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It all happened on a single day.

At Mass on 9 September, I recalled the life of the saint whose feast day it was.

Servant of Slaves!

Born in a prosperous farming family in the Catalan region of Spain in 1580, Peter Claver was a bright and pious student at the University of Barcelona. After studies, he became a Jesuit at the age of twenty. He was sent to study philosophy at Montesione College, in Palma in Mallorca (Majorca). Inspired by the Jesuit Brother who was the door keeper of the college for forty-six years and later became a saint, St Alphonsus Rodriguez, Claver volunteered to work in the Spanish colony of Granada (Colombia) in South America and travelled to the port city of Cartagena in 1610.

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Fr M A Joe Antony SJ

RELIGIOUS LIFE—A “MESSY” JOURNEY

“I am disillusioned,” Sister Rupa told me. “What happened?” I asked. “I am upset with what I see happening in religious life. It is so different from what I expected it to be. I had thought it would be a place where we would really love one another, help one another toward holiness and do good together. But what I see is pettiness, backbiting, jealousies and infantile behaviour. I’ve had enough of this. I’ve been thinking of giving up this life.”

Sr Rupa’s lament reminded me of an article in the Review of Religious (1994, May-June, 440-451) by Presentation of Mary Sister Susan Beaudry and Marist Father Edwin Keel entitled “Journeying to God Together.”

In the context of Sr Rupa’s lament I would like to reflect on the first part of Beaudry and Keel’s definition – Journey.

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FR JOSE PARAPPULLY SDB

I have a problem! My mind wanders . . . if ever I could harness it, rein it in, and keep it still. But I just cannot. Today, during our daily Holy Communion service, I remembered with a certain nostalgia the long Sundays in the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles, USA, conducting the Communion services for the inmates. There was only one priest (and he only spoke English) for the 5,000 or so inmates. He would come for one Sunday Mass for a group of about eighty inmates. The rest of the inmates? We had to reach them through Communion services.

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Brother Carmel Duca MC

The world has gone ‘viral.’ That’s the hot topic all over today.

Well, viruses are of many types. Some attack people—our throat and lungs. Others attack our computers and gadgets. And some others attack politics, institutions, societies and nations.

So, let us have a look at the viruses that seem to threaten Religious Life as it is lived today. Remember, a virus is almost invisible. But when it catches you, its effects can be fatal!

Preoccupation with Numbers: We keep star statistics—how many in formation, how many professed members, how many retiring, how many have already died this year?

What is the underlying fear? We are worried about our personnel, who are seen as ‘hands.’ How many able-bodied persons do we have in order to keep our activities and our institutions going? It is the “Atlas Complex”: We feel we are holding and are responsible for the whole world!

The actual preoccupation is not because fewer persons seem to be attracted to Religious Life, but that, at this rate, we may have to let go of some of our ‘works.’

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Sr Esme da Cunha FDCC

In the well-known book, Alice in Wonderland, there is a scene where Alice comes to a fork in the road and does not know which path to take.  Then she sees the Cheshire Cat and asks the Cat which path she should take.  The Cat asks her where she wants to go.  Alice says that she does not care where she went. To this, the Cat replies, “Then it doesn’t matter much which way you go.”  If you do not have a vision, if you do not know where you want to reach, your life becomes aimless and your energies become dispersed.

Superiors should be people of vision.  Otherwise they will not be able to lead.  They should be clear about the vision of the congregation to which they belong, the vision of the institution which they are directing and their own personal vision.

Vision: Meaning and Three Levels

Vision refers to the ideal we want to reach in the future.  It is seeing with the mind’s eye what we want to realize in the future.  Vision embodies our hopes, dreams and ideals.  It gives us glimpses of what is possible.   It inspires and draws us.

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Fr Jose Kuttianimattathil SDB

The seed of religious vocation was sown in me many years ago when I was a little girl. The Loreto Sisters in school never ceased to fill me with wonder and awe. I wished to become like them some day. It took me many years to take the plunge to join religious life. I was already an independent working woman when I was reminded of my call. Finally, in 2009, I took the leap of faith to join Loreto.

I came as a late vocation to the congregation thinking I knew the congregation well, with a deep desire and hope to live a radical life. Over the last ten years life taught me many lessons. It changed my mindset and perceptions, and showed me the vulnerable and human side of religious life. My fancy ideas slowly melted away and I was faced with the ordinary. Many times, I have asked myself why I am still here.

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Sr Greta Robert IBVM

You have been in different forms of ministry—teaching, formation, looking after HIV-affected persons, and now leadership as provincial. What has been your main learning from each of these ministries? What have you taken away as the best lesson from each?

Learning depended much on which phase of life I was in. While in teaching ministry (more in administration than teaching) I was much younger and so in the initial years I had a lot of fear and anxiety. I was not sure of my own leadership qualities. One thing that helped me:

I often reminded myself that I had much less experience compared to most of the senior teachers and so I was ready to observe, ask, discuss and learn. This awareness made me humble and respectful towards the others too.

In my close contact with the teachers and parents I was edified by the dedication and commitment of the staff and the co-workers. It was again a great learning experience for me in dealing with the students, especially those with behavioural problems……

 I was fortunate to work in a happy and peaceful atmosphere where everyone used to do his/her part for the common mission. While meeting the parents, even to settle issues, I realised that to me each student is one among many, but to the parent his/her child is the only one. I made sure that at the end of every encounter every parent feels that I am equally interested in his/her child as him/her.  With a little bit of encouragement and trust we can bring out the best in each child. I learnt to listen to what they were saying rather than passing judgements. I learnt to solve problems amicably, to separate person” from the issue …… something which I practise even today.

In social ministry–working with the tribal women and caring for HIV- infected women—was a totally different experience. I had to feel with the daily suffering and pain of the women. I worked for a project called “Save A Family Plan” in North Maharashtra. Some families from Canada have adopted the poor families from India to support them financially.  I had to keep in touch with the benefactors (some of them were themselves inmates in institutions) on behalf of the women. I could feel the genuine kindness and concern of those benefactors though they had never met the Indian families. Women infected by HIV have also inspired me a lot. Most of them are abandoned by their families. It is not easy for them to see any purpose in living; inspite of all the pain and sorrow, their resilience is remarkable.

In social ministry, one has to be contented with what one does, since we don’t see the fruit of our labour most of the time. I learnt to appreciate the little ways in which they would express their happiness and gratitude.  There is a lot of fulfilment in supporting the marginalised people to live a more dignified life in society.  They do not have too many things to take care of, to worry about or to impress others. There is a unique satisfaction that we experience when we don’t receive adulations or admiration for our hard work. No one may remember your birthday and come with a bouquet or a gift to greet you.  Seeing their joy is our joy.

During my brief experience (two years) of accompanying the junior sisters, I began to be more conscious of my own inner journey. The more I was aware of myself, the more genuinely I could guide them. The benefits of my reading came to be more useful during this time. This is the time I began to seriously introspect my own life and experienced the deep inner joy, which doesn’t depend on anything from the outside. Only if we have faith in ourselves will we have faith in others and God. Helping someone to find himself/herself is itself a reward.

Loneliness is a big issue, especially among the young religious. As relationships become shallow or easily broken, most of them say, ‘I have nobody…’ First of all, they need to feel at home with themselves, only then will they be able to build up genuine relationships.

When we recruit young people to religious life, we promise or claim that this choice will help them to become more Christ-like, and bring God’s love to people. Do you see that happening in the majority of religious?

Not much of this seems to be happening. They do not often see what they are promised or what they aspired for. Role models are hard to find in religious life these days. We seem to have mixed up religiosity with spirituality. We keep up the religious practices – being present in the chapel whenever the bell rings, keeping up the community rules and regulations, performing our duties ‘well,’  but sadly our spirituality remains stagnant. Year after year we see no change in certain persons – no grace, no happiness, no enthusiasm, no creativity… Most of the religious seem to go about as though life itself is a mistake.

However, I have also seen some genuine persons who have grown gracefully old and are doing exemplary service for the society. They hardly think of themselves and are magnanimous in their self-giving.

Though the situation is at times discouraging, it is not an excuse for the young to excuse themselves from examining their lives; to ask oneself – “what am I here for?”

In your own case, what has helped you most in becoming what God wants you to become?

I do not know whether I am becoming what God wants me to become. But I feel more and more comfortable with this ‘cloud of unknowing.’ As I grow older, I realise that, if I want to be happy, I need to learn to live with such uncertainties. The present pandemic, the subsequent lockdowns and the suffering, fear and anxieties that followed—these are best evidences for that. We need to be prepared for surprises—especially the unpleasant ones.

In my childhood I used to spend a lot of time in nature. Change of seasons and the way it would transform everything in nature would fill me with joy.  I would experience God in nature—in the sunset, sun rise… The beauty of hills and mountains would fascinate me. I experience the glory of God in all this.

I like every season. (This is probably why I always like change. I do not get attached to any place or work.) I don’t have regrets about the ‘good old days’ because there is always something to be joyful about in the present. We have the ability to create that joyful moment again.

I never feel lonely because I enjoy being alone as much as I enjoy someone’s company. When I am alone, I have books as my companions.

You are a newly appointed provincial. What do you see as the main task of religious leadership today?

Taking up a leadership to me is like running a relay race. Once the baton is passed on to you, you should be focused on what you are supposed to do. No matter how it was handed over to you, once it is in your hands you have to ‘run the race,’ knowing that one day you too will have to give it further. If our focus is diverted and we go off the ‘track,’ we are not following our Master.

I see SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP as the need of the hour in religious communities. Listening to the members and accompanying them in their inner journey is the main task of those in authority.  But most of the religious leaders either get caught up in administration or are not interested in guiding others. Administration these days takes up the most important place in leadership.

In my case I took charge along with my team just as the pandemic was spreading all over the world. Many phases of lockdowns followed. It has been a ‘desert experience’ for me to prepare myself to face the many challenges that will follow. We need to move on; everything around us is constantly changing.

 Is there any person or experience that has touched you deeply and made a significant difference to your life?

When I was in high school, I had a friend who was very close to me. One day we had an argument, after which we stopped talking to each other. Later she left the school and went to stay with her eldest brother who was settled far away. She continued her studies there. I didn’t meet her for years.

 Then, a few years back, when I was at home for my holidays, she happened to be travelling by bus, and passed my house. Realizing that I was home, she got my number, called me and we met—after thirty-seven years! That meeting and reunion was so thrilling. Reconciliation has always given me tremendous joy. I believe that there is always a way to make things good again. I learnt to unload the burden of anger, resentment and regrets and to move on in life.

I am convinced that if we forgive an offense—even a serious one—the wrongdoer repents and changes his/her way. I say this from my many experiences. I was able to do this only when I grew in awareness of my own shortcomings, vulnerability and ego.

At home, I used to spend a lot of time alone in nature. I would study under the rubber trees. During those days I developed an intimate friendship with God. I would talk to Him as though He were right in front of me and would express my deepest feelings to Him. I experienced a deep peace—I am not able to put it into words—during those moments. I was fascinated by something larger than myself. It was also during those days that I made the decision to join religious life.

My only desire at that time was to serve the poorest of the poor.

However, I had my own ups and downs in religious life—doubts, feelings of meaninglessness, …

There was a phase in my life where I felt that I was not honest with myself when I was trying to fill my emptiness with the work I was doing. But time to time I would go back to my earlier experiences and find consolation. My inner voice would always encourage me to look forward with hope and to move on.

What does religious life offer to a woman of today who wants to lead a meaningful life and make a difference?

Those who join religious life today are mostly coming from nuclear families. They are more exposed to the world outside than the older religious. We need to update our formation programs in order to accommodate their experiences and talents.

 Much depends on the leadership. Role models today are hard to find. So, no matter how much we try to convince anyone, what they see and experience is more real to them than what they hear during the recruitment.

In the initial years, most religious have the desire to live a deeper spiritual life, to be more Christ-like. Later, they are pulled into the ‘whirlpool’ of consumerism, individualism, personal ambitions, etc. What is needed is spiritual accompaniment.

Who or what is God to you? How do you speak about God to today’s people, especially the young?

It is difficult to say who God is. The more I try to describe God, the more inadequate my answer will be. For me, God is life itself. I cannot limit God to an image or a dogma. God is also not the monopoly of a religious group either.

We see God as we are. In many cases our image of God does not mature with the age. For example, a person who had a strict father will experience God as a task master; someone who was pampered by the father/mother will see God as a miracle worker. When he/she doesn’t get what he/she asked for, God doesn’t exist or God is angry.

I like to explain the spiritual growth or seeking God within, with an example. To me it’s like digging a well. Once we identify the location, we need only to remove the grit that is covering the spring of water. This spring of water is the indwelling presence of God. Over the years, the ‘grime’ above and around it, may have become so hard that it takes years of handwork to get back to that ‘spring of water’ within us. In order to take off this hard covering, we need deep awareness of what is going on within us.

Sorrow may remove it, self-awareness may remove it, or an unexpected tragedy may do it. But digging is done by removing the stuff that is covering that spring of water. Once we have reached that spring, it will ‘quench our thirst forever.’

The question is: Am I ‘digging a little more each day’ by growing in self-awareness, knowing that He is waiting to offer me the Living Water?

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Sr Marina Thomas SU

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1 October: Day of Older Persons

Established by the UN General Assembly on 14 December 1990, this Day recognizes the contributions of older persons. After all, they are the one who built up all that we enjoy.

It also raises awareness of the opportunities and challenges of ageing in today’s world and about issues affecting them. The elderly are highly vulnerable, with many falling into poverty, becoming disabled or facing discrimination. Neglect and abuse of older persons is sadly becoming an acceptable social norm.

As health care improves, the population of older people also grows. Between 2017 and 2030, the number of persons over sixty years is projected to grow by 46 per cent (from 962 million to 1.4 billion), globally outnumbering youth, as well as children under the age of ten.

This increase will be the greatest and most rapid in the developing world. The World Health Organization promotes public awareness and attention on the ageing populations and the provision of adequate healthcare for aged persons. Their needs are growing, but so are their contributions to the world.

There is need to encourage volunteer work, social care and ways to be more inclusive of older persons in the workforce and to promote the development of a society that is hospitable to people of all ages.

In our country, the social fabric of joint families is breaking down with urbanisation and smaller housing facilities. Instead, the trend is towards forming nuclear families. Moreover, younger people increasingly leave home in search of greener pastures abroad or in urban areas. Aged parents are left to fend for themselves. Homes for senior citizens are not only seen as acceptable, but as an unavoidable reality.  Thus persons, who dedicated their best years and resources to the upbringing of their children, may be abandoned in their own hour of need.

The theme of the 2020 commemoration is “Pandemics: Do They Change How We Address Age and Ageing?”

24 October: United Nations Day

One of the treaties to formally end World War I was signed in Versailles, France, on June 28, 1919. It laid the foundation for a “League of Nations” meant at prevent outbreaks of war, encourage disarmament, negotiations and diplomatic measures to settle international disputes and to improve the quality of life around the world. However, the outbreak of World War II showed that the League needed to take on a more effective form.

The ideas around the United Nations were developed in the last years of World War II, particularly during the UN Conference on International Organization in San Francisco, beginning on April 25, 1945. The UN was officially created when its Charter was ratified on October 24 that year, by the majority of its signatories, including the five permanent members of the Security Council.

The purposes of the UN, as identified in its Charter, include maintaining international peace and security, solving international economic, social, cultural and humanitarian problems and protecting human rights around the world. In 1948, they created the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Another aim is promoting sustainable development. The member nations deliver humanitarian aid to populations in crisis. The first aid delivered was an immediate response to the devastation following World War II.

Today the UN consists of 193 member states and two observer states. Each Member State has one seat in the General Assembly. The main organs of the UN are the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the UN Secretariat. All these were established in 1945, when the UN was founded.

The UN does not work alone, but together with many specialized agencies, including: the World Health Organization (WHO); the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF); International Labour Organization (ILO); United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); and United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

UN Day was first observed on October 24, 1948.  This year marks the 75th anniversary of the UNO. The theme is: “2020 and Beyond—Shaping Our Future Together.”

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Sr Esme da Cunha FDCC

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Tortured for Christ (2018, 65 minutes)
Director: John Grooters. Cast: Emil Mandanac, Raluca Botez, Stefan Ruxanda, Relu Poalelungi, Alexandra Ionita

This is the memoir of the late Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand who suffered heroically under Romanian Communism. Richard, a Jewish atheist and Communist, was converted by a humble carpenter. As pastor of the Lutheran Church in Romania, faith became his only resistance against Stalinism. Pretending to be tolerant, the Communists brutally persecuted Christians. Arrested underground preachers endured brutal torture, death and slave labour. Russian soldiers who became Christians suffered the same fate. A Christian named Forescu was forced to watch his son tortured before him to reveal the names of fellow Christians. He offered to reveal the names for his son’s sake, but the boy heroically forbade him and was murdered. When Wurmbrand wss caught, he took courage recalling that in the Bible there are 366 verses saying “do not fear!” –one for each day of the year! His wife Sabina, taken from her son, was forced to work in the labour camp. Her ribs were broken during torture.  In prison, defying torture and death, Christians never ceased praying. They sang hymns together when the “chains became musical instruments.” In between the torture sessions, they preached to the torturers. Constant beating tore Richard’s feet to the bones, maiming him for life. Once, when the torturer asked him why he should pray when there is nothing left to pray for, his answer stunned the torturer, “I am praying for you!” Infected with TB and falsely informed that his wife was dead, Richard was sent to a death ward in a prison. But he continued to preach and served the fellow patients, bringing many atheists to Christ on their death bed and even some prison doctors. Unimaginable cruelty did not break his spirit. He still loved his torturers. He saw a new kind of Christianity there. Wurmbrand recalls that it was a privilege for him to be in the same cell “with great saints,” “heroes of great faith” like the first Christians. “The supernatural became the natural.”  Ransomed in 1965, Wurmbrand and his family continued working for persecuted Christians around the world.

The African Doctor (2016, 96 minutes)
Director: Julien Rambaldi. Cast: Marc Zinga,  Aïssa Maïga, Bayron Lebli Médina Diarra, Jonathan Lambert,  Mata Gabin   Sylvestre Amoussou

    This is the delightful true story of a young African who struggles to establish a medical career in France triumphing over racial prejudice. In 1975, Seyolo Zantoko from Zaire graduates from medical school in Lille, the only African in the school. Declining the prestigious offer to be the personal physician of President Joseph Mobutu of Zaire, he declines, on account of the corrupt regime, and decides to raise his family in France. The mayor of Marly-Gomont offers  him a clinic in his obscure village away from Paris. His wife Anne and children, Sivi and Kamini, join him, hoping to live in Paris. However they are upset when they learn on arrival that it is a village. The all-white villagers are afraid and distrustful because of racial prejudice. They even suspect his qualification, preferring a native doctor in the neighboring village. His children face bullying at school. Debts pile up and his wife is unhappy. Seyolo is reduced to work as a farm hand to provide for the family. On Christmas day, when his visiting relatives take Seyolo to the church service, they sing hymns African style, surprising and delighting the local parishioners. That day, he gains reputation as a good doctor when he successfully attends an emergency delivery case. His career picks up. The mayor persuades him to stay on at the village.  Anne is infuriated and leaves the family for Brussels. His daughter Sivi becomes the local heroine when her soccer skills help the local team win. Anne returns to the family. When the school drama team presents the story of the African doctor’s family, the Seyolos come to realize that they are loved by the local people. They stay on. Seyolo was honoured by a medal of merit a year before his death in 2009.

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Prof Gigy Joseph

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All three traits are found among us religious.

How do we know?

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THIS IS THE 50^TH ISSUE OF MAGNET MAGAZINE.

The theme is special: RELIGIOUS LIFE TODAY. To prepare this issue, I asked eleven religious from different backgrounds—whose honesty and judgment I trust—to share what they know from personal experience. Just as mothers know more about raising children than I would by reading books on motherhood, each way of life is known best—in all its stark beauty and ugliness—by those living it. The responses of a Bishop, four Sisters, three Brothers, two Priests and one theology student make up our Cover Story 1.

Their frank feedback is supplemented by other direct witnesses: interview with a provincial who has been involved—and found God—in different ministries earlier; a junior sister highlighting the huge  (often untapped)potential of young religious, an experienced formator looking at the viruses threatening religious life; the key role of vision in leaders.

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Is religious life relevant and likely to last? The answer depends on whom you ask. We hardly ever have a fully objective view of anything. We are most influenced by our personal experience and the views of those we most associate with. For a quick look at the past, present and future of this way of life, see Cover Story 2.

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I have no illusions about the superiority of any state of life, or unrealistic expectations from any human group. Every walk of life will have ecstatic enthusiasts, bitter grumblers, and confused seekers. No setting (or “call”) guarantees fulfilment or fruitfulness. But life—any life—is such a lovely, priceless gift, which I receive every day. I don’t want to waste it. I want to build something beautiful with it. Whether I would have done better or worse as a married lay man, I do not know. What I do know—and have seen it repeatedly, and found strong agreement in others—is that we, religious, have many more chances to build a happy life and do good than most married couples have. I am not saying that we are better or our call is superior. I am speaking of opportunities, support systems, and the tremendous investment made in our training.

Rather than waste our life on “grass being greener on the other side of the fence,” or listening to prophets of doom, we can do something beautiful with our life, and with the tremendous opportunities that organized religious life offers. We should, of course, face and correct the negatives in our lives. (As the psychology article this month reminds, life is a messy journey.) But the good far outweighs the bad. What do you think?

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Messy. Meaningful. Beautiful. Tough. Something to struggle through and celebrate—not something to lament.

What is your favourite adjective for life? For religious life? For your personal life? What do you break into more spontaneously—a Magnificat or a Lamentation?

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Fr Joe Mannath SDB

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