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The Practicing Mind:  Developing Focus and Discipline in Your Life (2012)

Thomas M. Sterner

In this book Thomas M. Sterner argues that self-discipline is the key to success and happiness. He emphasizes that success comes from awareness, patience, disciplined practice, and a willingness to experiment. The author explains that our dissatisfaction often arises from unrealistic expectations and a focus on outcomes rather than the process. Comparing ourselves to others can also lead to frustration. The solution is to cultivate awareness and patience in all areas of life, resulting in greater fulfillment.

Sterner points out that humans often strive for unattainable ideals, influenced by media and marketing that depict perfect, wealthy lives. This leads to high expectations and feelings of inadequacy. Advertisements convince us that our lives are lacking without certain products, fueling this unrealistic pursuit.

Some nuggets of practical wisdom given in the book are:

1. Simplify tasks and take your time to make your goals achievable; goals are guides, not destinations. 2. When your productivity wanes, use the “Do, Observe, Correct” technique. 3. Successful entrepreneurship involves overcoming limiting beliefs, not focusing on money. 4. Zen view: when we advance in our skill level it is harder to concentrate. 5. A habit is the natural way we do something. 6. We never reach a point of feeling “done” in our performance. 7. It’s important to find time to relax. 8. Remain calm, live in the present, and practice with full awareness. 9. Self-control is true power. 10. Developing patience and discipline requires both qualities. 11. Focusing on the process brings the best results. 12. Practice involves deliberate repetition with a goal; learning does not. 13. Avoid self-judgment to conserve energy. 14. Focusing on the process brings inner peace, mastery, and confidence. 15. What we remember is timeless, experienced repeatedly.

Any Friend of God is a Friend of Mine (1996)

Patrick Madrid

In “Any Friend of God is a Friend of Mine,” Patrick Madrid offers a clear, accessible addition to Catholic apologetics. The book addresses Protestant objections to Catholic beliefs about the communion of saints, intercessory prayers, and veneration of saints, which stem from sola scriptura arguments popular since the Reformation. Madrid clarifies the Catholic position, making the book useful for Catholics facing anti-Catholic rhetoric. Madrid addresses criticisms of the “communion of saints” as unbiblical or even necromancy. He argues that Christians, united through Christ, are commanded to love and pray for one another, which justifies asking saints in heaven for their intercession. He critiques the Protestant “Me and Jesus” approach, emphasizing the enduring bond among all Christians. Drawing from the Bible and Church traditions, Madrid explains the Catholic stance through four key ideas.

1. The Church is Christ’s Body: Paul uses the image of the body (Romans) to describe Christian unity, emphasized throughout the New Testament by Christ.
2. Christ has one Body: This includes both the living on earth and those in heaven.
3. Death does not separate Christians: Christ’s victory over death maintains the bond of Christian unity, uniting Christians on earth and in heaven.
4. Christians must love and serve each other: Bound by Christ’s law of charity, this love includes intercessory prayer. The Bible does not restrict this commandment to earth, and there is biblical evidence of saints interceding for us, as shown in Revelation and the Gospels. The “One Mediator” argument is refuted by noting that if asking Christians in heaven to pray for us conflicts with Christ’s mediatorship, so would asking Christians on earth.

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There is a wise sloka in Sanskrit about how we learn. Let me give a rough translation: “Our learning is partly from our teacher, partly from our own effort, partly from our companions and partly from the passage of time.” True, isn’t it?

How educated are you?

The answer is not found in your certificates or the names of the institutions where you studied. A much better check on your level of education is how you handle life—responsibilities, relationships, challenges, let-downs.

What is the use of having a Master’s degree or a Ph. D. if I cannot relate lovingly, build up people, handle the responsibilities entrusted to me and face the ups and downs of life with confidence and serenity?

Once a colleague and friend of mine at Madras University, who used to take students for exposure camps as part of the anthropology programme, told me what he learnt from so-called illiterate people. In our villages, there are many people who know the plants and herbs around and their medical properties. They can treat various diseases by using leaves and roots and fruits. And yet, officially, they are categorized as “illiterate.” They possess much more useful knowledge than our graduates and post-graduates.

Fr Joe Mannath SDB

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1. AI: AN EVOLVING GENIUS?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the field of computer science that focuses on creating smart machines that can learn, think, and solve problems like humans do. It’s not about creating emotional robots just yet, but about helping machines perform tasks requiring human intelligence. One key method in AI is machine learning, where systems are trained with large amounts of data to find patterns and make predictions. For instance, an AI system examining millions of images can learn to recognize objects and faces effectively.

AI has a broad range of uses and is constantly expanding. We encounter it daily, from personalized streaming recommendations to email spam filters. In healthcare, AI aids in analysing medical scans and drug discovery. Self-driving cars use AI for safer and more efficient travel. As AI evolves, it has the potential to reshape our world in ways we are only beginning to imagine, from personal assistants managing tasks to major scientific discoveries driven by data analysis. This is just the start of the AI adventure, and it’s an intriguing journey to watch. This article aims to understand what AI is and explain how AI can support peace in our world and its ethical concerns. By considering these points, we can better understand Pope Francis’s call – his message for the 57th World Day of Peace – for the creation and use of responsible AI that upholds human dignity and promotes global peace.

Talking about AI is Crucial

AI plays a crucial role in our world, making it important to understand and discuss it. (i) Rapid evolution: AI is progressing quickly. Conversations help us stay current on its abilities and limits, maximizing its potential. (ii) Shaping the Present: AI influences everyday life, from social media feeds to email spam filters. It affects fields like healthcare, transport, entertainment, and education. Open discussions help us understand its impact and make informed choices. (iii) Preparing for the Future: AI’s rapid advance could lead to major changes like self-driving cars and AI-assisted surgeries. Talking about AI today helps us prepare for these developments and plan effectively.

Fr Arnald Mahesh SDB

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It was the end of his term as superior of the community for Fr. Nirmal.  As expected, the provincial gave him a transfer.  But Fr. Nirmal was not ready to accept it.  He felt that if he were to leave, the various projects he had initiated in the place for the development of the poor would be gradually neglected.  Besides, over the years he had established good contact with several donors who he feared might stop or at least reduce their help.  However, the provincial felt that he had to stand by the rules of the Congregation and insisted on the transfer.  Eventually, after a few rounds of dialogue, taking into consideration the concerns of Fr. Tom the provincial offered to appoint a dynamic priest qualified in social work to replace him.  And Fr. Tom, respecting the motives of the provincial and true to his own religious commitment accepted the transfer.

            People follow different styles in dealing with conflicts.  These styles affect the outcome of conflicts.  Being aware of them can be a help provided there is a willingness on our part to resolve/transform a conflict.  Kenneth Wayne Thomas and Ralph H. Kilmann have identified five different styles people use when faced with a conflict.  A conflict style is “a patterned response” that people use or the usual way in which people behave in a conflict situation.  These five styles are based on the degree of assertiveness or cooperativeness manifested by a person.  Assertiveness refers to efforts to satisfy one’s own concerns while cooperativeness denotes attempts to meet the concerns of others.   The five conflict styles are i) avoidance, ii) competition, iii) accommodation, iv) compromise, and v) collaboration.   We shall briefly describe each of these styles and their advantages and disadvantages.

Fr Jose Kuttianimattathil, sdb

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In our Wholeness Paradigm for Religious Life, we mentioned that each of the six dimensions have their highest manifestation, that is, the most important quality that a person must practice to show that he or she is adept at that dimension. Consequently, we saw that the highest manifestation of the physical dimension is Consistency and the same for cognitive dimension is Perspective Taking. In our previous issues we had hinted that holistic religious are those who practice consistency in their personal life and perspective taking in their intellectual interactions.

Here in this issue, I present before you the highest manifestation and the most significant quality of the emotional dimension, which is Compassion. This quality is the pinnacle of all human emotions. If we were to form a pyramid with all emotions placed one top of the other, we can be sure that compassion would be at the summit. All great religious leaders and national heroes have reiterated the significance of this marvellous human quality. Dalai Lama would often affirm, “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.”  Compassion is the hallmark of all great people and the defining quality of those who profess to live for others. Lao Tzu remarked, “I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” Mother Teresa would use such effusive words as this; The fruit of love is service, which is compassion in action.” Dr. Abdul Kalam considered it to be the hallmark of all great men and women, when he said, “Great teachers emanate out of knowledge, passion and compassion.” In fact, we might add that the very purpose of human living is to show compassion to those in need.

Fr. Dr. Joseph Jeyaraj, sdb

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This article is based on the address presented by me to over six hundred Major Superiors during the CRI National Assembly held in Bangalore from 14th to 17th May 2024.

Let us start by unpacking what elusive ‘hope’ really means. When psychologists and researchers delved into the science of hope, they discovered that some aspects of hope were surprisingly different from what we initially thought.

MYTH 1: Hope is wishful thinking that something will turn out well.

Truth: Hope is a verb with its sleeves rolled up. HOPE implies a willingness to HOP.

The American psychologist Charles Snyder, renowned for his extensive study on hope, emphasized that hope isn’t just the belief in a brighter future but, more importantly, that we have the ability to make it happen. Hope is not tied to a good outcome or to the future, nor is it optimism about things outside of our control.

Apartheid in South Africa wasn’t dismantled by force or by merely replacing politicians but by a tiny action of hope.

Amid racial injustice, people of faith prayed together and lit candles in their windows as a sign of hope against apartheid. The government saw this as subversive, criminalizing it. In Soweto, a joke emerged: “Our government fears lit candles!” Ultimately, hope, prayer, and candles morally shamed and defeated apartheid.

Something similar was done across our country on the 3^rd of last month for the conflict-troubled people of Manipur by numerous Church groups who organised candlelight rosaries. In the picture, you can see how the CRI unit in Shillong collaboratively did a similar action of hope.

MYTH 2: Hope thrives in pure positivity.

Truth:  Hope, uniquely among pleasant emotions, requires negativity or uncertainty.

Joan Chittister in her book Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope, begins the book with a confession. Her original plan was to write a book about hope. But that didn’t work.

Everywhere she looked, hope existed but only as some kind of green shoot amid struggles. The more she struggled with the idea of hope, the more she began to realize that it is almost impossible to write a real book about hope without looking at the nature of struggle. She anchors her reflections on the Genesis story of the wrestling between Jacob and the angel of God. So much of hope is wrestling with God.

Ironically during our visit to Manipur last year, what moved me and us was to see the strong resilience and hope in relief camps where the living conditions were the bleakest. Where the circumstances were most dire, the stench was the strongest, hope burned brightest.

Br. Sunil Britto CFC

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The Robe (1953): 135mts

Directed by    Henry Koster

Cast: Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Michael Rennie, Jay Robinson, Dean Jagger, Torin Thatcher Richard Boone.

Adapted from Lloyd C. Douglas’s 1942 novel, this 1950s Hollywood Bible epic tells the faith affirming story of Roman centurion Marcellus Gallio, who crucified Jesus and gradually converts to Christianity, ultimately becoming one of the early martyrs along with his lover, Diana. Marcellus, a disenchanted and drunken Roman tribune, recaptures an escaped Greek slave named Demetrius at an auction. In Rome, Demetrius reunites with his childhood sweetheart, Diana, now ward of Emperor Tiberius and betrothed to the notorious Caligula, Marcellus’s rival. Marcellus bids for Demetrius, saving him from Caligula, earning Demetrius’s loyalty. Vengeful Caligula transfers Marcellus to Jerusalem. Before departing, Marcellus promises marriage to Diana, who pledges to intercede with Tiberius. In Jerusalem, as Jesus is hailed as the Messiah and plotted against by his enemies, Demetrius becomes a devoted follower and tries to save Jesus. Despite his efforts, Jesus is condemned, and Marcellus leads the soldiers who crucify him.

Marcellus wins Jesus’s seamless garment after the crucifixion but treats it trivially, using it during a thunderstorm and experiencing severe pain. Demetrius grabs the robe, condemns Marcellus and Rome, and escapes. Haunted by nightmares and guilt, Marcellus believes the robe is cursed. Emperor Tiberius’s soothsayer confirms this, and Tiberius commissions Marcellus to destroy the robe and find Jesus’s followers, promising Diana’s hand in marriage upon completion. In Cana, Marcellus encounters Christians proclaiming the Resurrection. He meets Demetrius, experiences miraculous healing from the robe, and is converted. Marcellus joins the apostle Peter and travels to Rome under Caligula. Demetrius is captured, but Marcellus, with Diana’s help, rescues him. While fleeing, they are captured, and Marcellus surrenders to save Demetrius. Before Caligula, they refuse to renounce Jesus. Before their execution, Diana entrusts the robe to Marcipor, a secret Christian, to deliver to Peter.

Jeremiah (1998): 90 mts

Director: Harry Winer

Cast:  Patrick Dempsey, Oliver Reed, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Hitcham Ibrahimi, Leonor Varela, Mohamed Majd, Vincent Regan.

This film dramatizes the life of Jeremiah, one of the most important Old Testament prophets, who lived during ancient Israel’s most crisis-ridden times. His prophetic life spans from King Josiah’s rule to the Babylonian destruction of Solomon’s Temple and Israel’s enslavement. Jeremiah, the son of Temple priest Hilkiah, is called to prophesy while young. He preaches repentance and warns Israel against idol worship, resulting in brutal persecution, but his prophecies come true. As a boy, Jeremiah visits Jerusalem, sees the sanctuary with the Ark of the Covenant, and has a vision in which an angel calls him to be God’s prophet. Though he feels that he is very young, God assures him of his calling. Jeremiah falls in love with Judith and promises to marry her. During the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar’s quest to conquer Jerusalem, Jeremiah performs his first priestly duties. Despite Israel’s compromise with Nebuchadnezzar and idol worship, Jeremiah’s visions demand repentance to avoid Babylonian enslavement. Ignoring his warnings, the king seeks an alliance with Egypt. Jeremiah prophesies invasion and promises divine protection if the people repent, but faces persecution from the king’s advisors and false prophets. God commands Jeremiah to remain single and sends Ezra as his scribe. Nebuchadnezzar makes Zedekiah king, who listens to but wavers on Jeremiah’s advice. Safan, the king’s adviser, plots against Jeremiah, resulting in his torture and imprisonment. Judith is murdered, and her family enslaved. Nebuchadnezzar conquers Judah and makes Zedekiah his vassal. After his release, Jeremiah continues his mission, predicting Jerusalem’s fall, which comes true. He also speaks of Israel’s restoration and the future arrival of God’s Kingdom, including other nations.

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Can you believe that her catechism children made a satanic sacrifice of an elderly nun? It did not occur in ancient times, but during our days.

Maria Laura was born as Teresina Elsa Mainetti on August 20, 1939, in the small town of Villatico, Lecco, North Italy. She was the tenth  child of Stefno Mainetti and Marcellina Gusmeroli. Her mother died twelve days after her birth. So her father married another woman to care for his children.

After her schooling in the Instituto Magistrale of the Sisters of the Cross in Parma, the 18 years old Mainetti joined their Religious Congregation. On her religious profession day on August 15, 1959, she took the name Maria Laura. She always remembered a priest  who advised her when she joined, “You must do something wonderful for others.”

When she pronounced her final  vows on August 24, 1964, she wrote in her diary, “Here I am… The joy of my service every instant in conformity with Your Divine Will. Daughter of the Cross means that the Cross is my mother. Not the wooden cross that you see hanging on the wall. But I am the bride, daughter, and sister of Jesus.”

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A year ago, when I arrived in Los Angeles, I naively believed that it was going to be a smooth transition from the City of Joy to the City of Angeles. However, I quickly discovered that my assumptions were mistaken. Not only did I still miss deeply Kolkata, but I also found myself unable to return back to the jail, where I once served. A new catholic chaplain, less sympathetic and supportive than his predecessor, was not very welcoming to take me back on his new team of chaplains. Feeling powerless, helpless and despondent, I struggled to find a clear direction forward. I tried other possibilities but none of them seemed to have worked out.

One of these options was to help distribute holy communion in a hospital. After a series of interviews, medical tests, police background checks and training, I faced an unexpected obstacle: I had never been vaccinated against measles as a child, and so I was asked to pay 200 US dollars for the vaccine (Rs/- 14,000).  This situation left me questioning my commitment as I realized that I would have willingly and gladly paid the same amount to return to prison rather than serve in a hospital.

Amidst this discouragement, however, I held to the belief that there must be a greater purpose, trusting in God’s plan for my journey.

Br Carmel Duca MC

A court in Delhi recently sentenced a 50-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping his 10-year-old daughter soon after her mother’s death. The court of Special judge (POCSO), her Ladyship Ms. Anu Aggrawal, said, “sexual use and exploitation of children is the violation of human, social and legal rights of the child and if the predator is the own family member of the child, more particularly, the biological father of the child, then it’s nothing less than a betrayal of trust and impairment of the social values.” The judgment dated 27th April 2024, further said “such offences leave a long lasting emotional and psychological impact. It leaves an indelible scar on the mental health of the child, which is invisible and cannot be measured by any yardstick. This invisible scar haunts the child throughout his/her life….”

Child sexual abuse is a worldwide phenomenon

Child sexual abuse is a global issue, and India is no exception. Census data from 2011 shows India has 472 million children under eighteen, yet the true extent of abuse is often underestimated due to under-reporting. In India, child sexual abuse has reached epidemic levels, with a 2017 survey by World Vision India revealing that one in every two children is a victim. Perpetrators are often known to the victim, leading to reluctance in seeking help. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the issue, with a rise in cybercrime. Awareness of the POCSO Act remains low, as evidenced by the 53,874 cases registered in 2021.

Sr. Adv. Mary Scaria SCJM

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