Saints call us to look to God, make masterpieces of our lives

Dear brothers and sisters,

In the first reading, we heard a question: [Lord,] "who has learned your counsel, unless you have given wisdom and sent your Holy Spirit from on high?" (Wis 9:17). This question comes after two young Blesseds, Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis, were proclaimed saints, and this is providential because in the Book of Wisdom, this question is attributed to a young man like them: King Solomon. Upon the death of his father David, he realised that he had many things: power, wealth, health, youth, beauty, and the entire kingdom. It was precisely this great abundance of resources that raised a question in his heart: "What must I do so that nothing is lost?" Solomon understood that the only way to find an answer was to ask God for an even greater gift, that of wisdom, so that he might know God's plans and follow them faithfully. He realized, in fact, that only in this way would everything find its place in the Lord's great plan. Yes, because the greatest risk in life is to waste it outside of God's plan.

Jesus, too, in the Gospel, speaks to us of a plan to which we must commit wholeheartedly. He says: "Whoever does not carry the Cross and follow me cannot be my disciple" (Lk 14:27); and again: "None of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions" (v. 33). He calls us to abandon ourselves without hesitation to the adventure that He offers us, with the intelligence and strength that comes from His Spirit.

Many young people, over the centuries, have had to face this crossroad in their lives. Think of Saint Francis of Assisi; like Solomon, he too was young and rich, thirsty for glory and fame. That is why he went to war, hoping to be knighted and adorned with honours. But Jesus appeared to him along the way and asked him to reflect on what he was doing.

Navigating the Brave New World: Challenges forParish Priests

 Fr (Dr) Victor Ferrao

In Aldous Huxley's dystopian masterpiece Brave New World, published in 1932, the author envisioned a society where control was not exerted through Orwellian pain and surveillance, but through the seductive embrace of pleasure. "People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can't get," Huxley wrote, describing a world engineered for endless gratification, where soma—a euphoric drug—kept the masses docile and distracted. Huxley presciently argued that it is not suffering, but an overdose of pleasure, that could enslave humanity. Fast-forward to our smartphone-saturated era, and Huxley's prophecy feels eerily prophetic. Today, the "attention industry"—fuelled by social media giants like Instagram, TikTok, and X—has turned entertainment into a velvet prison. Young people, in particular, find themselves chained to screens, scrolling endlessly for dopamine hits of likes, shares, and viral validation. In this context, Parish Priests face profound challenges in providing pastoral care, ministering to souls ensnared not by chains of iron, but by the invisible threads of digital delight.

 The Modern Soma: Smartphones and the Attention Economy

Huxley's soma has manifested in the palm of our hands. Smartphones deliver instant gratification: binge-watching series, algorithm-curated feeds, and gamified social interactions that hijack our brain's reward systems. Neuroscientists have likened social media notifications to slot machines, pulling users back with unpredictable rewards.

The average person checks their phone over 150 times a day, and for Generation Z, screen time often exceeds seven hours daily. This isn't mere convenience; it's an engineered dependency. As the user query aptly puts it, "Entertainment is the new prison house," where pleasure poisons spiritual depth, replacing contemplation with consumption.

Digital Discipleship: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Souls

Dr John Singarayar SVD

The apostle Paul, writing to believers scattered across ancient trade routes, could hardly have envisioned a world where human consciousness would be shaped by algorithms, and where community would flourish behind luminescent screens. Yet his words in Galatians 5:22-23 resonate with prophetic clarity across the millennia. They offer a blueprint for spiritual flourishing that transcends technological epochs. The fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—emerges not as antiquated moral decoration, but as essential architecture for souls navigating digital turbulence.

Consider how profoundly our interior landscape has shifted. We inhabit dual realms now, existing simultaneously in physical spaces and virtual territories that pulse with Artificial Intelligence. Our thoughts are interrupted by notifications every eleven minutes on average. Our attention fractures into micro-moments of engagement. Yet, within this fragmentation, the ancient call to spiritual fruit becomes not merely relevant, but urgent—a lifeline thrown across the chasm between human longing and technological overwhelm.

Love, that first and foundational fruit, confronts us with its radical demands in an era where relationships can be reduced to data points. Human beings become content creators competing for algorithmic favour. The Greek word Paul employed—agape—speaks of love that flows outward, regardless of reciprocity. Love that sees the sacred embedded in the mundane. When we encounter someone whose political opinions inflame our sensibilities on social media, agape asks not whether they deserve our kindness, but whether we can recognise the image of God flickering even in their misguided posts. This love refuses to reduce others to caricatures. It practises the slow, revolutionary art of seeing fully.

Towards Eden:  The Promise of a New Earth

Elaine Fernandes

Vision Beyond Comprehension

It's instructive to reflect on how both Scripture and contemporary Church teaching invite us not only to anticipate a renewed Earth, but to actively participate in its healing through reverence for all Creation.

In Revelation 21:1, John shares a vision of "a new heaven and a new earth," for the old order has passed away. This promise echoes prophetic imagery found in Isaiah, painting a future of peace and restoration. Whenever I've heard this reading in church, I've found it idyllic, yet difficult to fully grasp. Much of our faith, after all, is rooted in mystery, and goes beyond human understanding.

But during the Certificate Course for Eco Ambassadors offered by the Archdiocesan Office for Environment, which I took in the Fall of 2024, that once-abstract vision began to take on new meaning. In particular, the session on "Eco-spirituality" introduced two key teachings that reshaped how I understand both Scripture and our relationship with the natural world.

 Eden: A State of Innocence

The first teaching centred on the Garden of Eden. Even when understood as mythic or symbolic, Eden represents a primordial harmony – a world without violence, death, or decay. In this original state, God offers humanity a plant-based diet: "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food." (Genesis 1:29)

Golden Years, Greater Horizons

50 Years of St Peter's Pontifical Institute

Dr Merlin Rengith Ambrose, D.C.L

The Latin dictum "Per annos aureos ad maiora" (Through golden years to greater things) captures the enduring spirit of St Peter's Pontifical Institute, Bengaluru, as it celebrates fifty years as a Pontifical Institute. Throughout its history, it has been a beacon of theological excellence, fidelity to the Church, and pastoral service in India and Asia. The Golden Jubilee, inaugurated on January 10-11, 2025, reflects on the theme "Theologising in India: Legacy and Envisioning," echoing Pope Francis' call in Ad theologiam promovendam (2023) for a theology that is magisterially faithful, ministerially prophetic, contextually relevant, and responsive to the signs of the times. This jubilee is not only about remembering a rich past, but recommitting to theological service that shapes the Synodal Church in India for the future.

 The Jubilee's Three-fold Celebration

The jubilee celebration is structured as a three-phase tribute. The first phase was the inaugural celebration in January 2025, which united representatives from nine affiliated institutes across India. The second, and academic centrepiece, is an international conference and alumni reunion scheduled for September 2025, which will bring together global scholars and alumni to reflect on the Institute's legacy and future. The year-long celebration will culminate in a valedictory function in January 2026.

 A Brief Historical Sketch

St Peter's Seminary, founded by the MEP in Pondicherry in 1778, moved to Bangalore in 1934, and began offering a Baccalaureate in Theology in 1962. Recognising its contributions, the then Congregation for Catholic Education established the Pontifical Institute of Theology in 1976, with specialisations in Missiology and Biblical Theology. Permanent recognition came in 1985, followed by doctoral programme approval in 1986. The Institute also created a post-graduate Canon Law centre affiliated to the Pontifical Urban University. Over time, several theological institutions across India gained academic linkage with St Peter's, broadening its influence.

I Remember...  I Remember (Part II) 

Dr Mrs Elaine Ann Charles

Melinda Vaz, a teacher of 28 years, teaching at C.L.S.' Michael High School at Kurla, firmly believes in St John Bosco's favourite quote on teaching which has influenced her life – "To teach is to touch lives forever, for the lessons imparted by a teacher echo through eternity." Melinda says that each time she is tempted to give up teaching because of the heavy workload, the Almighty sends her a student who appreciates how she has touched his/her life, and it most often happens to be a naughty one.

We have another remarkable stalwart, Lana Mendonca, with over 40 years of teaching experience. As a teacher wishing to make a difference in the lives of her students, Lana endeavoured to make her teaching interesting and captivating, through observation and discovery. She remembers how she used to teach English Literature through Role Plays, complete with props and costumes; Prime numbers through a Rap song; Science through simple experiments carried out by the students themselves; Food and Nutrition through preparing dishes with all the nutrients; Social Studies through flowcharts, mind mapping, and designing travel brochures.

She recalls encouraging her young students (8 to 10 years old) to think out of the box, to engage in project work, SWOT analysis and critical thinking. She tried never to keep a test on a Monday, so as not to spoil the children's weekends. She says that she still experiences immense satisfaction when her ex-students tell her that they remember other teachers, but remember her class. Lana derives much fulfilment from having made a positive impact on her students, especially slow learners, developing their confidence, helping them overcome challenges and achieve their goals.