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A Moving Experience

The video impressed me. Fifteen to sixteen thousand people holding lit candles and praying devoutly. The occasion: Easter Vigil somewhere in India. Can you guess where? Can you guess who these people are?

I could not have. Hardly any parish has such a large number of members. Where could this be?

In Varanasi.

The people who gather are not Catholics They are Hindus. They call themselves Krist Bhaktas (“Devotees of Christ”). They are over 30,000. They outnumber the total Catholic population of the diocese of Varanasi.

Thousands of them go to pray at Maitri Dham Ashram run by the IMS Fathers. In Lent, the crowds are larger. You must see the devotion with which these “Devotees of Christ” make the Way of the Cross. The numbers and the devotion at the Easter Vigil will move any witness. Catholics taking in part are deeply edified.

A middle-aged Catholic mother from Kerala who attended this Vigil said she felt rejuvenated. “It has challenged my traditional Catholic faith. I wish my children, who watched this event with rapt attention, be gripped by faith in Christ,”

The Bhaktas come from Varanasi and from farther away. Some come and return on foot, walking twenty or twenty-five kilometres either way.

They experience healing. Their devotion to Christ is evident and moving.

They experience Jesus as alive.

Do we?

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Fr Joe Mannath SDB

We wrote to a cross section of people in the church—lay women, lay men, seminarians, religious, priests—to tell us what Lent means to them. Here is what they told us. After reading their testimonies, try writing down what Lent means to you. To be true to Jesus’ teaching, it has to be much more than a change of diet.

Focus: God’s Mercy—Not My Failures

This Lent, I really want to focus on God’s mercy and forgiveness. It may sound like a cliché, but we often find it hard to believe in God’s mercy; sometimes our whole focus is on our own efforts and our righteousness.  I think the truth is: Nothing is easier in all the world than attaining forgiveness from God. This is the biggest truth that we have to believe. God is more eager to give forgiveness than we are to receive it. Many refuse to believe this. I constantly brood over how miserable and wretched I have been, wishing I had never sinned, wishing I had always kept a clean sheet.

For Jesus, even though to sin is the greatest evil, to be a sinner is a value. Hate sin with all your heart and avoid it. But, if I have sinned and repented, then I have reasons to rejoice, because there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

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Jesus came and underwent the Passion, not just to take away our sins, but also to heal us emotionally, and make us truly free.

Lent is a time when we begin to become clean with God and accept what God says about us. I came across the following words in the book, The Imitation of Christ: “I have been crucified with Christ …” (Galatians 2:20). To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God, means that we must first be willing to let go before we can grasp something else.

Be yourself. Admit your losses.

The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretense or deceit. Our pretending to be something that we are not. The idea that I am almost a perfect Christian is a deception. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, honesty, or our efforts to do better, but real solid sin. Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is real solid righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.

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Fr John Singarayar SVD

A Morose Time—or a Lovely Time Lent to Us?

Somehow our traditional outlook on the Season of Lent is somewhat morose. The season is stressed as a time for penance, fasting, abstinence, penitential practices of every sort! In more religious times, children were counselled to give up sweets, avoid singing of songs or playing music. No radio or TV, no parties etc., etc.

How we have distorted this gracious season and made of our God, a kill-joy!

Lent—a time “lent” by God to us, is a time of preparation to be reconciled with our God who is head-over-heels in love with us, who loves us more than we can ever even love ourselves! He made us to His own image and likeness, and wants to see us grow in this likeness to Him. Not for any gain for Himself, but because this alone will bring us true happiness, the type this world cannot give us nor take away from us.

The “Scandalous” Parables

Let us look at some passages in the Gospel:

A man has a hundred sheep. He misses one of them, leaves the ninety-nine in the desert and goes off looking for the lost sheep. When he finds it, he is so happy that he carries it home on his shoulders, rejoicing! (Luke 15:4-6)

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Sr Esme da Cunha FDCC

There are many Dioceses and Religious Congregations who have the material resources, like property and finance, but lack the required personnel to carry on the activities of the registered society.  The lack of personnel can be due to a drop in numbers or lack of competence in particular activities.  There are others who may have the   required personnel but not the material resources, namely, property and finance.

In the interest of carrying on the objectives of the registered society, two societies with similar objectives may enter into collaboration with each other. One party provides the property and finance, while the other supplies the required personnel.   But it is very common to see problems between the two concerned parties. Very often, the problems arise because there is no written contract. Based on a friendly mutual understanding at the time of making the agreement, the head of one society—a Diocese or a Religious Congregation—invites the head of the other society for an apostolic collaboration or help, and gives the required land. In some cases, buildings too are given, either existing ones or a new one built for the purpose. The other party is then asked to start or carry on the activities.

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Fr Alex Gnanapragasam SJ

Here is a reflection questionnaire for personal use or for sharing with family or religious community.
If done in community, each one will need a copy. Time needed will be between thirty and sixty minutes.

Introduction

Jesus did not impose on his followers any special diet. The only prayer he taught was the Our Father. He did not ask us to put up expensive buildings nor prescribe costly vestments or vessels for praying.

He called us—and even those of other faiths know this—to a life of love, of service, of forgiveness. We will be judged one day on how we loved and shared, not on where we prayed, or what diet we followed, or how we dressed. What Jesus did, and what He insisted on, is pretty well known to all, including persons of all faiths.

What did Jesus bring us?

Use this Reflection Questionnaire to see how you understand and live Lent and Easter. If any question is not relevant for you or your group, reflect on questions of your own, e.g., Are we living our marriage in the way God wants? Are we raising our children in a Christ-like manner? Or: Is the way I exercise my role as religious superior helping the community to live as Jesus lived and taught? Or: Is the way I am practicing my profession in line with Jesus’ teachings? Am I honest and incorrupt?

If what we call “religion” or “faith” does not make us better people, it serves no purpose. In fact, it can even make us worse—as, for instance, when religion is used to promote division, bigotry or hatred or indifference to the sufferings of people.

Jesus did not teach that sort of “religion.” In fact, some Christian scholars even say that Jesus did not “found” a “new religion,” but showed us how to live, how to relate to God and to one another.

Being a follower of Jesus is not just a question of saying a few prayers or going to a building called “church” instead of temple or mosque, or taking part in a particular form of common worship. No! Just like being married or being a mother or father, it is a loving, full-time commitment. If real, it affects all areas of life. If we want to summarize our Christian faith in one sentence, it is about becoming Christlike, or, since we have not personally met the historical Jesus, it means becoming like the most Christ-like (loving, genuine, compassionate, just) human beings we have known.

May Lent and Easter help towards that transformation.

Fidelity or Betrayal?

What is holding me back from a truly joyful life? From becoming the best version of myself? From being a healer and a bearer of joy?

If I look honestly, I will find dark spots that need sweeping, neglected areas that need cultivation, weeds that choke the good seed, destructive habits scuttling my happiness and doing harm to others.

Want examples? Gossip. Grumbling. Words and actions prompted by jealousy. Greed. Ingratitude. Ill-treatment of subordinates. Addictions. Divisions stemming from the lust for power and money.

Further, I may find that I am committing a bigger “crime”—wasting my life on trivialities instead of doing the good I can; wallowing in mediocrity while I am called to greatness; merely plodding along, and forgetting my call to holiness.

Reflection Questionnaire

1. Are we personally, and as a family or religious community, living a life of love, unity and mutual support? Yes, very much / Yes, to a limited degree / So-so / Not really / Not at all
2. Are we setting a good example of Christian life to the younger ones in our care (children, students, formees, parishioners)? Yes, very much / Yes, to a limited degree / So-so / Not really / Not at all
3. Are there bad habits I (we) need to root out—addictions, gossip, injustice, ill-treatment of those under us, indecent or disrespectful language? Which? …………………………………
4. As persons and as a group, what are the main obstacles for our call to holiness? What is preventing me from the becoming the person God wants me to be? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
5. I (We) will be happier and more united if…………………………………………………………..
6. We speak of “new life in Christ.” In what way is our life—individual and as a family or community—better than those who do not believe in Christ? What difference does my (our) faith in Christ make to the way we live? ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
7. How can we simplify our life during Lent (and later) and use the saving to help poor and needy persons? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
8. Do I (we) give more importance to the luxuries we are attached to, than to the real needs of others? If so, what do I need to do? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
9. What do I (we) need to do to improve and deepen prayer life and familiarity with the Word of God? (a) More time for personal and family prayer: (b) More regularity: (c) More attentiveness and devotion during prayer: (d) More reading of the Bible; (e ) more frequent and more devout participation in the Mass and Confession.
10. Sacrifice, Love, Prayer. (Or: Discipline. Charity. Prayer). These are the hallmarks of Lent. What do I (we) need to do in each of these three areas? (a) Sacrifice or discipline: …………………………………………..; (b) Love/Generosity/Forgiveness/Compassion: ………………………………………………………………..; (c) Prayer: ………………………………………………

Decisions

What do I (we) need to do?

Let me (us) decide on two or three useful practices for Lent, which will help me (us) to become the best version of ourselves. May our way of living increase the goodness in the world, and our level of happiness.

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Three True Stories

Her demeanour was humble and her voice gentle. We all knew her as a woman of great goodness and faith, whose virtue sustained her family and inspired many others.

Because of her husband’s alcoholism and refusal to do any work, she suffered much, and was deeply pained that their children were not given the opportunities that her siblings’ children received. Seeing her younger sister’s children performing better in school and going on to more prestigious careers, she told me, “I must admit that when I see her children do better than mine, I feel jealous. My children are bright, too; but they did not get the chances that her kids got. We cannot afford to send them to good schools. I wish I could enrol them in the best schools, but I can’t.”

A woman cannot be blamed for feeling bad that her children were not getting the opportunities that her siblings’ kids got because she lacked the means. Her admitting her feelings of jealousy shows honesty and goodness. There is no malice in that feeling. She did not go around pulling down her younger sister or speaking ill of her nephews and nieces.

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Fr Joe Mannath SDB

The value of a gem depends on a number of factors, such as colour, clarity, purity, carat weight, cut, etc.

When we speak about human beings how do we determine the ‘worth’ of a person? The world has some criteria which can change; but what about God’s criteria?

This story is about a senior woman religious. At first, there seems to be nothing special about her… That is, until you realize the richness of her spiritual journey and see how people, even now, seek her quiet presence, kind blessings and wise advice.

Sister Catherine, a contemplative Carmelite, hardly ever travelled, preached or accomplished any extraordinary feat. For nearly sixty years, she has lived in the same place, with almost the same community members. Her days, right from the beginning, have been spent in the same way: prayer, fraternal life, work and rest. Most of her time is spent in silence. Even as I write this, the first thought that comes to me is: How monotonous and boring this sounds! However, Sr Catherine looks anything but bored! Whenever you meet her, she is invariably welcoming, smiling in a kind, unassuming way.

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Sr Marie Gabrielle Riopel SCSM

The new Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 (FCRA) and Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011 (FCRR) together form one document dealing with the provisions of the foreign contributions. It has the twin objectives of regulating the foreign contributions to enforce compliance of the provisions of the Act, as well as its proper utilization for the purpose for which it was received.  It is an internal security law under the Ministry of Home Affairs and hence it is concerned about the national security and law and order in the country.

What is a foreign contribution?

Any donation in cash or kind from a foreign source comes under foreign contribution.   A donation or contribution has to be made freely without any consideration or expecting anything in return.  Thus, any donation, in cash or kind, irrespective of the currency in consideration, received from a foreign source is a foreign contribution. Thus, any donation received from a foreign individual or foundation, in Indian or foreign currency, will be treated as foreign contribution.

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Fr Alex Gnanapragasam SJ

While in a neighbouring country for a workshop, I visited a convent where I knew a few nuns. The superior of the community told me, “You must visit the youngest member of our community.” I was taken to an upstairs room where I met Sister Mary (name changed). She had a beaming smile and her entire face had a glow of joy which lit up the room. She engaged me in pleasant conversation. She was ninety-seven years young! She had been lying in bed for a few months now. To move anywhere, she had to be helped on to a wheelchair. Despite her condition, she appeared so happy and fulfilled. She had the ability to make others happy. I said to myself, “That’s what it means to age gracefully!” My encounter with Sister Mary happened more than twenty years ago. But the image of the beaming, joyful sister who had aged so gracefully remains an inedible and delightful memory. There are countless others like Sister Mary who have been able to age gracefully, despite many setbacks and limitations.

Post midlife-years can be difficult for a variety of reasons. The slowing down of metabolism and weakening immune system can lead to disabilities and illness. Loss of hearing, impaired vision, and limited motor agility can be particularly frustrating. There can be lack of feelings of self-efficacy for a variety of reasons. The negative attitudes expressed by family/community members, colleagues, and younger people toward the incompetence, dependence, or old-fashioned ways of older people can lead many of them to feel discouraged and doubt their self-worth.  Despite these challenges, it is possible to age gracefully.

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Fr Jose Parappully SDB