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PANDITA RAMABAI SARASVATI (1858-1922) – DIED 5 APRIL 

Pandita Ramabai Sarasvati was an Indian woman, born to a Brahmin father, Anant Shastri, and his second wife, Lakshmibai. Her father, a learned Sanskrit scholar, taught Puranas in the temples for a livelihood.

Ramabai’s family became ostracised from the moment her father started teaching Sanskrit to her mother. From then on the family fell into poverty and took to the road as religious itinerants. When Pandita was sixteen, her parents and sister died of starvation. Only she and her brother Srinivas were left.

Both of them decided to carry on their father’s teaching work. They continued travelling all over India. Her passion for reading never faltered.

Ramabai’s fame as a lecturer reached Calcutta, where she was invited to speak.  At the age of twenty, she became the first woman to receive the title of pandita (female pundit or Sanskrit scholar) and Sarasvati from Calcutta University.

After the death of Srinivas, in 1880, Ramabai married a Bengali lawyer, Bipin Behari Medhvi. The marriage both inter-caste and inter-regional upset society’s traditions. The couple had a daughter: Manorama.

Among her husband’s books Ramabai found the ‘Gospel according to St Luke.’ She was fascinated by what she read. She wanted to know more about Christ, but met her husband’s resistance and gave up.

After Medhvi’s death, in 1882, Ramabai moved to Pune. There she founded the Arya Mahila Samaj (Arya Women’s Society) to promote women’s education and uproot the practice of child marriage.

From then on she travelled widely in India and abroad to bring forth women’s emancipation through education, fairer laws and attitudes.

Her speeches and addresses on the importance of women’s education had deep reach and impact. One of them even nreached Queen Victoria and incited the starting of the Women’s Medical Movement by Lady Dufferin.

While in England, Ramabai experienced the love and compassion of Jesus Christ. She and her daughter became Christian.

Ramabai travelled quite extensively. Her genuine compassion towards the plight of widows, girl-brides and uneducated women mobilized women from all over the world.

In 1888, Ramabai came back to India. She started the “Sharda Sadan” (House of knowledge) for girls.

Pandita Ramabai kept on her work and care for girls and women till she passed away on 5th April, 1922.

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PIERRE TEILHARD DE CHARDIN (1881-1955) – DIED 10 APRIL

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin was a French Jesuit. As a philosopher and palaeontologist, he strove to understand the links between science and faith.

He was the fourth of eleven children. From his father, Emmanuel, an amateur naturalist, Pierre learnt the observation of nature. From his mother, Berthe, he learnt spirituality.

As he grew, Teilhard’s interest in the world of nature drew him to study geology and natural sciences.

After he entered the Jesuits, his spiritual director helped him understand that he could give glory to God through following his intellectual interests.

In 1914, as the World War I started, Pierre was enlisted into the French army though he was already an ordained priest.

The slaughter and crippling of millions of men shook Teilhard’s faith. However, he could see, even in the midst of human tragedy, a sense of communion with the world and communion with God united in the crucified Christ.

He later wrote: “…the war was a meeting … with the Absolute.”

He was appointed to teach at the University in Paris, and later asked not to do so. Instead, he was “exiled” to China, where he did splendid studies in paleontology, and was part of a team that discovered the famous fossil, Synanthropus Pekinensis.

Several of his writings, combing science and spirituality in creative ways, were misunderstood by church authorities. He was not allowed to publish them. When friends outside the church published them, it made him and his ideas very well known. His ideas have been cited by Pope Francis in the 2015 encyclical, Laudato si’.

Teilhard’s unique relationship to both paleontology and Catholicism allowed him to develop a highly progressive, cosmic theology which took into account his evolutionary studies. Teilhard recognized the importance of bringing the Church into the modern world. He was both a scientist of calibre and a mystic—but very few within church circles understood him.

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CÉSAR  ESTRADA CHÁVEZ (1927-1993) – DIED 23 APRIL 1993

César Chávez was an American labour leader and civil rights activist.

He was born to a Mexican-American family of six children. During the Great Depression, César’s family lost their land and all they had. To survive, they became farm workers.

In 1942, Chavez quit school and started working full time as a migrant farmer so that his mother would not have to slave in the fields.

In 1946, he joined the United States Navy, hoping it would give him the opportunity to learn skills for his future. However, the military experience turned out to be “the two worst years of his life.”

He married, and became the father of eight children.

Chavez worked in the fields until 1952. He then became an organizer for the Community Service Organization (CSO). He became widely known later for his struggle to procure a just wage for farm workers. He undertook several “spiritual fasts,” seeing this as “a personal spiritual transformation.” These fasts were influenced by the Catholic tradition of penance and by Mahatma Gandhi’s fasts and emphasis of nonviolence.

In 1988, Chavez attempted his last fast to protest the exposure of farm workers to pesticides. He fasted for thirty-five days before being convinced by others to start eating again. He had lost fifteen kilos. It caused health problems that eventually led to his death.

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ST GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA (1922-1962) – DIED 28 APRIL 1962

Gianna Molla was a pediatrician and a mother who chose to die so that her child might live.

She was born in Italy, the tenth of thirteen children

In 1942 she began her studies in medicine. Besides her studies, she was active in the Azione Cattolica (Catholic Action) movement and an adventurous woman who loved skiing and mountaineering.

In 1949, she received her medical degree, and opened an office close to her hometown.

Gianna had planned to join her brother, a priest in the Brazilian missions, and offer gynaecological services to poor women. When her chronic ill health prevented her from doing so, she continued her work at her clinic and specialized in paediatrics.

She reflected and prayed over her vocation. Having felt called to the vocation of marriage, she embraced it with enthusiasm and resolve to wholly dedicated herself ‘to forming a truly Christian family.’ She married Pietro Molla, an engineer. They had four children.

During the second month of her fourth pregnancy, Gianna developed a fibroma in her uterus. The doctors gave her three choices: an abortion, a complete hysterectomy or the removal of the fibroma alone.

As a mother, doctor and committed Christian, Gianna felt morally bound to choose her child’s life over hers. She therefore opted for the removal of the fibroma. She told the doctors that her child’s life was more important than her own.

On 21 April 1962, Holy Saturday, Gianna’s fourth child, Gianna Emanuela, was delivered. Gianna, however, continued to have severe pain. She died of septic peritonitis one week later. She was thirty-nine years old. Among her last words were, “Jesus, I love you.”

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Reflecting on their thirty-three years of marriage, Kevin sees the inadequacy of youthful romance and of other worldly views of this way of life. While “marriage as sacrament” is certainly very meaningful, the real beauty of it is seen when couples live it as a vocation and a mission.

For over twenty-five years Crystal and I have been trying to live out God’s plan for our married life. That’s the good news. The not so good news is that we have been married for thirty-three years!

In the first years of our marriage Crystal and I were living what most would consider a successful life. We had two beautiful and healthy children, a comfortable house with two cars in the garage and enough extra money to enjoy at least one extended vacation a year. By the world’s standards we had everything one could hope for in a marriage. Why was it that we, two faithful Catholics, found ourselves struggling to be joyful and loving with one another?  What we came to discover on a Marriage Encounter retreat back in 1991 was that our relationship had developed much like so many others had in our country, drifting from feelings of love into marriage because it seemed the next right step.

Romantic Love Not Enough

Often, feelings of love and romance convince couples that they are meant to be together for life, only to find out a few years down the road that these romantic feelings are not strong enough to overcome a lack of true understanding of what it takes to give life to one another for the long haul. We found ourselves to be much like so many of the couples whom we currently meet when we facilitate their marriage preparation.  Even when these young couples have good role models, they come to us with no real conscious recognition of what it takes to live a committed married life. It comes as no surprise that more than half of these relationships fail. Relationships we fall into are much more likely to turn out differently, perhaps even badly, than those we choose to enter into with our eyes wide open.

It was on that retreat weekend in 1991 that Crystal and I committed to stop living our married life according to the world’s plan for our lives. We decided to put aside the notions we might have grown up with concerning what marriage was supposed to be. Instead, we chose to be married according to God’s plan for us. It has been a very rewarding journey full of new discoveries and insights into not only what God has in store for us, but also for what He requires of each of us. As we began to work together in marriage ministry, we grew in our appreciation for the difference that seeing marriage as a sacrament—as opposed to a mere living arrangement—could make. Over time, understanding that our lives together could be a source of grace and strength not only for us and our family but also for others was satisfying and rewarding. The more we came to appreciate the difference our sacramental life could make, the more we understood how blessed we were.

Marriage as Sacrament: A Blessing

So, clearly, marriage as a sacrament is a good thing. So much better than the “contractual” 50/50 relationship the world asks us to shoot for or even the “covenant” relationship evangelical Christians teach. Yet, no matter how good living as a sacrament was, it somehow didn’t make it that much easier to live out on a day to day basis. Don’t get me wrong, it was more comforting knowing that I wanted to do what God wanted me to do, but the demands of long hours away from home and a successful career often left me stressed and anxious.  Crystal was doing a magnificent job of raising our two children and providing for a warm and welcoming household.  Why wasn’t I at peace then? As I look back on those years I have come to understand that, while Crystal embraced her role as wife and mother, I still clung to my role as provider of the family.  It wasn’t until a few years ago, as we were working on a new retreat format for couples, that I came to appreciate that marriage was not only a sacrament;  it should also be treated as a vocation—a life’s work.

Seeing married life as a vocation has become a powerful distinction for me to try to comprehend. It pretty much changes everything. Perhaps, most significantly, vocation requires a conscious choice—a choice which, because I failed to consciously make it, I lived for too long as a career person who just happened to be married with two children.  Family was a distraction from my real life’s work of being a successful business professional. Choosing a vocation requires inquiry and knowledge of the choices available.

Foolish Assumptions about Marriage

Unfortunately for me and for too many others, we form our assumptions early in life about what our state in life is to be.  We don’t question our assumptions, we don’t explore other options and we further assume that we don’t really need to learn anything before taking on the role of being a spouse. However, I have now come to better appreciate how looking at life through the ‘vocation lens’ can be truly instructive. For example, early in life I chose to be a lawyer. I knew a few lawyers in my hometown. I had seen several on television over the years. Obviously, that ‘experience’ of lawyers didn’t equip me to be one.  Likewise, in order to be a doctor, priest, religious sister or a spouse requires more than the vicarious experience of others.  It requires that we acquire the knowledge, skills and abilities needed before we can expect to adequately serve others in our chosen vocation.  It is truly unfortunate that Catholic couples are not adequately alerted to this reality during their preparation for the sacrament of marriage. If, before they exchange their wedding vows, couples were required to have even a small measure of the education and training that priests and religious receive, they would be far better equipped to live out their married vocation.

As I have come to contemplate the power and beauty of vocations in our Catholic Church, I have reached a much deeper appreciation of the gift of our priests and religious. As difficult as it can be to live in marriage and try to bring Christ to a wife and family, I can only imagine the challenges of bringing Christ into our entire Church community.  I have come to understand that, while living out a vocation can be tremendously rewarding, there can also be periods where it may seem tedious, mundane or thankless. For me and for all Catholic Christians, it is at these times when the added dimension of the mission we have been given can provide a little inspiration. I need to recall that my vocation is not only in service to the people I meet, but also that it is work done to advance the mission given to us by Christ when we were commanded by Him “to go forth and make disciples of all nations.”

These days Crystal and I are living in a little bit of chaos, as we share our home with our daughter and her three young children.  Even as I grow weary of the noise, commotion and clutter, I know that I am being graced with the opportunity to live out my vocation as husband, father and grandfather.  I am reminded of this each time we gather at the dinner table and share how He has blessed each one of us that day. While the world would tell us that as a retired couple we should be enjoying an escape from the cold of our northern climate, I can feel confident knowing that we are right where our vocation calls us to be at this time.

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The Charism Statement of the Christian Brothers reads: Deeply aware of the Father’s providential presence in life, Edmund Rice [our founder] was moved by the Holy Spirit to open his whole heart to Christ present and appealing to him in the poor. This statement till today grips my heart, and I feel that it sums up, in a profound way, what it means for me to be a Brother in the world today.

MY BACKGROUND AND CALL

I was born on the 7^th of April, 1978, into a family with three siblings. I studied in Regina Mundi School in Goa, a school run by the Christian Brothers. I was inspired by the lives of the Brothers. I found in these men not just teachers of subjects, but also mentors who were caring, compassionate and ever ready to reach out. It was this example of the lives of the Brothers that led me to say YES and join the Brothers. I was then asked to do my Higher Secondary in Shillong. After completing my studies, I had to decide whether I was still interested in being in the Congregation. And, I said YES.

MY FOUNDATIONAL EXPERIENCE

I spent a few months doing my Postulancy, following which I joined the Novitiate. It was here, during my first retreat ever, that I was gripped by a deep experience of the love of God. It happened while I was meditating on the Baptism of Jesus. All of a sudden, from deep within me, I felt God as a most loving Father, saying those words to me: “You are my beloved son. I love you.”  It was as if the heavens were opened, and I felt embraced and wrapped up in so much love and tenderness, like I had never experienced before. I do believe even now, that it was this profound God-experience that has been, and continues to be, the foundation on which my life as a Religious is built and sustained. As a result of this experience in the Novitiate, I fell madly in love with God, whom I now wanted to know, experience more, and give my whole life to. Towards the end of my Novitiate, I professed my First Vows on the 24^th of December, 1996.

BEING PRUNED THROUGH MANY EXPERIENCES

My First Mission was among the Khasi people, in a lovely village called Mawjrong, in Meghalaya. I believe that the seeds for working among people ‘made poor’ were first sown in my heart while I was here. My time in Mawjrong was,  however, cut short, as I was sent home to help look after my father, who was diagnosed with cancer. My father passed away in December, 1997. It was during this time that I felt God holding and sustaining me and my family. This deepened my faith in God’s love for me.

During my years of pursuing my Degree (1998-2001), I felt deeply drawn to God’s Word, and began spending a lot of time studying the Scriptures. My life was being driven by a love for the Gospels and the New Testament Letters. The letters of St. Paul gripped me, and I wanted to experience in my heart what Paul experienced—being gripped by the person of Jesus.

After my Degree, I was involved in many ministries in some of our schools—Mount  Abu, Challakere, Mumbai and Kurseong. Teaching in these schools, working with students in music and singing, animating youth, conducting sessions on spiritual and other topics that interest youth, accompanying groups for walks, picnics and camps were experiences which I saw gave meaning to their young lives, and also gave me a sense of fulfilment as a Brother.

December 29^th, 2005, was the day I professed my Final Vows. During my month-long silent retreat, in preparation for my Final Vows, I knew for sure that Jesus was calling me to an intimacy with him, to giving myself totally to him and to working for his Kingdom.

In the middle of my being transferred to various places, I lost my mother to a yearlong battle against cancer. I was fortunate to have spent almost a year with her during this time. Her passing away on the 4^th of October, 2009, left a deep void within me.  However, my mother’s faith in the love of God for her, and her deep love for the person of Jesus, particularly during this time of great pain and suffering, continues to inspire me to this day.

I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to pursue a Bachelor’s in Theology in Vidyajyoti College in Delhi. Those were three years of grace! Studying Scripture and other subjects gave me a greater understanding and clarity to my own faith.

BEING A PRESENCE THAT TRANSFORMS

In the year 2015, a letter was sent to us Brothers, asking us to discern whether we would be a part of Our Way into the Future, an invitation of our Congregation calling Brothers to live and work as a community actively engaging with people ‘made poor.’ I accepted the invitation. I now live in a village called Patharlyndan, with three wonderful young brothers. As the document “Identity and Mission of the Religious Brother” says: “The mission is not “what he [a Religious Brother] does” but rather his very life itself made communion with the least.” Engaging with the people in the village in and through their joys and struggles, working together with them in bringing about a transformation in their lives through empowerment, is what I see is my role as a Brother.

How can I make God present in the world today—in the village in which I am working? How can I be, to the people around me, the presence of God—God’s love, God’s mercy, God’s gentleness…? These are some of the questions that I constantly ask myself. I realize that the call to be a Brother can take on different expressions.   As I draw inspiration from the Gospels, the more I dwell deeper on them, I see that this is exactly what Jesus was all about—seeking always to make God real to all who met him.

THE CONSTANT CHALLENGE

One of the challenges of being a Brother is to make the vocation of a Brother understood. To many, being a Religious Brother is being ‘half-baked’ or not being intelligent or smart enough to be a priest. I meet many people (some very educated) who look at the vocation of a Brother as not as ‘high’ a calling as the priesthood! Even in so many religious gatherings, the opening statement is often addressed to Fathers, Sisters and Friends—with Brothers left out altogether! This is sadly done more by priests and sisters than by the laity.

I feel that Religious Brothers have a very prophetic role to keep alive the memory of Jesus as Brother. Remembering Jesus who told his followers: “And you are all brothers” (Mt 23:8), we Brothers are challenged to be a presence that makes God incarnate in the world.

RADICAL LOVE AND DISCIPLESHIP

I am very happy as a Brother. I can never imagine myself being anything else! Through all my years, it is especially in my moments of pain and brokenness that I have encountered God.  God’s Word in Scripture and my personal prayer  time have nurtured me through these years and helped me go through very difficult moments in my life. At every stage of my life I have been drawn—sometimes in spite of myself—closer to Jesus, to a deep love for him and to a radical following in his footsteps.

I pray that young men who sense the call of God to this vocation may have the courage and find the grace to respond to this amazing invitation.

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Brother David Ryan Silva CFC: Brother David Ryan Silva CFC completes 25 years in the Congregation of the Irish Christian Brothers. He is presently working together with three Brothers in Patharlyndan, a village in the West Khasi Hills.

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“What on earth am I here for?” Life has meaning and purpose when we stretch beyond the ‘clock of routine’ and engage our lives on a ‘Divine agenda.’ We were never created to merely drift and coast on the sands of time. God has created us for greater purposes. Rick Warren, in his best seller, Purpose Driven Life, offers paradigm-shift solutions to a battery of questions we keep asking ourselves. Paramahansa Yogananda writes in Man’s Eternal Quest, “The initiative to undertake your most important duty in life is often buried beneath the accumulated debris of human habits.”  Socrates, the renowned Greek philosopher, puts it plainly, “An unreflected life is not worth living.”

Inspired lives are those of people who stepped out of the ordinary. They stretched the limits of their existence to a higher realm of living meaningfully. In simple words, they found their true CALLING in life and responded to it with a clarity of purpose and a generosity of heart. Every Vocation is a unique ‘Call’ offered by God to each individual. All of us, therefore, rightfully have a vocation story to live. It’s not just about a Mother Teresa or a Martin Luther King, nor is it about the Mahatma Gandhi or a John Paul II. When I, as an individual, align myself to become the blueprint that the Master Creator has set in place for me, then, I have truly lived my Vocation in life.

Evelyn Waugh, in Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred and Profane memories of Captain Charles Ryder, presents a beautiful conversation between Cordelia and Charles:

Cordelia: I hope I’ve got a vocation.

Charles: I don’t know what that means.

Cordelia: It means you can be a nun. If you haven’t a vocation, it’s no good however much you want to be; and if you have a vocation, you can’t get away from it, however much you hate it.”

We fulfil our Vocation by living lovingly, joyfully and generously in our chosen setting—Priesthood, Religious, Married or Single Life. Vocation is not primarily about which group we join or what work we will do, but about holiness of life. Just staying in is not the meaning of persevering in one’s vocation. As Fr Pascual Chavez SDB, the former Superior General of the Salesians and a great authority on religious life, used to say, “Perseverance Is not the same as fidelity.”

Am I faithful to my vocation today? The answer is found in the way I live this day. Are my deeds, words, desires and decisions in line with what God wants me to do here and now? If so I am faithful. If not, I am staying in, but I am not faithful.

No one is left out of this invitation. It is wrong to say, “I never had a vocation.” Everyone has. Sadly, history tells us of many who chose the ‘abandonment of the call.’

Vocation is a life-long call and response—not just an event. Here are a few guidelines to help us along the journey.

1. God’s Initiative is Paramount: The starting point is from God. God is the master-caller. A vocation is not my choice for God, but rather God’s choice for me. God calls me to be a priest, rather than I choosing to be a priest. The one called cannot place self over God’s agenda. Every vocation is therefore sacred and divinely blessed. The moment I place self over the Divine Caller, I trade my Vocation for a mere profession or career. The spotlight moves from God’s agenda to my own selfish motives.
2. Faith is Essential: A faithless person cannot respond to God’s call. It takes faith to answer a call. Jonah wasn’t ready the first time the call came to him. Fear made him run away. Jonah was called a ‘second time.’ His first call was shrouded in total fear. Faith enables us to answer the call more readily and freely. A vocational crisis begins the moment we replace faith with fear! If ‘Formators’ are not persons of deep faith, the whole discernment process becomes blurred by fear and the formee is often left in the dark tunnel of perpetual doubt!
3. God’s Agenda is our Mission: Every Vocation is for a particular mission. To respond to our vocation, we need to sync our will with the Divine will. When God calls us, he wires us with a heart to listen to his voice and to follow His will. God’s agenda is always for peace, justice, love and righteousness and the advancement of His people and world. Any disconnect from God’s agenda will makes us instruments of war, injustice, hate, and a broken humanity and world. Our Vocation is to become ‘Harvesters’ in God’s abundant fields.
4. Each Vocation is Unique: My ‘calling’ is my calling! It’s not given to another. No one else can respond for me. Moses wanted his brother Aaron to stand in for him. Jeremiah wanted someone older to replace his youthful self. Our human limitations are never criteria for God to take away the call from us. He calls us mortals and ordinary people to make an extraordinary journey. Pope Benedict tells us, “Each one of you has a personal vocation which He has given you for your own joy and sanctity. When a person is conquered by the fire of His gaze, no sacrifice seems too great to follow Him and give Him the best of ourselves. This is what the saints have always done, spreading the light of the Lord and transforming the world into a welcoming home for all.”
5. Motivations Need Purification: At times, our motivations in responding to God’s call must be purified along the journey. Choosing to sit by the right and left side of the throne of God was a wrong motivation in following Jesus. Formation and moments of proper discernment are essential to purify our intentions. Thomas Merton, the great mystic, writes in No Man is an Island, “For each of us there is only one thing necessary: to fulfil our destiny, according to God’s will—to be what God wants us to be.”
6. Soul Friends to Discern with You: Every vocational response, be it priestly, religious, married or single, goes through a ‘crisis stage.’ Doubts set in. The journey seems difficult and ‘walking out’ seems the easier option. My own priestly journey had similar difficult times. The heart gets passionless, the mind gets visionless and the mission seems to be a boring exercise! In such moments, the presence of ‘soul friends’ play a very important role. Talk it over, seek counsel, be open to rediscover your ‘first calling.’ Discernment and prayerful support are two essentials wings to keep one from falling apart.

Finally, all Vocations are sacred and unique. Priesthood or religious life is not higher than marriage. We are all called to holiness of life! Whoever lives a life close to God and fulfils God’s plans, is faithful to one’s vocation and contributes best.

An inspiring man whose life journey has galvanized the world can throw light on our vocation journey. This is what Pope Francis says in his message for Vocation Sunday 2018:

“The joy of the Gospel, which makes us open to encountering God and our brothers and sisters, does not abide our slowness and our sloth.  It will not fill our hearts if we keep standing by the window with the excuse of waiting for the right time, without accepting this very day the risk of making a decision.  Vocation is today!  The Christian mission is now!  Each one of us is called–whether to the lay life in marriage, to the priestly life in the ordained ministry, or to a life of special consecration–in order to become a witness of the Lord, here and now.”

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If you ask four children to draw the picture of a house, will they draw them in the same way?

No.

A kid living in an Indian village will probably draw a thatched hut.

A city boy may draw a multi-storey building and indicate a flat, e.g., 4C, as his house.

An Eskimo child may draw an igloo.

A wealthy girl or boy may draw a mansion.

All four are right, of course. There is no one way of understanding the term, “house.”

These four are different “models” of a house.

Similarly, there are four basic “models” or key ways of understanding spirituality.

The first is COMMUNITARIAN. Someone may say, “I follow Franciscan spirituality,” or “Here are the elements of Ignatian Spirituality.” In such language, one is aware of being part of a special group, and one is expected to follow the values and practices of that group.  Thus, a novice mistress is expected to know the “spirituality” of her order and to train the novices in that.

Casting the net wider, one may speak of Christian Spirituality, Hindu Spirituality, Buddhist Spirituality, etc. Think of Lent for Christians, Hindu dietary rules or the Islamic Haj.

The second is PSYCHO-DEVELOPMENTAL. Proponents of this approach are not writing for followers of a particular religion or religious order, but for all human beings. This approach takes emotions and human development seriously. Thus, when we speak of the spirituality of mid-life, or women’s approach to spirituality, we are talking about how emotions, gender, stages of life or facing death affect the way we understand spirituality.

The third “model” can be called CONTEMPLATIVE. Thus, when we observe silence during a retreat or in an ashram, this is understood as a spiritual practice. When someone sets aside a week or a month for meditation or a retreat, this is supposed to help the person’s spiritual life. Some people spend time regularly in ashrams. Others attend Christian retreats, or Hindu ashrams or Vipassana meditation.

A fourth approach to spirituality is SOCIO-POLITICAL. Some call it liberationist, taking the term used by Liberation Theologians. People are moved to take trouble to fight for justice, to procure rights for the deprived. Others take up common concerns like gender issues or ecology. Still others fight for racial or caste justice. Just to pray for a better world without getting involved in the struggles for justice seems to them to be an irresponsible and selfish escape.

All four approaches or models have their strengths and weaknesses.

They are also mutually critical.  In India, the so-called “Ashram group” (those who are enthusiastic about retreats, ashram life, contemplation, Sanskrit chanting, monastic life, etc.) and the supporters of Liberation Theology have been strongly critical of each other. The first group tends to see the other as being political rather spiritual, and the activists see the first group as escapists cut off from the needs and struggles of people. Both quote Jesus, saints and Church documents to support their stand. For the first group, a saint like John Mary Vianney is an excellent model for priests. For the second group, Oscar Romero or Sr Valsa John are more inspiring.

For the complex world of today, and to respect the different gifts and ministries of people, we need to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of each model.

Further, we need to develop and propose an integral spirituality that is not lame or one-sided. We need to be men and women of community; we need to be emotionally healthy; we need to be contemplatives to see the deeper truths about ourselves and about God; and we cannot be blind or indifferent to the gross injustices happening around us. Hence the need of living an integral spirituality. One-sided models can do harm.

In the coming issues, we shall look at these issues one by one.

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Do you know someone who is not carrying a cross? We all are. What makes our crosses different is their weight. But our crosses are metaphorical, referring to the sufferings we have to endure. Can you believe that there is a man who literally carries a cross—an actual cross?  He walks around, meets people, prays for them, and even travels abroad carrying a twelve-foot, wooden cross that weighs forty-one kilograms!

One night in 1982, Keith Wheeler was on a beach in Florida, watching the ocean and thinking about life. It is at that moment, he says, he understood the value of the death of Jesus on a cross. Three years later, in 1985, while he was praying at night, he felt that God spoke to him: “I want you to make a cross and begin carrying it through the streets of Tulsa on Good Friday.” He obeyed, made a cross and on Good Friday carried it along the streets of Tulsa, a town in Oklahoma, U.S.A. He believed that God wanted him to be a pilgrim of peace who carries the cross, the symbol of reconciliation, to every nation.

Now Keith Wheeler has walked with that 12-foot, wooden cross over 24,000 miles, through more than 175 countries on all seven continents! Keith has carried the cross through places such as Tibet, Iran, Iraq, China and even, Antarctica. He has carried the cross through many nations at war such as Libya, Bosnia, Rwanda, the Chechen region and Palestine. And yes, he has come to India, carrying his cross. This is what he has to say about his visit to our country: “We began carrying the cross in Kanyakumari (formerly known as Cape Comorin). It is the southernmost tip of India where the Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea come together. From there, we walked north up into the state of Kerala. So many people wanted prayer … people would just stand there staring at the cross and then burst into tears, as we would share with them about God’s love and how He wants to forgive us and have a relationship with us and give us eternal life. It was awesome! People were constantly offering me food and drink. They kept hanging garlands of cloth and of flowers around my neck. Oh, the love of the precious Indian people! These weren’t just Christians, there were also Hindus and Muslims!”

Well, can you travel to 176 countries carrying a 12-foot wooden cross without facing any problems? Keith has been arrested about forty times. Once he says he was beaten and left for dead. People who did not like what he was doing have tried to run him over. One of his legs has been broken in twenty-one places! The weight of the cross has caused welts to develop on his collar bone.

Keith Wheeler, 57, an American and ecumenical Christian, is happily married. Nicole, his wife, often accompanies him on his cross-carrying trips. They have five children. You may wonder if he has other ‘crosses’—apart from the wooden cross he carries around. His twenty-four-year old daughter, Hannah, is on dialysis, and she “has to stick a needle in her body twice a day, five days a week,” he says. His son is autistic. “I believe that God’s heart breaks for the lost and hurting of this world. I know that one day He’ll wipe away every tear from our eyes.”

Keith says, “I’m not an evangelist or missionary; I’m simply a pilgrim. I am a pilgrim follower of Jesus. I go with Jesus, the cross, and the simple message of God’s love for all people…”

Let Keith Wheeler keep reminding us of the Love that died on the cross for our sake and on the third day rose victoriously to be with us till the end of time.

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Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love), the post-synodal apostolic exhortation by Pope Francis, was presented in MAGNET in September 2016. This article looks at the ways in which it invites priests and religious to be meaningfully involved in family ministries. (The numbers in parenthesis refer to the Document.)

1. Visit Families: Family visits are formative and educative. Pastors, together with women religious, should organize family visits, and animate families in a friendly way.
“When visiting our people’s homes, we should gather all the members of the family and briefly pray for one another, placing the family in the Lord’s hands.” (227)

2. Accompany Couples after their Marriage: Priests, religious and lay animators should accompany couples, especially to face the challenges of the first years of marriage.
“It is all the more essential that couples be helped during the first years of their married life to enrich and deepen their conscious and free decision to have, hold and love one another for life.” (217)

3. Create a Family Cell at the parish: Help families facing problems. Know experts who can help, and put families in touch with them.
“Parishes, movements, schools and other Church institutions can help in a variety of ways to support families and help them grow…The parish office should be prepared to deal helpfully and sensitively with family needs and be able to make referrals, when necessary, to those who can help.” (229)

4. Catechise the Family: “We pastors have to encourage families to grow in faith. This means encouraging frequent confession, spiritual direction and occasional retreats. It also means encouraging family prayer during the week, since ‘the family that prays together stays together.’” (227)

5. Animate the Sunday Liturgy: Prepare the Sunday Liturgy in such a way as to help parents.
“Many are touched by the power of grace experienced in sacramental Reconciliation and in the Eucharist, grace that helps them face the challenges of marriage and the family.” (38)

6. Form Pastors and Religious towards Family Ministry: The formation curriculum needs to be redesigned to include family ministries, and include pastoral experience with families.
“Along with a pastoral outreach aimed specifically at families, this shows the need for a more adequate formation… of priests, deacons, men and women religious, catechists and other pastoral workers.” (202)

7. Renew the SCC/BCC in the parish: “The main contribution to the pastoral care of families is offered by the parish, which is the family of families, where small communities, ecclesial movements and associations live in harmony.” (202)

8. Promote Adult Catechesis: A proper catechesis of the parents helps them deal with the moral and spiritual formation of their children.
“The Church is called to cooperate with parents through suitable pastoral initiatives, assisting them in the fulfilment of their educational mission.” (85)

9. Promote the Language of Mercy: Pastors should be agents of God’s merciful love, not harsh judges.
“The Church’s way, from the time of the Council of Jerusalem, has always been the way of Jesus, the way of mercy and reinstatement… The way of the Church is not to condemn anyone for ever; it is to pour out the balm of God’s mercy on all those who ask for it with a sincere heart.” (296)
At times “we act as arbiters of grace rather than its facilitators. But the Church is not a tollhouse; it is the house of the Father, where there is a place for everyone, with all their problems.” (310)

10. Invite a Family: As we visit their homes, invite a family once a month to share your prayer life or community life. Invite a poor family to have a meal with your community.
“Let us not forget that the Church’s task is often like that of a field hospital.” (291). “The family has always been the nearest hospital.” (321)

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Sr Patricia, one of the general councillors of her religious order, reveals the discussions of the council and a decision confided to her by the superior to one of her friends in the institute.  That friend in turn passes it on to other friends.  By the time the authorized communication is circulated, the matter has already become public.  Consequently, some are indifferent towards the official communication; others feel hurt.  

What is the proper way for a council member to act?

The councillors mainly participate in the governance of the institute by a deliberative or consultative vote.  They are to stand by the superior on all decisions, while retaining their freedom to express their opinion, admonish the superior or even report matters to the higher authority, if required.  Other functions of the council, as well as its composition and membership, must be expressly determined in the Constitutions.  In the case of dismissal of a member, Canon Law (CIC c. 699§1) stipulates a minimum of four council members.

In order to seek consent or advice, the superior has first to convoke the council. This is the first requisite for validity, unless the constitutions say otherwise for mere advice (CIC cc. 166§1, 127§1; CCEO cc. 948§1, 934§1).  The purpose of calling a council is for the superior to be enlightened about the best possible option.  After convoking, the superior has to present the necessary facts relating to the matter to the councillors.  The council members have the right to be informed of the relevant facts needed to form a valid judgement.  Superiors are duty‑bound not to manipulate the consultation process.

Consultation

The consultation of the council takes place through a consultative vote.  After considering the advice of the council, the superior makes the decision.  For the validity of the act, consulting the council is a must, but the superior is not bound to follow the opinion even if it is unanimous. At the same time, the superior is not to act contrary to the unanimous opinion unless there is a grave reason in the judgement of the superior.   Councillors are to collaborate with the superior in expressing their mind sincerely, whether acting as part of the group or as individuals (CIC c. 127§3; CCEO c. 934).

No one can abstain from expressing their opinion, because the non-cooperation of the councillors can paralyze the governance of the institute. The advice of the council members must be personal, free, honest and truthful without any partiality or vested interest and devoid of partisanship, factionalism, anger, pride, stubbornness or blind adherence to their personal opinion.

Consent

Consent is obtained through a deliberative vote and with the absolute majority.  In the cases, where consent is required, the superior cannot act validly without adhering to the majority vote of the councillors.    While superiors are obliged to obtain consent, the law does not strictly oblige them to proceed with the action.  The superior may abstain from the action, after the deliberative vote, because of confidential information.  Unlike consultation, in respect of consent, if a council member, after prayer and discernment, feels the need to abstain from voting, they retain that freedom.  But that freedom can be exercised only when there is an honest reason.  In such instances, the superior or other members of the council cannot force that member to vote against their conscience.

Secrecy

Canon Law (CIC c. 127 §3) urges the councillors to maintain secrecy in all important matters discussed in the council; the superior must insist on this obligation.  The seriousness of the matter demands it and the superior can insist on the obligation of secrecy even by means of a decree (CIC c. 49).   The councillors should not reveal the happenings/discussions in the council deliberations (the opinion or vote given by the councillors; transfer or appointment of the members, etc.).  They should also maintain the secrecy in other important matters confided to them by the superior.  The revelation of these matters could be counterproductive and can cause great harm.

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From a Hopeless End to an Endless Hope

Jesus’ Resurrection is not only God’s greatest miracle and the centre of our faith. It is our greatest source of strength and hope. He who overcame death and transformed his frightened disciples into bold and loving witnesses of hope, can help us too to move from fear to love, from despair to serenity.

Jesus is Risen! Easter is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. It is also a celebration of our new life in Christ after forty days of Lenten prayer, fasting and penance. Easter gives us hope and the assurance of the defeat of evil and the victory of life. As we celebrate Easter, we are announcing the death of death and the birth of a new life in Christ.

The Best Easter Story

What does John’s Gospel say about Jesus’s resurrection? The story of Mary Magdalene’s encounter with the risen Jesus in John 20:11-18 seems to be the best biblical text to understand the mystery of the resurrection. Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb early on the first day of the week and finds the tomb empty. Mary stoops to look into the empty tomb (v.11), and she sees two angels in white (v. 12).  The position of the angels on either side of the place where the body of Jesus had once lain symbolically represents the ark of the covenant: the image of the mercy seat and the two golden cherubim on both ends of the mercy seat facing each other (Exodus 37:5-9). According to the biblical tradition, Yahweh spoke to Moses from between the two cherubim (Exodus 25:22).

A significant comparison can be made: Just as the Old Testament cherubim guarded the ark and the tablets symbolizing Torah or God’s words, the angels at the tomb are guarding the symbols of the action of God in rendering the living presence of Jesus, the incarnate and risen Word.  The two angels on either side of the place where Jesus’ body had lain reveal the living presence of the covenant God in the empty tomb.  At first, Mary neither recognizes the presence of God nor Jesus in the tomb, but Jesus’ calling Mary by her name enables her to identify Jesus, her master (20:16).

Calling by name in the ancient world has the power to evoke identity and deep relationship.  This is reflected in the words of Jesus that empower Mary to recognize Jesus’ living presence by the presence of the two angels.  Jesus wants Mary to go to his disciples and announce, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” (20:17c).  The relationship and intimate knowledge implied in the relationship between Jesus and his Father have now become true of the relationship between the covenant God and the disciples. The experience of encountering the risen Jesus was a real and empowering experience for Mary Magdalene, which enabled her to proclaim the Good News of the resurrection to the disciples: “I have seen the Lord” (John 20:18).

According to John’s Gospel, Mary Magdalene is the first recipient of the Easter Christophany and the first disciple to proclaim the good news of the resurrection of Jesus. She is presented as an apostle to the apostles. Her love for Jesus is manifested in her endless seeking for Jesus. It is her inner freedom and openness that gives her the courage to dialogue with the gardener and to recognize Jesus. Her commitment to the Lord is revealed in her prompt response to the command of Jesus. The encounter with the risen Jesus empowers Mary to discover her true covenant relationship with God.

A Three-Dimensional Story

The resurrection narrative has three dimensions: past, present and future; it has a moment of encounter (present experience), a moment of recognition (past event) and a moment of commission (future mission).

As past event, the resurrection is the raising of a man who had been put to death by evil, the raising of the crucified Jesus. It reminds us of both the life of Jesus, someone who is deeply concerned about the life of the people, their sorrows, hopes and struggles, and of his death as the consequence of his life and commitment to God’s mission in favour of the poor and marginalized. The resurrection can thus be seen as a powerful protest against the evil that crucified Jesus—the final death of death. It is indeed the vindication of the life of love and freedom that Jesus lived. It celebrates the birth of a new life and inaugurates the beginning of a new history.

As present experience, the resurrection invites us to recognize the on-going interventions of God through the various events of our daily life. The disciples who met the risen Lord after his resurrection were commissioned to announce the good news of salvation to the whole world. They were so frightened and ran away when Jesus was arrested, but now, after meeting the Risen Lord, they were filled with new hope and new strength, and began to publicly proclaim the Gospel without fear.

As future hope, the resurrection gives us the ultimate assurance that victory belongs to God, belongs to life, love, goodness and freedom. In the risen Christ, God is in control of our lives and destinies as the beginning and end of all things. As Easter people, we are called to live a life of hope, filled with joy and optimism about ourselves, our world and our future. This does not mean that all our problems and difficulties will disappear; it means that we don’t allow our problems to control us or wear us down; because we believe that the risen Lord has conquered everything, including death, and will give us the courage and wisdom to soar above the challenges of our daily life. Everyday life may be difficult, but not impossible for us to live joyfully. It is indeed a challenge for us to give up pessimism and become optimistic and hopeful.

Hopeless End or Endless Hope?

The new life of Easter requires the deepening of our faith and the renewal of our commitment. As St Paul says, we have to die with Christ to sin so that we can rise with him to new life (cf. Rom 6:5-11). New life in Christ signifies defeating sin, evil and death on the one hand, and living in love and hope on the other. We celebrate Easter whenever we give up hatred and resentments and become more loving and forgiving. We share in the power of the resurrection whenever we love again after the bond of relationship is broken. Every time when we try again with hope after having failed in life, we celebrate the victory of love and new life. God never abandons us. As the saying goes, human ways may lead to a hopeless end, while God’s ways always lead to an endless hope.

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The Ear of the Heart: An Actress’ Journey from Hollywood to Holy Vows. Mother Dolores Hart, OSB and Richard De Neut (Chicago: Ignatius Press, 2013)

Movie fans were stunned when Dolores Hart, a glamorous young star with ten highly successful movies to her credit, announced her decision to join a cloistered monastery. She was leaving her family, many film contracts and a fiancé with whom she was getting ready to marry. Dolores was initiated into the Church while in school. Bright, talented and beautiful, she yearned to become a movie star. While at the university, she was spotted by producer Hal Wallis. She soon became America’s sweetheart, starring with prominent actors like Stephen Boyd, Anthony Quinn and Montgomery Clift, reaching the top with Come Fly with Me (1963). She also made her mark in Broadway theatres. But she had a vague feeling from her early days that she had been destined for God.  In 1963, while shooting for her roles as Saint Clare in Francis of Assisi (1961), she had a chance meeting with Pope John XXIII, who made a deep impression on her.

Her life in the convent was by no means an easy one, but she never doubted the choice. Fifty years later, she would say, “I left the world I knew in order to re-enter it on a more profound level.  Many people don’t understand the difference between a vocation and your own idea of something. A vocation is a call—one you don’t necessarily want. The only thing I ever wanted was to be an actress. But I was called by God.” She later became the Abbess and helped to make her institute gain great prominence and attract new vocations too. She was also made member of the Academy awards Committee. A film based on her experience titled, God is the Bigger than Elvis, won an Oscar nomination. In one of her interviews she reflected that turning to religious life is not giving up one’s personality or one’s God-given gifts. “Religious life has to become an expression of the gifts of the person.” The highly readable Ear of the Heart presents the remarkable picture of a woman of admirable courage, faith and humour.

A Human Being Among, Not Above, Other Human Beings: Priests Speak from the Heart, edited by Joseph Thenasseril SSP (Mumbai: St. Paul’s, 2010). Rs 95.00.

In this simple and very readable book, twenty-four priests share their experience of the priesthood. It is not a theoretical book about the theology or spirituality of priesthood, but first person accounts of how each has lived this vocation. The writers come from different backgrounds and ministries—parish work, missionary life, formation, leadership role as bishops. The personal nature of the writing, the diversity in backgrounds and ministries, and the evident honesty of the writers make this an attractive, easy and inspiring book to read.

The writers are: Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II; Bishops Thomas Menamparambil SDB, Vincent M. Concessao, Kevin McDonald, Malcolm McMahon OP, Agnelo Gracias, Michael Fitzgerald M. Afr., John Mone and Ferdinand J. Fonseca; Fathers Kurien Kunnumpuram SJ, Praveen Fernandes, George Kaitholil SSP, Joe Anthony SJ, James Valladares, Cyril Axelrod, Paul Thelakat, Timothy Radcliffe OP, Sebastian Kizhakkeyil MST, Vincent Barboza, Michael Peters CPPS, Lesser, Larry Pereira and Joe Mannath SDB.

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