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Walk. Ride. Rodeo.

Director: Conor Allyn. * Cast: Missi Pyle, Spencer Locke, Bailey Chase, Sherri Shepherd, Corbin Bleu (2019. 99 minutes)

This is an inspiring true story of a woman’s triumph over tragedy, and a tribute to her mother’s heroism. Nineteen-year-old Amberley Snyder is all set to be a national champion in the sport that she loves—horse-riding and rodeo.  But her dreams crash when she sustains a severe spinal injury in a highway accident. Paralyzed below her waist, Amberly (called Am) has to confront the harsh truth of a life confined to the wheelchair. Her mother Tina has a hard time with the desperate, disillusioned, angry and self-pitying daughter. Am’s physiotherapist Diego patiently and firmly helps her back to physical and mental strength. Diego promises her that she will “walk, ride and rodeo” as she wishes. Am reaches out to another victim in similar conditions to bring him back from despair. Her online friend Tate Watkins would not give up on her; so too her family. She is persuaded to get back on her horse with the help of a specially designed saddle. Soon she begins to train for events. She hides a serious injury from her family which nearly costs her life. Her mother Tina once again rises to the situation. Am recovers and participates in the American Rodeo. Tate comes to help her; they fall in love. Eighteen months after her crippling accident, Amberley realizes that she can be doing the very thing that she had thought impossible.  Tina tells her: “You may have lost the use of your legs, but it’s opened up your heart.” Though short of a mere 0.6 seconds, Amberely is the star of the day. She who had asked why God made her a cripple now realizes that “everything happens for a reason, and there’s a reason this happened to me.” She hopes that one day she will be able to walk too.

 

First Man

Director: Damien Chazelle * Cast: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, Christopher Abbott, Ciarán Hinds (2018. 141 minutes)

This is the personal story behind Neil Armstrong’s much celebrated moon landing. As a test pilot with the NASA in 1961, Neil has frequent mishaps flying rocket-powered space planes. emotional stress on account of his infant daughter Karen, dying of brain tumor. Karen’s death leaves Neil and his wife Janet heart-broken. In the space race, the Soviet Union is ahead of the USA, putting the first man in space and the first walk in space. Inspired by Kennedy’s dream of moon landing, the NASA starts its new phase in space exploration. Armstrong applies, though unsure of being chosen, and is selected. The risks of space travel become tragically evident when his colleagues Charles Basset and Elliot See are killed in a supersonic jet crash. But his loss and grief do not deter him. Gemini8 is successful in joining with Agena, a target vehicle in space. However, a serious malfunction forces Armstrong to abort the mission and narrowly escape death. Armstrong is drafted into the Apollo mission. During the launch, Apollo 1 catches fire. Two astronauts are lost. Armstrong has another narrow escape from death while doing the test flight of the Lunar landing vehicle. When the Apollo 11 is underway, Neill is in severe emotional stress and distances himself from his family. Before Amstrong leaves home to prepare for the launch, Janet confronts him with the possibility of his not returning and prevails on him to talk to their sons of the seriousness of the situation and say goodbyes. He obliges.  On 16 July 1969,  Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins launch into space in Apollo 11, entering the lunar orbit on the 19^th.  On July 20, Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin successfully maneuver the Lunar module Eagle through a rough landing, with just thirty seconds of fuel remaining. The first human landing on the moon is watched on Television by 530 million people around the world. Armstrong’s first words on the moon are well known. “That’s one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Near the landing place there is a deep crater. Into it Amstrong drops his late daughter Karen’s bracelet.

 

Prof Gigy Joseph

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LET US DREAM: A Conversation between Pope Francis & Austen Ivereigh. (Simon and Schuster, 2020).

This book, which has just been published, is the result of conversations between Pope Francis and journalist Austen Ivereigh.

Given the Covid situation, they did not meet personally. Ivereigh would send questions to the Pope and the Holy Father would answer in recorded audio messages.

The book addresses the most urgent situations and problems the world is facing today, especially the crippling effects of the pandemic, which, unlike many other grievous problems, cannot be denied. Its impact is evident, and it has affected people everywhere.

Pope Francis insists on the need to dream together, find solutions, create a better world. His biographer, Ivereigh, describes the book as ‘Spiritual guidance for a world in crisis, a personal manifesto for profound social change, and a summons to each person to choose a better future.’

The Pope draws on his own experience and episodes from his life. He mentions three crises in his own life that affected him deeply.  He mentions a number of well known situations of the moment: “the protests over the death of George Floyd; why Pope Francis thinks women in the crisis have proved better leaders, and why female economists offer a blueprint for the new kind of economy the crisis shows we need; the origins of the abuse crisis in the Church.”

The book discusses “why change can only come from the margins of society – and a politics centered on fraternity and solidarity; polarization in Church and society, and how differences can be made fruitful; Why the Pope favors a Universal Basic Income, and strong curbs on a neo-liberal market; economy to enable access to work and greater equality, and ecological recovery; the need for a new kind of politics beyond managerialism and populism rooted in service of society and the common good; and the origins of the environmental crisis.”

The Pope has strong criticism of the systems that have produced today’s tragedies: a global economy centred on profit and not on the needs of people; the harm done to the environment; politicians who foment fear and hatred to increase their own power.

We need to put the poor and the planet at the centre of our concern. Ordinary people acting together can discover tremendous and previous unseen possibilities.
One reviewer finds Pope Francis “at his most personal, profound and passionate.” He believes that “with this book and with open hearts, we can change the world.”

Ikigai: The Japanese secret to a long and happy life

by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles (Random House, 2016. 208 pages)

This famous book is not just about living long. It is about living a happy and meaningful life. We need to find our passion, a reason for “jumping out of bed every morning.” Awareness, relationships, healthy food, meaning—these things matter more than hurry and rushing about.

The author was born in Spain, and lived many years in Japan. His writing is based on his understanding of Japanese people and culture. He was particularly impressed by the people of the Japanese island of Okinawa who are known for their longevity and good health.

The people of Japan believe that everybody has ikigai—a reason to jump out of bed every day.

Have you found your passion? In simple words, your passion means a meeting of what you are good at, and what you are doing. What do you think about and read about? Is what you are actually doing in line with that?

Want to know the “Ten Rules of Ikigai?” Here they are: Stay active, don’t retire. Take it slow, don’t rush. Do not overeat or fill your belly. Have good friends. Stay fit for your next birthday. Smile. Connect with nature. Give thanks. Live in the present; Don’t regret the past or fear the future. Follow your passion, your meaning, your ikigai!

 

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 Fr Joe Mannath SDB

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 1 January: Global Family Day (GFD)

In 1996, a children’s book, One Day in Peace, January 1, 2000, by Steve Diamond and Robert Alan Silverstein, was published and translated into twenty-two languages. As a result, nearly 140 nations responded to the November 1997 declaration of the UN General Assembly that the first year of the new millennium should launch an “International Decade for the Culture of Peace & Nonviolence for the Children of the World,” which would be ushered in by “One Day of Peace.” Finally, in November 1999, the UN issued a formal invitation for world participation. To date, more than thirty heads of state and many ambassadors have endorsed it. GFD is celebrated by two-thirds of the world’s population as a “Day of Peace and sharing.”

The first GFD celebration was held on January 1, 2000, between Palestinian and Israeli families at a West Bank refugee camp, with subsequent youth-led ceremonies at the South Pole in 2001, and in several major cities in 2002.

Reasons to Celebrate Global Family Day:

1. We learn the most from our family   

The family unit is like a university; the one place where we learn about leadership, guidance, get mutual support and prepare for adulthood—good and bad; a training ground for life.

2. Let us appreciate our family; it is the only one we will ever have!

We not only celebrate our natural family. We are also part of the global family, and GFD recognizes this fact. If we start with our own families, this is the first step to live in harmony as a global family

3. “We don’t choose our family; They are God’s gift to us, just as we are God’s gift to them.”(Desmond Tutu)

So, celebrate this first day of the year as a unique occasion to promote global peace and sharing, irrespective of differences of language, religion, country, race, political affiliation.

Make it a celebration with a purpose, to help unite our local, national and global families!

 

6 January: World Day of War Orphans (WDWO)

This special day remembers his suffering in war faced by civilians, especially the orphans.  It was initiated by the French organization, SOS Enfants en Detresses.

Most orphans across the globe face severe hardships as they have no one to protect them. They are most likely to suffer from hunger and disease, emotional, social and physical handicaps. According to UNICEF, there are roughly 153 million orphans worldwide.

Governments do something for them, depending on the country you are in. But, as a rule, their prospects are poor. Many end up homeless, a smaller number turn to crime, and a still smaller number commit suicide.

Here is the example of just one country. After nearly thirty years of fighting in Afghanistan, there are now over two million orphaned children, with over 600,000 sleeping on the streets. Over a million suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome and over 400,000 children have been maimed by land mines.

In Africa over thirty-four million children are orphans. either as a result of war or epidemics such as AIDS.

In recent years the proportion of civilian casualties in armed conflicts has increased dramatically. This is now estimated to be about 90%, half of whom are children. Many of these have witnessed parents and relatives being butchered in the most appalling circumstances.

An estimated twenty million children have been forced to flee their homes because of conflict or human rights violations and are living as refugees in neighbouring countries or are internally displaced within their own national borders. It is estimated that 300,000 boys and girls under the age of eighteen are involved in more than thirty conflicts worldwide. At least six million children have been permanently disabled or seriously injured. We must not let these horrendous facts become just cold statistics.

In several places, warring group force minors to become soldiers. These child soldiers are used as combatants, messengers, porters, cooks and to provide sexual services. Some are forcibly recruited or abducted, others are driven to join by poverty, abuse and discrimination.

The World Day of War Orphans is a day to remember these children. Every one of them is precious. Every one of them deserves a better future.

Sr Esme da Cunha FDCC

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FROM PANIC TO PEACE

Thank you very much for sending me the seven issues (April to October) by registered post, so that we would not miss any issue. You have taken lots and lots of trouble to do it. Thank you very much.

Each and every copy of MAGNET has always been a soul-stirring experience and an eye-opener, and, above all, one that helped me to examine my conscience. At my age—I am 84 years young!—I feel I have miles to go before I sleep. Ya, miles to go.

Yes, “Facing Death: From Panic to Peace” was exactly an article that I felt God sent me personally. A few months ago, I was hospitalized with breathlessness. It was the first time I was I was transported to a hospital in an ambulance. Till then I was never worried about death. Once you are born, you will die; that was my attitude. But, after this incident, I was terribly frightened. I started praying everyday that God should make me unconscious before I die. To struggle for breath is a horrible experience.

I shared my fears with my confessor. This holy priest prayer over me, and I felt quite relaxed. But, somewhere in my unconscious, I knew that not all was well with me.

It was soon after my monthly check up that the parcel of seven issues of MAGNET arrived. The cover page of the November issue caught my attention: ‘FACING DEATH: FROM PANIC TO PEACE!’ I sat there, and devoured everything—from Sr Nirmala’s account of facing deaths in the family, to Crystal’s calm way of facing her cancer, and experiences of various other people from different walks of life. This really helped me to walk from panic to peace. Today, I experience the calm after the storm. I thank the Lord and MAGNET for this transformation.  I wish MAGNET “excelsior!”

Professor Kunjannam Andrews, Dutch Square, Alleppey, Kerala

 

AT THE FOREFRONT

I have just received the last eight months’ copies of MAGNET a few days ago in the post—all together! I am going through them now one by one, and thank you so much for the wonderful articles on so many subjects. I really believe you are at the forefront of Catholic writing on Christian living. I share the magazine in our House of Prayer with many of the people who come here for retreats or a time of prayer.

So keep it up, and I wish very strongly that the magazine were printed in many other areas of the world.

God bless you all, and a very peaceful, blessed and safe Christmas to you all!

Fr Brian Treacy SPS, Nairobi, Kenya

 

A RARE BLESSING

MAGNET magazine’s priceless and sustained contribution to the noblest cause of rendering life meaningful, makes it a very rare blessing at practically no cost at all (Isaiah 55:1). The brilliant and magnanimous idea of sponsoring more subscribers for a pittance gave me the blessed opportunity to help many, and their response was joyful gratitude. As 2020 comes to an end, I felt compelled to share just a few highlights of this year’s priceless takeaways from MAGNET.

I have no words to express my appreciation and grateful awe—for it is the need of the hour—for the US bishops’ circular, “Create in Me a Clean Heart,” summarized well by Sr Theresa Phawa FMA (June 2020);  it has made a very complex task excellently simple for thousands of us who find it extremely touchy and difficult to provide this vital guidance.

The regular painstaking portrayal of the works of those who have served as a ‘light to the world’, is yet another noble contribution.  God bless you, Father M A Joe Antony SJ! Your piece on Fred Rogers (“Unless you become like little children” in August 2020) proved immensely helpful to me and many more through me.

Lawrence Francis Vincent (pen-name PITCHARAN), Hosur, Tamilnadu

 

RELEVANT FOR ALL AGE GROUPS

I can’t tell you how I wait for MAGNET every month. I consider it a magazine par excellence, and my favourite so far.

I read every article. The matter the different authors present is relevant for all age groups. I particularly enjoy the editorials. The articles on Covid-19 gave me much to think about. I am sure what I think and say about the magazine must be felt by many, many readers, although we may not write and tell you. Keep up the professional standards in contents, language, editing and design. This magazine is a publication that both you (writers and editors) and we, religious of India, can be justifiably proud of. Every issue speaks to the reader, touches hearts, inspires and challenges.

Sr Margaret Power PBVM, Chennai

 

BALM FOR THE SOUL

In my opinion, you have surely fulfilled the goal you set out to achieve with this magazine. Every issue of MAGNET is certainly a balm for my soul. In our too fast-paced world, it truly makes me long for things to be simpler. The language is simple; the writings are easy to digest. Another thing that makes MAGNET more gorgeous is the graphic design, the typography, images, your cartoons, layouts, grids and composition and specific arrangements of these various elements.

I am constantly amazed when I receive MAGNET. It is so evident that MAGNET is owned by and employs people of high morals and standards; this does not go unnoticed! The articles are well chosen and beautifully written. They deal with all the day-to-day aspects of human life. They contain sound and practical advice. My sincere desire is that more people would benefit from MAGNET.

Dear MAGNET team! Continue your noble mission, let all your resources be a conduit for inspired living.

Sathish Paul SDB, Theology Student, Jerusalem

 

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Mental Health

1. “In any given moment, we have two options: to step forward into growth or to step back into safety.” – Abraham Maslow
2. “Mental health is not a destination, but a process. It’s about how you drive, not where you’re going.” – Noam Shpancer
3. “If we start being honest about our pain, our anger, and our shortcomings instead of pretending they don’t exist, then, may be, we’ll leave the world a better place than we found it.” – Russell Wilson
4. “Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves” ― Henry David Thoreau
5. “Don’t let your struggle become your identity.” – Unknown
6. “A child’s mental health is just as important as their physical health and deserves the same quality of support.” – Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge
7. “It is not the bruises on the body that hurt. It is the wounds of the heart and the scars on the mind.” – Aisha Mirza
8. “If you are broken, you do not have to stay broken.” — Selena Gomez
9. “Being able to be your true self is one of the strongest components of good mental health.” —  Dr Lauren Fogel Mersy
10. “Change what you can, manage what you can’t.” ― Raymond McCauley
11. “I knew that one could fracture one’s legs and arms and recover, but I did not know that you could fracture your brain and recover from that too.” ― Vincent van Gogh
12. “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” — Fredrick Douglass

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While studying in Rome, we saw the streets and shops beautifully lit all through December. Reason: Christmas was a fantastic occasion for sales.  People splurged. Shopkeepers rejoiced.

The four small c’s dominated: cakes, cards, cribs and carols.

Fine by themselves, but not really what Christmas is all about.

We do not know Jesus’ birthday. When Rome became Christian, an old Roman feast in honour of the Unconquered Sun (dies solis invicti)—meaning that even in the dark and cold of winter, the sun still shone, unconquered—was taken as Jesus’ birthday. The Gospels were not concerned about dates and places, but about Jesus’ message and the reality of His presence with us. People experienced Him as alive—as so many, of different religious persuasions do, even today.

Some of us like to boast of where we come from—and even pass disparaging comments about those from other places or backgrounds. As for Jesus, he not only did not belong to the ruling political or religious top brass; he had no famous hometown. He came from an insignificant, tiny village—with some twelve to twenty families—which most Palestinians did not even know. Those who did know, looked down on it. (Remember Nathanael’s snobbish retort to Philip: “What good can come from Nazareth?”) We know almost nothing about Jesus’ childhood, adolescence or youth.  When he started preaching, his own neighbours took offense at his claims and wanted to kill him. It was like saying: “What the hell does he think he is? We know his family. Nice people, no doubt, but just working class.”

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God is not stupid. In his unlimited, unfathomable wisdom, He chose to become one of us. He came in the guise of a helpless baby born to a young woman who had no fan clubs or slaves. He chose—how very strange!—the path of powerlessness. The path of political and financial insignificance. Something that Paul and Francis of Assisi and Damien and Don Bosco and Mother Teresa would understand and embrace—but which “smart” politicians and businessmen (both in the world, and, sadly, in religious circles) abhor like the plague.

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This year’s Christmas is a great chance to celebrate really who Jesus is, and what he came for.  A Christmas without glitter A Christmas noted for compassion and care.

This month’s MAGNET looks at people who show us how—people who are not trying to be in the news, but who are good news for others who do not seem to matter.

THREE SUGGESTIONS:

1. Advent: Ask ourselves (as individuals and as families or communities): How far do I really believe in Jesus and want to live as He lived and taught? How far have I let Him come into my decisions and choices? Where do I keep him out?
2. Greetings: Choose cards with the Holy Family, not reindeer and jingle bells! Make a list of the most significant persons in your life. Don’t’ simply forward a ready-make greeting, or send bulk emails! Take time to write (or audio-record or video-record) a loving, personal message to them. Can’t we take three minutes for each of our dear ones at least once a year?
3. Christmas: What can I do to bring God’s compassionate closeness to those most forgotten? Food, school fees, blankets and medicines which the poor desperately need should certainly get priority over new dresses and special meals and fancy gifts for me and my family.

If our faith in Jesus makes no difference to our priorities and choices, especially in the way we treat people—with a preferential care for the weakest—it is only a meaningless decoration.

May we not be simply singers of Christmas carols, but sincere women and men who take Jesus seriously! Have a great, Christ-like Christmas!

Fr Joe Mannath SDB

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Here are people around us—ordinary heroes—who show us what Christmas is all about. They have lit up many lives. May be, they can light up ours, too.

New Clothes or Charity?

Elsa—name changed—came for the wedding wearing an ordinary sari. Nothing fancy or new. Her relatives commented on this, since most were dressed in expensive clothes. They did not know the reason behind Elsa’s simple way of dressing.

She had made a choice—to give to charity the money she would have spent on a new dress. In fact, last month, she sent Rs 10,000 to a religious order, which was then able to pay that as monthly salary to a teacher.

What makes you happier—an expensive new dress or helping a needy person? What do you tend to do?

“Capuchin Mess”

Have you seen the YouTube video on Capuchin Mess, Kochi? If not, please have a look. The video is made by The Hindu newspaper. As you enter this small eatery, the first thing that strikes you is an old red Post Box.

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Within Church circles, there is a lot of confusion about the nature and function of a Society and Trust. There is also much confusion regarding the status and relationship between the Diocese or Congregation with a Society or Trust.

In this article, I shall deal with three issues: (1) What is a Society?  (2) What is a Trust? and (3) what is the relationship between Diocese or Congregation and the Society and Trust?

1. SOCIETY

A society is basically an ASSOCIATION of persons, who have come together with an intention of being associated with each other, in order to carry out some common objectives. When such an association is registered as a Society under the specific laws of the country, it attains the status of being called a Registered Society. The main characteristic of a society, then, is being an association of persons.

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The insights of this professional layman, who resigned early from his legal firm to do ministry full time together with his wife, may help us to understand the dignity and holiness of EVERY vocation. In India, don’t we use the word “vocation” to refer only or mostly to priesthood and religious life, and “vocation promotion” as the attempt to get more candidates to our religious order or diocese?—Editor

Each time I sit down to write this column, I am aware of the honour and privilege I am being given to share a little of my life with a group of people whom I admire and respect so deeply. You all have chosen to give your lives in service to the Lord and His people and for that I feel a strong sense of gratitude. The deeper I have gone in my faith journey, the more I have come to appreciate those who have shaped me and made it possible for me to find my own way back to the Catholic faith.  I have come to realize that there is little chance that I would be a practicing Catholic today if it wasn’t for the powerful example of the great priests and religious sisters whose lives of dedicated service made an everlasting impression on me. Likewise, impressions of faithfulness provided by my own parents were strong enough to help me to find my way back to faith after years of being seduced by the secular world

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“Covid -19 has really shaken me up,” Elizabeth, a nurse at a COVID-care hospital, reported. “I have been disturbed by so much that I have witnessed—and experienced. I have lost dear ones and colleagues to death. I have experienced firsthand the callousness and cruelty with which especially the elderly sick were treated, simply left to die. What to do? We were just helpless in the face of this deadly virus and the lack of resources to handle it. And the way the dead were disposed of, deprived of any dignity, their dear ones not able pay their last respect, not even able to see them. I have screamed at God in anger and desperation…Why do such things happen?”

Elizabeth is not alone. So many of us, from different walks of life and in different ways, have seen our world come crashing down. Our illusions of safety and security were shattered. COVID-19 has caused massive disruptions and distress in our lives. It is easy to give in to despondency and despair.

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