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I Felt Only Love

Pope Francis gave him a long loving embrace! During his general audience at St. Peter’s Square on 6 November, 2013 Pope Francis embraced Riva Vincenzo! Riva was a special person with a disfigured face due to a rare disease, causing neuronal tumors. During his life Riva endured rejection and isolation because of his appearance. That embrace of the Pope transformed him to regain his dignity and communion with humanity. ‘I felt only Love’ were words of Riva, in an interview. The transforming encounter with Pope Francis was an experience of Resurrection for him. On 10 January, 2024 at the age of 58, Riva died a healed, liberated and grateful person. The encounter with Pope Francis was life changing for Riva; so also it was for the viewers of the photograph of this compassionate gesture. By embracing Riva, Pope touched the world. Many were inspired to shed their prejudices! How many of our brothers and sisters experience rejection, exploitation and helplessness; they grope in the ‘shadow of death’! They wait for someone, for a long loving embrace so that they may reclaim their dignity and enter into New Life.

Encountering Kamati

Some 28 years ago, accompanied by my Community Sister and a native, I was exploring the reserved forests of Wayanad, Kerala. Though a lover of elephants, I was afraid there would be one hiding somewhere and might attack us. Instead of the elephant, I was surprised to find two little huts, just 20 feet ahead of us, close to the electric fence fixed to prevent attack of elephants. We wondered if anyone lived there. Hearing us an indigenous Pania woman, feeble, anemic, small in stature and clad in minimum clothes came out. Her name was Kamati.  Through her, we learned that she had given birth to her baby just five days earlier.  Her husband had gone out looking for work. She was there alone with her newborn baby in the forest with the threat of wild animals. Kamati told us that she had rice and chilly ‘chutney’ for breakfast. She was suffering from fever. Instinctively, I touched her forehead to check her temperature; and I felt the heat. I thought to myself, if only I had a paracetamol tablet! I was struck down by helplessness. I called her to come and both of us sat on the stones there. She said that she couldn’t go with us to the town to get medicine. I was shocked to hear that she had never gone to the town or gotten into a bus.

Sr Dr Shalini Podimattam RGS

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Pain and suffering are inevitable in our lives and are integral to our humanity. Tal Ben-Shahar, an American and Israeli author and Professor at Harvard University, states in an excerpt from his book, ‘Being Happy: You Don’t Have to Be Perfect to Lead a Happier, Richer Life,’ posted on his organization’s website Whole Being Institute.com, that pain and suffering are important for humanity. He says, “While it is part of our universal nature to seek pleasure and avoid pain, culture plays a central role in how we deal with suffering. We in the West generally reject suffering. We see it as an unwelcome interruption of our pursuit of happiness. So, we fight it, repress it, medicate it or search for quick fix solutions to get rid of it. In some cultures, especially in the East, suffering is acknowledged for the important role it plays in people’s lives in the meandering path towards enlightenment.”

What is the theology of pain and suffering in the Christian perspective? We as Christians believe that human pain and suffering are transformed from something negative into something positive that becomes a source of life because it is redemptive. Each person in his or her suffering is united with the suffering of Christ and thus this suffering mysteriously becomes a source of life and resurrection. St. Paul in his Letter to the Romans Chapter 5: 3-5 says: “Not only that, we also boast even in trials, knowing that trials produce patience, from patience comes merit, merit is the source of hope and hope does not disappoint us because the Holy Spirit has been given to us, pouring into our hearts the love of God”.

Janina Gomes

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Bird watching is fascinating. This is something that has been happening in my sister’s house in Chennai. Every day a crow perches itself on her kitchen window. Not for his day’s share of cooked food or bird’s feed, but for his delicacy mixture (a common spicy snack). When others try to offer the bird’s feed, it doesn’t interest him. He demands only mixture. So, the mixture finds its rightful place in the weekly grocery list. “If you want to form a bond with a crow, be consistent in rewarding them,” says John Marzluff, a professor of Wildlife Science. It is not about buying their attention or love but about establishing a relationship with what we can offer.

To our surprise, this intelligent being reciprocates with gifts too. Gabi Mann is from Seattle, USA. As a small girl, she used to drop snacks while eating outside her home, and immediately the crows would alight and eat them. As she grew older, she started to reward their attention by sharing her lunch on the way to school. Gabi’s hospitality went from being accidental to purposeful because the family got together and started placing food and water in their backyard. Gabi is luckier because she gets gifts from her feathered allies in return. The gifts include shiny ornaments, rusty screws, a black button, a blue paper clip, a yellow bead and the like. For Gabi these things are more valuable than gold.

Fr Ricopar Royan SDB

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We can use a knife to cut something or it can cut us, depending on how we hold the knife, by the handle or by the blade.  Similarly, we can be touched and transformed by what we encounter depending on our open disposition or the lack of it, it is a question of perspective.

A Resurrection Moment

In 1989, during my regency with the Missionaries of Charity in the “City of Joy,” Calcutta, I often had to commute via the overcrowded local trains. Once, while hanging onto a running train for dear life, I found myself leaning outward in search of some breathing space—shoulders away from the rest, balancing on my toes at the very edge, and clinging on with one hand. During this precarious journey, amidst the chaos of passengers hanging out from the bogies behind me, there was a sudden eruption of screams and yells. Being new to the city, I couldn’t comprehend a word of Bengali and wondered what it was all about. Then, a fellow passenger beside me put his free arm around my neck and pulled me close to himself. In that split second, I noticed from the corner of my eye just how dangerously close an electric post was to my head. The speeding train passed by, and with it, the screaming and yelling ceased, replaced by a palpable silence—a collective sigh of relief from those behind me who had glimpsed the impending disaster.  When the train stopped at the next station, all of us who had been leaning out of the door disembarked. My eyes and ears scanned the crowd, searching for the face of the person who had saved me and the faces and voices of those behind me, so that I could shake their hands and express my gratitude with a smile. It would have been instant death if he had not pulled me close to him—it was a moment of resurrection and new life. Though 35 years have passed, I still get goosebumps as I write this. I cherish that ‘thank you’ and that smile in my heart for all those gentle souls because of whom I am still alive.

Fr. Babu Jose Pamplany OFM

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The second volume of the Council Notebook delves into the theme of ‘Revelations as the Word of God,’ particularly focusing on Dei Verbum 1-6. Continuing the tradition established by the Council of Trent and the First Vatican Council, the Second Vatican Council emphasized the Doctrine of Divine Revelation. The aim is to ensure that the message of new life is heard by the entire world, leading to belief, hope, and love. This volume consists of four concise chapters: The Word of God; Written Word; The Response to the Word of God; The Word of God in Action.

God’s Ongoing Communication

Reflecting on Dei Verbum is akin to revisiting the entirety of the Second Vatican Council’s history. It’s the final constitution approved by Vatican II, serving as the cornerstone for interpreting all its teachings. Through this document, we can reconnect with Sacred Scripture in a lively and dynamic way, understanding the event of Christian revelation. Dei Verbum delves into the profound ways of how God reveals Him/Herself and communicates with humanity. Biblical history unfolds as a series of revelations, culminating in Jesus Christ revealing the true nature of God as a loving Father and Mother. Emphasizing that “God has spoken,” Dei Verbum underscores that this divine action isn’t confined to the past but continues to impact the present. God’s ongoing communication with His Church unveils hidden truths and deepens our understanding of revealed truth.

Sr Shalini Xavier CTC

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This is how Sr. Norma Pimental, MJ, began a TED talk: “In 2014, I visited a detention facility where hundreds of little children, immigrant children, were detained for several weeks in conditions that were very heartbreaking. They were dirty and muddy and crying. Their faces were full of tears. I had the opportunity to go in and be with them. And they were all around me. They were little ones, some of them not older than five years old. And they were saying to me, ‘Get me out of here. Please, help me.’ It was so difficult to be there with them. I started to cry with them, and I told them, ‘Let us pray.’ And they repeated after me, ‘God, please, help us.’  As we prayed, I could see the Border Patrol officers looking through a glass window. They were on the verge of tears, as they heard the children praying. A little boy came closer and told me, ‘Please, help me. I want to be with my mother.  She was here, I was separated from her.’  When I walked out of the cell, an officer got close to me and said to me, ‘Sister, thank you. You have helped us realize that they too are human beings.’”

Sr Norma Pimentel, who belongs to the Missionaries of Jesus Congregation, has been for many years the Executive Director of Catholic Charities, the charitable arm of the Diocese of Brownsville in Texas, U.S.  In 2014 thousands of families tried desperately to leave their countries in Central America and seek asylum in the U.S.  Responding to this crisis, she set up Humanitarian Respite Centers, where hundreds of American volunteers took care of these poor and hungry asylum seekers. These efforts brought Sr Pimentel worldwide recognition. In March 2015, Pimentel spoke at the U.N. Headquarters in New York City. During the Papal visit to the U.S. that year, Sr Pimentel met Pope Francis in New York City and presented him with one of her original paintings of an immigrant mother and child. Before coming to work for Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, Pimentel was one of the leaders who directed Casa Oscar Romero, a refugee shelter that served Central Americans fleeing their war-torn countries in the 1980s. The shelter provided emergency relief and temporary housing for hundreds of thousands of refugees. It is there that she developed a passion for helping refugees and asylum seekers.

Fr M.A. Joe Antony SJ

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My tryst with art dates back to my childhood. Dabbling in the school’s art room with a keen curiosity to learn anything coming my way, I aspired to pursue further studies in art history and painting at college level.  My work is symbolic in nature, inspired by the contemporary city life around me and its fast-paced nature where disparate elements seem to coexist. Age old architecture with Corinthian pillars and marble statues, a reminder of the British era of which Kolkata was once the capital, jostling for space alongside skyscrapers made of glass and steel. The architectural repertoire of the city, spanning its history in a single frame.

The other elements that populate my paintings are people and trees – people as crowds and yet with varied expressions and personalities; and trees, spanning more than a hundred years and unaffected by almost everything they have witnessed in their life span. The compositions hide within them houses, doorways, windows, foliage, leaves, trees and flowers – elements that we miss in the fast paced and crowded city life. These hidden elements are a reminder of how the city is accommodating mammoth growth, while retaining its basic spirit.

Deepshikha Khaitan

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This excerpt from Surumi, a professional artist and alumna of Stella Maris College, Chennai, eloquently recounts her artistic journey. It unveils a path of self-discovery intertwined with the revelation of a trans-formative voice poised to impact the world. The images included are her original art works.

“How many hours did that take you to do?” This is probably the most common question I get asked when someone sees my art. People are always intrigued by the level of detail that creates each piece. It’s true. I rarely go beyond a 0.1mm thick pen, allowing me to capture even the finest details with precision. Strangely enough, I never really felt the need to keep track of the time it takes me to complete a piece. Perhaps it’s because my focus has always been on the process itself rather than the end result. I’ve never been conscious of my technique or the subject matter I choose to portray.

I have always been impulsive. I didn’t realize that is also my instinct. If something excited me, I would eagerly draw it. I didn’t overthink or analyze my choices. It was all about capturing what I felt compelled to express. I would sit down with a pen and a sheet of paper, and let the lines flow. The process was intuitive, almost like a natural extension of myself.

Surumi Mammootty

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(In this article, Fr. Arnald Mahesh illustrates the dynamic influence of empowered women in the Church, drawing inspiration from his own mother and other living examples. Following cues from Catholic theology and the teachings of Pope Francis, he underscores the significance of ongoing debates surrounding women’s roles and their increasing emphasis within the church.)

That One Woman

One woman stands out for her extraordinary efforts in empowering not only herself but also her children, especially her daughters. She was a mother of ten children, seven of whom were girls. With unwavering support from her life partner, she dedicated herself to raising her children and ensuring that her daughters found empowerment. Education was the key tool she used to promote their growth. Despite regretting not securing a government job due to her parents’ rush to marry her off before she could finish her studies, she never confined herself to the home only. Instead, she explored various creative ways to contribute to the family income while raising her ten children. From running a small business making and selling idlis to managing a modest firewood shop (to mention a few), she involved her children in every aspect of family life.

Her journey was marked by immense challenges and struggles, yet she persevered, elevating her children to a notable social status. She embodied courage, hard work, commitment, familial bonds, friendship, love of God, and compassion for humanity, especially the poor. This woman of faith inspired three of her children to commit themselves to religious life. Her life exemplified how one can become a blessing to many by recognizing the abundant blessings of God. Among all the women I know, she stands tall as my HERoine, my beloved amma, late Mrs Josephine. Her greatest gift to me is my seven loving sisters, who continue to shape and inspire me with their lives and values. My family taught me the importance of viewing women with respect and dignity and showed me how to support and empower them whenever the opportunity arises.

Fr Arnald Mahesh SDB

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(Cover Story Four, by Sr. Mudita, explores examples of women’s empowerment throughout history. These women emerge as pivotal agents of connectivity, solidarity, and renewal, birthing a new order of creation.)

Women have been gifted with the unique capacity to uphold the primacy of love in human life. Her very physiological structure is so designed, that it has “room for another” and an innate sensitivity to the goodness of the human being. Coined by Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic letter “Mulieris Dignitatem” in 1988, the term “feminine genius” celebrates this divine grace bestowed upon all women, regardless of whether they bear children physically or not.  Woman embodies the essence of perfect love, with the potential to birth anew. The ethereal bond she shares with “the other” resembles a divine lifeline. She epitomizes tenderness, mindful of her actions and their impact on others. Fashioned by the Creator, she embodies patience, kindness, forgiveness, tolerance, resilience, faithfulness, and unconditional giving, akin to Mother Earth. Women possess innate abilities to motivate, collaborate, and advance community interests. With strength, courage, and determination, they embrace learning, hard work, and leadership. Evolving to maintain peace and harmony, they are pacifying forces with healing touches and greater endurance. They bridge gaps between groups, fostering a broader, lasting vision for peace to flourish.

Dr (Sr) Mudita Menona Sodder RSCJ

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