus, and now it is more social with four major functions a year. “The old timers like us are trying very hard to keep it alive,” she said. Father Britto Berchmans, pastor of St. Paul of the Cross Parish in Park Ridge, was one of the priests who concelebrated Mass with the cardinal. He is a native of Madras, India. The ICAA provides support and connection for Indian Catholics in Chicago, he said, adding that, over the years, the group has taken up the cause for Christians being persecuted in India. Catholics make up just 2 percent of India’s total population, with most residents being Hindu or Muslim. The ICAA also raised funds and helped plan the Our Lady of Good Health chapel at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.