Reflections

The fifth element in the Wholeness Paradigm is the Moral Dimension, an essential facet of an individual’s holistic personality. This will be the point of discussion in this and forthcoming issues, wherein we shall try to decipher the all-important role of moral dimension in the holistic growth of each of us.

In the developmental psychology course that I teach at the Salesian Pontifical University, Rome, one of the chapters we study is the moral development of a person. At the start of the class, the students were asked to list all the words that came to mind related to the moral dimension of a person. They came up with the following: honesty, justice, authenticity, responsibility, courage, service, accountability, virtue, purpose, consistency and stewardship. To these I added my own list, which were, conscience, integrity, honour, ethicality and humility. Indeed, each of these words, and a few other words as well, would indicate the different contours of the moral dimension. In fact, we finished the first hour of our lessons learning the definition given by the American Psychological Association (APA): “It is the gradual and progressive development of an individual’s understanding, grasping of the wrong and right principles, conscious, ethical and religious values, social attitudes and their behaviours.”

Fr. Dr. Joseph Jeyaraj, sdb

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We, the people of God, will commence the Lenten season with Ash Wednesday, setting a tone for 40 days. The ashes we receive on our foreheads are a powerful Christian symbol of repentance, mortality, and humility. They serve as a stern reminder of our mortality, saying, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19). Lent is not just a season but a sacred time for self-examination, repentance, and preparation for Easter. It urges Catholics to renew their faith and strive for greater holiness. According to CCC 1438, Lent is a penitential season where the Church firmly encourages fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Pope Francis consistently emphasises that “Lent is a time for believing, for welcoming God into our lives and allowing Him to ‘make His dwelling’ among us.”

Every year, we begin the Lenten season with a purpose and perseverance. This year, as we celebrate the jubilee year with the theme ‘Pilgrims of Hope’, the Lenten season becomes very significant and enhances it spiritually. On the feast of Ascension, May 5, 2024, Pope Francis formally announced the Jubilee Year during a ceremony at St. Peter’s Basilica, where the Bull of Indication titled “Spes non confundit – Hope does not disappoint” was made public. The Pope states in the Document, “Everyone knows what it is to hope. In each person’s heart, hope resides as the longing and anticipation of good things to come, even though we do not know what the future holds.” The document invites the faithful to reflect on the profound significance of God’s mercy and the call for renewal. It highlights the role of the Jubilee Year as a time for spiritual growth, healing, and fostering peace within the community.

Br. Justin Arokia Raj SVD

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A mother’s role often goes far beyond caregiving; she becomes the primary source of faith and values within her family, embodying God’s love in quiet yet transformative ways. Across cultures, mothers are frequently the first to plant the seeds of faith in the hearts of their children, guiding them through daily acts of love, prayer, and sacrifice. Much like the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose “yes” to God brought salvation into the world, a mother’s devotion creates a ripple effect that touches not only her family but also the wider community. Her unwavering example of faith and kindness becomes a living testament to God’s Love and Mercy, helping others to see Christ’s presence in their lives. Through this gentle evangelization, a mother’s faith nurtures a legacy of faith and compassion that resonates for generations.

A mother’s journey of faith is woven into the fabric of her daily life through prayer, sacrifice, and trust in God’s Will. Whether through fasting, attending Mass, or small acts of love, she creates an environment in which her children naturally absorb a Christian way of life. Her example demonstrates that faith is not merely a set of beliefs but a living relationship with God. Like Mary and Joseph, who responded to God’s call with courage, a mother’s response to life’s challenges becomes a guiding light for her family, showing them how to find God in every circumstance.

Sr Amala SAT

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In this meditation, the profound reflections from Chapter 1 of Dilexit Nos are interwoven with four tender and transformative moments from beloved films. Each scene serves as a mirror, inviting us into a space of deep connection and the call to return to the heart.

TREASURING THE UNKNOWN WITH LOVE

The Gospel tells us this in speaking of Our Lady, who saw things with the heart. The best expression of how the heart thinks is found in the two passages in Saint Luke’s Gospel that speak to us of how Mary “treasured (synetérei) all these things and pondered (symbállousa) them in her heart” (cf. Lk2:19 and 51). What Mary “kept” was not only her memory of what she had seen and heard, but also those aspects of it that she did not yet understand; these nonetheless remained present and alive in her memory, waiting to be “put together” in her heart. (DN19)

Mary here embodies our heart’s capacity to hold the tension between mystery and change. And this reminds me of a poignant scene in the film Fiddler on the Roof.

In Fiddler on the Roof, Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman, faces the tension between tradition and change. The heartfelt scene below depicts his internal struggle as he reluctantly blesses his daughter Hodel’s choice to marry Perchik for love rather than through an arranged marriage, showcasing his deep love for her and the shifting values of their world.

Br Sunil Britto CFC

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The first words addressed to the young girl Mary, quite unexpectedly, were “Hail Mary Full of Grace.” During this month, we celebrate and greet Mary by singing “AVE, AVE, AVE MARIA” millions and millions of times in all the languages all over the world. She has become an AVE, and she is AVE among us. She lives among us, AVE.

“Hail” is the reverential word of greeting generally addressed to sovereigns, kings, queens, presidents, prime ministers, chief ministers, or other prominent personalities. Why did Mary, at her tender and young age, receive this title, and that too not from an ordinary person but from and through the messenger of God, the angel Gabriel? Gabriel means a Man of God.

What sort of star was she going to be? What was she expected to become with this greeting of “Ave”/“Hail”? Was she prepared to become a queen, as the people of Israel and even the apostles (James and John and their mother) expected Jesus to be, with a kingdom on earth, or was she to be someone greater? Or was she aware of the painful reality and ready to take up the responsibility? For a young girl like her, it would be too much to expect her to understand and know about the meaning and purpose of this mysterious greeting. But what she probably understood and accepted was the assurance in the other five short words: “Nothing is impossible for God” (Lk. 1:37). A deep-rooted and magnanimous faith of this sort is what she expects each one of us to have.

Fr Vincent Samy MSFS

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1. “Church” for me means:

When I was small, the word ‘Church” meant for me the parish structure, the parish priest and the bishop; as I grew older, the word ‘Church’ and what I saw before my eyes was the hierarchy and the religious. But today for me the word ‘Church’ means all the People of God, especially the laity. The first image I get as soon as I hear the word ‘Church’ is a large group of mixed people standing together with raised hands with joy and smile on their faces.

2. My main experiences of the Church: I choose the ones I have indicated in italics:

• As a loving family of faith led by Christ-like servant leaders who seek the good of the least, and not power;
• As a worldly organization in which the quest for power and money dominates;
• As an impractical and somewhat irrelevant organization from which people do not expect much;

Bro Paul Raj SG

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1. Church, for me, is…

a bunch of people in a circle and a priest officiating the Mass with the active participation of the members. This is my experience of having liturgy celebrations in the Medical Mission Sisters’ chapel in Fox Chase, Philadelphia. I came to know that most of the outsiders who joined the Sisters and Associates were Catholics who dropped out of their parishes. One couple told me it is the fifth church they visited and the only life-giving place they found! So, the idea of a church is not big buildings or a hierarchy who dominate a passive audience. People want participation, meaningful celebration and life-giving liturgies. We also conduct para- liturgies there when priests are not available and this proved to be equally meaningful to the participants.

Sr Celine Paramundayil MMS

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1. My Image of the Church:

The Church comes across as an institution whose hierarchy has been used to wielding power, and who now finds itself in disarray because its teachings and ‘way of being’ are predominantly being seen as antediluvian. The emerging understanding of its teachings and a new ‘way of being’ which is being encouraged by Pope Francis is being stymied, resulting in factionalism.  The laity stand on the sidelines, watching this imbroglio. This is hardly the Church of Christ.

There is another image of the anawim, which comes to mind. This is especially seen in the Church operating especially in the missions among the poor, the marginalised and the rejected. It is here that we get a glimpse of what the Church needs to be and what we in the city are being challenged to be like. We have seen some exemplary examples of witnessing during the pandemic, both in the city and the missions.

2. I see the church as…

• a worldly organization in which the quest for power and money dominates; an impractical and somewhat irrelevant organization from which people do not expect much; one of the several organizations conducting some religious functions and doing some social service; and also as an organization keen on promoting holiness (Christ-like life), with living examples of holiness among its members.

Conrad Saldanha

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1. The word “Church” means..

When I hear the word ‘Church’ I always feel like I am very much a part of it. The word brings to my mind the parish church, the altar, the tabernacle, the crucifix, the parish priest and the community—and others beyond it. I feel a sense of belonging. I am grateful for the indispensable services rendered by the Holy Catholic Church.

2. My Experience of Church

There are lots of dedicated people among the clergy and the laity who are tirelessly striving to make the Church a loving family of faith. Since the Church does not care much for publicity, “many a flower is born to blush unseen,” but its fragrance is not lost. It definitely produces results like the loving upbringing of orphans, caring for the sick, running old age homes and educational institutions, giving value education to people irrespective of caste, creed, colour or financial status.

On the other side, groupism, thirst for power and money, fame and recognition among ‘some’ of the clergy and the nuns do spoil the good name of the Church. Even among priests we can detect groups, for example, when a new bishop is to be elected. But  the holy and the heroic lives of a number of priests and religious is undeniable.

Prof (retd.) Philomina Mathew

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Here is a reflection questionnaire for personal use or for sharing with family or religious community.
If done in community, each one will need a copy. Time needed will be between thirty and sixty minutes.

Introduction

Jesus did not impose on his followers any special diet. The only prayer he taught was the Our Father. He did not ask us to put up expensive buildings nor prescribe costly vestments or vessels for praying.

He called us—and even those of other faiths know this—to a life of love, of service, of forgiveness. We will be judged one day on how we loved and shared, not on where we prayed, or what diet we followed, or how we dressed. What Jesus did, and what He insisted on, is pretty well known to all, including persons of all faiths.

What did Jesus bring us?

Use this Reflection Questionnaire to see how you understand and live Lent and Easter. If any question is not relevant for you or your group, reflect on questions of your own, e.g., Are we living our marriage in the way God wants? Are we raising our children in a Christ-like manner? Or: Is the way I exercise my role as religious superior helping the community to live as Jesus lived and taught? Or: Is the way I am practicing my profession in line with Jesus’ teachings? Am I honest and incorrupt?

If what we call “religion” or “faith” does not make us better people, it serves no purpose. In fact, it can even make us worse—as, for instance, when religion is used to promote division, bigotry or hatred or indifference to the sufferings of people.

Jesus did not teach that sort of “religion.” In fact, some Christian scholars even say that Jesus did not “found” a “new religion,” but showed us how to live, how to relate to God and to one another.

Being a follower of Jesus is not just a question of saying a few prayers or going to a building called “church” instead of temple or mosque, or taking part in a particular form of common worship. No! Just like being married or being a mother or father, it is a loving, full-time commitment. If real, it affects all areas of life. If we want to summarize our Christian faith in one sentence, it is about becoming Christlike, or, since we have not personally met the historical Jesus, it means becoming like the most Christ-like (loving, genuine, compassionate, just) human beings we have known.

May Lent and Easter help towards that transformation.

Fidelity or Betrayal?

What is holding me back from a truly joyful life? From becoming the best version of myself? From being a healer and a bearer of joy?

If I look honestly, I will find dark spots that need sweeping, neglected areas that need cultivation, weeds that choke the good seed, destructive habits scuttling my happiness and doing harm to others.

Want examples? Gossip. Grumbling. Words and actions prompted by jealousy. Greed. Ingratitude. Ill-treatment of subordinates. Addictions. Divisions stemming from the lust for power and money.

Further, I may find that I am committing a bigger “crime”—wasting my life on trivialities instead of doing the good I can; wallowing in mediocrity while I am called to greatness; merely plodding along, and forgetting my call to holiness.

Reflection Questionnaire

1. Are we personally, and as a family or religious community, living a life of love, unity and mutual support? Yes, very much / Yes, to a limited degree / So-so / Not really / Not at all
2. Are we setting a good example of Christian life to the younger ones in our care (children, students, formees, parishioners)? Yes, very much / Yes, to a limited degree / So-so / Not really / Not at all
3. Are there bad habits I (we) need to root out—addictions, gossip, injustice, ill-treatment of those under us, indecent or disrespectful language? Which? …………………………………
4. As persons and as a group, what are the main obstacles for our call to holiness? What is preventing me from the becoming the person God wants me to be? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
5. I (We) will be happier and more united if…………………………………………………………..
6. We speak of “new life in Christ.” In what way is our life—individual and as a family or community—better than those who do not believe in Christ? What difference does my (our) faith in Christ make to the way we live? ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
7. How can we simplify our life during Lent (and later) and use the saving to help poor and needy persons? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
8. Do I (we) give more importance to the luxuries we are attached to, than to the real needs of others? If so, what do I need to do? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
9. What do I (we) need to do to improve and deepen prayer life and familiarity with the Word of God? (a) More time for personal and family prayer: (b) More regularity: (c) More attentiveness and devotion during prayer: (d) More reading of the Bible; (e ) more frequent and more devout participation in the Mass and Confession.
10. Sacrifice, Love, Prayer. (Or: Discipline. Charity. Prayer). These are the hallmarks of Lent. What do I (we) need to do in each of these three areas? (a) Sacrifice or discipline: …………………………………………..; (b) Love/Generosity/Forgiveness/Compassion: ………………………………………………………………..; (c) Prayer: ………………………………………………

Decisions

What do I (we) need to do?

Let me (us) decide on two or three useful practices for Lent, which will help me (us) to become the best version of ourselves. May our way of living increase the goodness in the world, and our level of happiness.

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