She found God in her own ways. Joined a convent and left. Fell in love with a very unlikely person. Faced isolation, serious illness and death. Felt God’s hand through it all.
As children we learnt catechism during summer holidays. We enjoyed stories and parables from the Bible. As practiced in most of the parishes of rural tribal areas in Odisha, summer vacation is the perfect time to learn catechism. We used to stay in the boarding school for a month. Initially we enjoyed attending regular Sunday Mass and frequent Confession. Being children, we felt that we were loved by Jesus. But gradually, when we grew up, we started reasoning on church teachings, and defend our own thoughts and perspectives.
As I moved to the city for my higher studies, I realized that church services were more meaningful and attractive than in the village. In the villages, our way of life is more concentrated on manual work to run our house and family. People also tend to believe food comes from hard work and not by praying or going to churches. Sometime going to church becomes an obligation, without being drawn to Jesus. I have seen many (nominal) Christians who have never experienced or discovered Jesus in their life. The fault is not only theirs, but also of the church and its role in taking care of their spiritual needs.
Alma Grace Barla
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