A Different Logic
Father P. E. Abraham Panampara SDB (see photo) a Salesian whom many of us remember with the highest respect—for his simplicity of life, concern for the poor, dedication to the mission, and desire to work among the most underprivileged—was the principal of Sacred Heart College, Tiruppattur. The college received more applications than the number of seats it had. It happened one year that he had to choose between a poor boy with low marks and a better-off boy with higher grades. The boy with the better marks was the son of the headmaster of one of the schools in the town
Fr Abraham gave the seat to the poorer boy, although his marks were lower. Then, the other boy’s father came to complain. He said, “Father, what you have done is unjust. My son had higher marks. You should have given the seat to him. But you gave admission to a boy with much lower marks.”
Father Abraham listened. He knew this headmaster. He told him, “Sir, I follow another type of justice.”
“What is that?”
“See, you are a headmaster, and you have connections. Even if your son does not get admission here, you will be able to get him a seat in some other college, even a more famous college in Chennai. But this boy’s parents are poor. They have neither money, nor influence. If I do not admit him, his studies will be over. That is why I gave that seat to him.”
“I respect your logic,” replied the headmaster. Though he was disappointed, he admired Fr Abraham’s values and the stand he took to admit the neediest students.
Is this how our schools and colleges operate?
Or, does money or pleasing “big shots” dictate our policies?
(By the way, when Fr Abraham died, his old students collected money to start scholarships for poor students.)
Fr Joe Mannath SDB
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