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India has been enduring intense heat waves over the past few months. In 37 cities, temperatures soared above 45ºC, and nighttime temperatures remained as high as 36ºC in many areas. These extreme events, which are increasing in frequency, lasting longer, and becoming hotter, are becoming the new normal in this age.

Heatwaves: Testing Our Human Endurance

An analysis by World Weather Attribution (WWA) reveals that climate change has made the current extreme temperatures in India 45 times more likely than they would be without climate change. India now has a 10% chance of experiencing an extreme heatwave in any given year. Additionally, a World Bank report predicts that by 2030, heat stress could lead to a global loss of 80 million jobs due to decreased productivity, with India potentially accounting for 34 million of these job losses.

It is not just heatwaves; we are constantly challenged by unexpected, frequent, and intense droughts, floods, forest fires, and other calamities. Humanity is facing an unprecedented environmental crisis. Over the past few decades, we have used and abused coal, oil, forests, rivers, and seas, and now we are bearing the consequences. The climate has changed. The wound is deep, and the damage appears irreversible. Can we live in a shattered house? Impossible. The wounds need healing, and the damages require restoration.

Fr Ricopar Royan SDB

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This is the fourth article in a series on prayer written by Sr. Celine as part of the preparation for the Jubilee Year 2025. The first article focused on prayer as a spiritual oasis, the second on prayer as power, and the third on prayer as being in the presence of the Lord. This fourth article centres on prayer as listening.

We live in a world of incessant noise. Almost everywhere we go and whatever we do, we are constantly bombarded with distractions—images and sounds from TV and social media, conversations with friends and neighbours, and the activities of family and surroundings. Listening has become a lost art in our modern culture. Rarely do we get quiet time together with our families without some kind of distraction. Seeking a quiet place to spend time with God or with ourselves is not always easy. Too often, we find ourselves challenged and confused about what we should do in a given situation or what is truly the most important thing in our lives.

LEARNING TO LISTEN IS AN ART

Learning to listen is a process that involves great desire, quality time, much effort, patience, and persistence. It is demanding inner work – a desire to listen just for the sake of listening, beyond words and any personal agenda. Not many people know how to do it. Staying silent until the other person stops talking is not the same as listening, and thinking about what to say next while the other person speaks is not the same as listening either. To listen to others, we need to close our eyes, shut our lips, open our ears, and connect our hearts.

Sr. Celine D’Cunha FMA

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It is often said, “If you really want to know yourself and make progress in life, ask your enemies.” Enemies play a crucial role in our lives, offering insights into our weaknesses and keeping us alert. We have to be thankful to them for this unpaid job. They spend a lot of time and energy tracking us and informing us about our ‘areas for improvement.’ While their methods may seem harsh, we must acknowledge the value of their observations. Embracing criticism and evaluation is essential for personal growth and achievement.

As parents, teachers, animators, mentors, or formators, giving feedback is a challenging yet indispensable task that needs to be done responsibly. However, it is crucial to remember that the recipient of feedback is at the center of the process. Thus, it is our responsibility to deliver feedback with compassion and accountability, an act often referred to in religious contexts as ‘sharing truth in charity.’ Here are some guidelines to help you provide feedback effectively:

Richard Mascarenhas, SJ

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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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I have grown to appreciate the beauty of diversity in all its forms. It all began in my 12th grade when I had the opportunity to study and live with multicultural students. At that time, I was open to learning and adapting, unaware of the terms ‘multicultural’ and ‘diversity’, but drawn to being with people from different backgrounds. I used to participate in all Pujas and visit temples just to see the place and purchase something. There was no distinction between different religions; I simply enjoyed being with friends of other faiths.  I embraced changes in my attitude, thinking, and perspective but kept my core values. Our warden and teachers were constant sources of motivation.I learned about multiculturalism and diversity from my father, who worked in the Treasury office. His job involved meeting people from various cultures and working with staff members and friends from diverse backgrounds. Sometimes his friends visited us.

Then I joined the religious life. There, too, I had the opportunity to meet persons from other states. Though it took me some time to adjust initially, each day brought new discoveries. These interactions not only broadened my horizons but also instilled in me a deep appreciation for others. Now I enjoy being around people from diverse cultures and backgrounds, finding inspiration and growth in the unique perspectives of others.

SR RANJITA TIRKEY HM

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Poikilo is a Greek word that means ‘varied’ or ‘many-colored.’ Here I introduce a new phobia termed as ‘Poikilophobia’, to mean the ‘fear of accepting diversities’. This article is an attempt to prove that synodality or the synodal way of life proposed by the Church is the medicine for poikilophobia.

In fact, biologically ‘each person is a celebration of diversities.’ Even though one’s eyes seem similar, some scientific studies say that the right eyeball is slightly smaller than the left one! It is even said that almost everyone has a dominant eye, even if the difference between the two eyes doesn’t feel that stark! We are surprised to understand that fingerprints also vary among one’s own fingers, this means to say that a person has unique print on each finger. It is also notable that ‘humankind itself is a celebration of diversities.’ An easy way to understand this is to know that no two people have ever been found to have the same fingerprints – including identical twins!

Of course, the Creator of human beings loved the diversity in a person and among persons. The Creator believed in the integral unity in a human being.  The Creator has ‘decorated the unity of humanity with diversity.’ However, many seek a ‘fake unity’ saying that ‘we look alike, or we follow the same tradition, or we have the same religious belief’ etc. Seeking unity does not mean to gather a group of people who seem to think, act and speak the same things. This is a challenge to the Creator who loves diversities! Therefore, let us say that the ‘fake unity’ is the result of human ego and fear of existence. Here comes the relevance of the Synod, which calls for sharing, listening to and reflecting on diversities.

Fr Binny Mary Das

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Diversity refers to the presence of a wide range of human differences. This can include – albeit not limited to – race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, and political beliefs. Although the world boasts a remarkable richness of diversity, India stands out as one of the most diverse countries on the planet. India wears its diversity like a vibrant, woven tapestry. But here’s the amazing thing: this diversity isn’t just tolerated; it’s celebrated! India’s diversity is beautifully woven with cultures, traditions, languages, and religions, showcasing millennia of rich history. From the majestic peaks of the Himalayas to the sun-drenched shores of Kanyakumari, India’s panorama exudes a spectrum of colours, with each region presenting its own distinct essence. This multifaceted terrain cultivates an atmosphere where unity harmonizes with a myriad of identities. Let us briefly delineate some prominent ones.

Indian Diversity. (i) Indian Cultural Kaleidoscope dazzles with diversity, spanning classical dances, musical melodies, literary treasures, artistic wonders, architectural marvels, linguistic nuances, religious vistas, culinary delights, and cherished traditions. (ii) Festive Splendour of India echoes throughout the year, each one rich in unique lore and rituals – crossing religious and regional boundaries.

(iii) Spiritual Harmony: India hosts a mosaic of religious traditions, fostering an ethos of tolerance and reverence. (iv) Linguistic Flourish: With over 1,600 languages and dialects, India stands as a testament to linguistic diversity – each tongue is a vessel of cultural legacy. (v) Culinary Odyssey of India unfolds an array of flavours, textures, and aromas, each region boasting its own signature.

Fr Arnald Mahesh SDB

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