Padre Santo - Apostle to the Indies

Severina Peres

The youngest child born in a family is often the pet of the family. In the castle of Xavier, Navarre, Spain on April 7, 1506 was born Francis Xavier, loved very tenderly by his parents, not just because he was their youngest, but also because he was good natured, amiable and charming. He grew up in an atmosphere of faith. His desire was to make himself illustrious by being a man of letters; his family sent him to Paris for academic studies in 1525. There, the youthful Xavier encountered a different world, but somehow his faith and purity in conduct was not ruined despite being tested. He enjoyed his favourite sport of high jumping, and pursued it with pride.

Came the time when Francis Xavier's new roommate in Paris was Ignatius of Loyola. Xavier avoided Ignatius, but it was not for long. Ignatius would soon impress upon Xavier the right purpose of man's life and efforts. Xavier's worldly pursuits and amusements were abruptly abandoned. He experienced the love of God and deepened his friendship with Jesus through the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius. From then on, he decided to spend his life in the service of souls. He was ordained a priest in June 1537.

On being asked to go to India in place of another, Xavier rose to the occasion answering, "Here I am, send me where you will." For 15 years, he would teach, preach, sweat, labour to bring God's love to all. He was a man in a hurry, going back and forth from Goa to the Fishery Coast, Tamil Nadu, Mannar, Cochin, Mylapore, Malacca, Ceylon, Japan, and finally to China. Xavier bore the hardships of arduous and dangerous journeys by ship, long treks, inclement weather, wretched accommodation, unfriendly people, wars and bandits (Japan), rampant disease and fell sea-sick often.

Flamboyant Youth to Saint: The Journey of SFX

Lavoisier Fernandes

It's been a long time since I moved away from my home state of Goa. Yet, in my interactions (especially within Catholic circles) with people of various nationalities and cultures from around the world, one thing that fills me with pride and joy is that whenever I mention I'm a native of Goa, India, there is an immediate association with St Francis Xavier, also affectionately known to many Goans as GoenchoSaib (Protector of Goa).

St Francis Xavier has truly been a blessing to Goa and continues to bless it, echoing the heart-felt lyrics of the beautiful Konkani hymn: Besanv ghal Saiba xarar Goyenchea... Samballunk sodankal gopant tujea (Bless this state of Goa; protect it by holding it in your arms).

Nonetheless, St Francis Xavier is ranked among the greatest missionaries not only of the counter-Reformation era, but of all Church history, and stands beside Saints Teresa of Ávila, Ignatius Loyola, and Philip Neri.

As a powerful intercessor, St Francis Xavier remains a priceless blessing for Goa and a treasured gift to India, Southeast Asia, Japan, and above all, the Universal Catholic Church.

 Why is he known as St Francis Xavier, and not by his birth name?

Although his birth name was Francisco de Jaso Azpilicueta, it was common at the time to sign letters with the name of one's birthplace. As a result, he signed his letters as Francisco de Javier (Francis from Xavier), which is how he became known as St Francis Xavier. This is also the name under which he was canonised by Pope Gregory XV on March 12, 1622, at the same time as St Ignatius Loyola.

 How did Francis' mother influence his faith and early life?

The Catholic faith was deeply rooted in the Xavier family. Before losing Xavier Castle, the heart of the family's life was the castle chapel, where the chaplain and assistant priests celebrated Mass daily, along with a solemn Mass on Sundays, and recited the Divine Office.

National Symposium 2024: Religions and Cultures journeying together

Conrad Saldanha

“A very enriching experience" - this would sum up the feelings of the 175 participants from 25 dioceses as the three-day National Symposium held at St Pius X College, Goregaon, Mumbai from November 15 to 17, 2024 drew to a close. The theme was "Religions and Cultures Journeying Together on a Path of Hope for a New India." So apt and relevant. The topics were discerningly chosen. An array of very erudite speakers shared their insights, analyses, and recommendations regarding the myriad issues confronting us today in a very lucid manner. To get a sense of the richness of the Symposium, here is a snapshot of the proceedings.

The first day laid the contours of the broad canvas which the theme straddled. As Fr Dr Gilbert De Lima, the Executive Secretary of the CCBI Commission for Theology and Doctrine, mentioned in his Welcome Address "…that this Symposium serve as a platform for a deeper understanding and facilitate a fruitful dialogue among the diverse religious and cultural communities in our nation for the good of all." In her Inaugural Address, Dr Marie Fernandes pointed out the commonalities among the major religions in India, 'our shared humanity" and the need to work together for a New India. Archbishop Vincent Aind, the Chairperson of the CCBI Commission for Theology and Doctrine, in his Keynote Address, questioned whether Religion and Culture are truly journeying together on the path of hope. Politics, cultural globalisation, and a technological revolution are posing a major obstacle and serious threat. Senior Advocate Joaquim Reis, while highlighting the fact that the Indian Constitution provides religious freedom and protects the rights of all citizens, questioned whether the 'religious minority' felt fully protected. He called for a common approach to defend our fundamental rights.

The Mission of the Church

Bishop Dominic Savio Fernandes

The XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission having recently concluded in October 2024, it would be good to reflect on what exactly is the mission of the Church and what it entails.

The mission that Jesus Christ has sent the Church on exemplifies His own mission from God the Father, i.e. to reveal the love of God, bring salvation to all people, and establish the Kingdom of God on earth. This mission is derived from the life and teachings, death and resurrection of Christ, and is carried out through His body, the Church. Hence, it is obvious that one cannot go on a mission unless one is transformed into Christ, by putting on the mind and heart of Jesus. In other words, for the Church to be synodal, there has to be a change of attitude and a change of heart.

The Church's mission of revealing the love of God, bringing salvation to all people, and establishing the Kingdom of God on earth, has these three-fold elements: i) evangelization; ii) sanctification; and iii) service. These aspects reflect the Church's purpose to share the Gospel, lead all people to holiness, and serve the needs of humanity.

 I. Evangelization is rooted in Jesus' great commission to the apostles: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19-20).

One of the components of evangelization is to tell the story of Jesus to the world through our preaching. But evangelization involves not just preaching, but living the Gospel through witness, dialogue, and engagement with diverse cultures and contexts.

Mary, Ladder of Heaven

Suhas Pereira, OFM Cap

This Advent Reflection focuses on the role of Mary in salvation history.

The liturgical year 2024 has ended. With the season of Advent, we greet a new year in the Liturgy of the Catholic Church worldwide. The word 'Advent' comes from the Latin advenire, meaning 'arrival,' and points to the coming of Christ, whose birth we celebrate at Christmas. The season of Advent also reminds us about the second coming of Christ at the end of time. This time of Advent is a time of waiting and longing. Right in this season, we have Mary, the mother of God, as the woman of Faith and Hope.

In the Eastern Church, especially in the Byzantine tradition, Mary is often depicted as the Ladder to heaven. Fulgentius of Ruspe calls Mary as the Ladder of Heaven; for through Mary, the God of Heavens climbed down to the earth, so that through her, man too may climb up to the heavens. St John Damascene calls Mary as the living ladder. In one of his sermons, he says about Mary – "…you yourself became the mediator and ladder by which God came down to us and took upon Himself the weakness of our substance, embracing it and closely uniting it to Himself." Mary is the surest passage from this world to the heavenly world.

The image of the Ladder to heaven can be traced back to the patriarch Jacob in the Old Testament (Genesis 28:12). Jacob had a dream in which he saw a ladder or a stairway reaching from the earth to the heaven, with angels of God ascending and descending upon it.

Mary as the Ladder to Heaven played a very important part in the divine plan of salvation. As one who believed the Word of God and obeyed God's will in her life, she has become a model for us in our life of faith. She was a person with a listening ear and with an open heart. She did not turn a deaf ear to the Word of God brought to her by the angel Gabriel; instead, she accepted the Word in her heart. Through her faith-driven 'Yes' to the salvific plan of God, Mary helped in restoring and re-establishing the relationship between God and humanity, which was broken and marred by human sinfulness.

Maranatha! End Times or The End of Time?

 Christopher Mendonca

Musings of a Jewish Elder: (A Soliloquy)

I sat there beside the ruins of the Temple.

Things were pretty bad for us Jews in Jerusalem;

violence was not uncommon, the poor neglected and exploited,

our loved ones suddenly snatched away into slavery.

The palace of Herod had been captured;

the Temple contributions confiscated.

I felt I had lost my identity. Was I witnessing the end?

Is misfortune the price we pay for our sins?

I was now old and grey-haired;

a stranger in my own country, I found it difficult

to sing the Songs of the LORD on what seemed foreign soil.

I looked forward to the Day of Restoration.

With a sense of nostalgia began to read my favourite Psalm 90.

"O LORD, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next..."

My dreams shattered; the restoration seemed to recede  ever further

into the horizon that was the limit of my vision.

It was nearly forty years since Jesus had died.

His claims to be the Messiah seemed to me

had only flattered in order to deceive.

But there were some of us who became His followers,

and claimed that the "end times" had indeed arrived.

"The LORD had spoken in many and varied ways through the prophets;

now in this 'final age', He had spoken to us in His Son Jesus"1   so they seemed to say . . . making me feel more uneasy

as the number of believers increased.

How, in the face of consistent misfortune,

could they continue to be His followers?

Reaching the Unreached - A Mandate in Catholic Bioethics

Dr Olinda Timms

The Second National Bio-ethics Colloquium, organised by the CCBI Bioethics Forum on November 15-16, 2024, was held at St John's National Academy of Health Sciences, Bengaluru. This year's theme 'Reaching the Unreached' explored possible ways of reaching marginalised populations and unserved patient groups within health systems and communities. Participants included doctors, Sister-doctors, religious, students, nurses and health workers from across the country, including Meghalaya, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kerala, Goa, Karnataka, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Bhopal and Gujarat. The Sister-Doctor Federation of India and the Catholic Health Association of India were well represented. The Colloquium was inaugurated by Fr Dr Jesudoss Rajamanickam, the Director of St John's Academy, and the Dean, Dr George D'Souza, in the presence of the CCBI Bioethics Council Director, Fr Christopher Vimalraj, Secretary Dr Nancy Angeline, Assoc. Director, Fr Charles Davis, and other Council members of the CCBI Bioethics Forum.

The session on Reproductive Health Ethics challenged participants to consider women's needs in situations of reduced autonomy, patriarchal structures, financial stress, lack of information, and options to plan their families and receive the medical care they need. Catholic doctors struggle with the requirement to offer all options to patients with infertility, and child spacing needs, while being unable to provide some of these interventions and procedures due their beliefs, in line with their conscience.

Health workers need support in decision making, and with the moral distress experienced in referring or refusing care, while responding to women in desperate situations. 

Silence  - Secret of Life

Calida D'Souza

‘Tapas', which translates as 'austerity/moderation' or 'discipline' is a prerequisite for a meditative life. The word Tapas is derived from the root Sanskrit verb 'tap' which means 'to burn' and evokes a sense of 'fiery discipline' or 'passion'.

On November 16, 2024, as the Christian Meditation group of Mumbai-Thane, affiliated to the WCCM (World Community for Christian Meditation) gathered for a Contemplative Eucharistic celebration at the Cloistered Carmel Monastery at Andheri, we encountered the highest form of 'Tapas'. It was complete devotion to prayer and contemplation, in a simple self-sacrificing life of solitude and silence. One may ask - such intense self-restraint for what? No, not to win God's heart or impress Him, because He already loves us. It is to come face-to-face with our true selves daily and experience the struggle between the light and darkness within closely. There is no escaping in this monastic life. The mystery of contemplative life of cloistered nuns is women choosing to spend their entire life within the walls of a monastery, hidden from the world for the sake of intimacy with God, and in the intimacy of the Eucharist, they discover "heaven and earth in little space." Contemplative life presents a paradox; the world, with all it has to offer, becomes too small for the heart in which God plants the desire for Himself alone.

"How great is the joy and prophecy proclaimed to the world by the silence of the cloister!" - Pope Francis

The Contemplative Mass was celebrated by Fr Dr Gavin Lopes. After the Contemplative Eucharist, the sisters of the convent were requested to share their life-turning stories with us for inspiration, and two of them, the seniormost and the junior most spoke to us from behind the grills.

 Sr Radha – A Rebel for God

Sr Radha, born a Hindu, studied at St Xavier's College. Initially, she was against Christianity. So much so that, once, she had a disagreement with a Catholic priest who informed her that only Christians can go to heaven. But a certain incident changed her mind. Affected by distractions at Hindu places of worship, she was enchanted by the Christian way of worship – totally focused. She began attending holy Mass regularly, which motivated her to become a Christian nun.

KAIROS 2024                                                                                  

Alinka Dias

While most people in India were gearing up for the much awaited Diwali weekend to celebrate the Indian festival of lights, around 5000 Catholic youth set out with fire and zeal in their hearts to a small town in India to celebrate the true Light of the world - Jesus Christ.

Train routes across the country diverged and converged, all intersecting at Chennai. Shuttle buses were arranged at Chennai Railway Station, and hundreds of youth jumped in, racing to reach the venue. Finally, on October 31 morning, the little picturesque town of Pondicherry welcomed these 5000 Catholic youth to an event like no other - KAIROS 2024. This electrifying four-day event was organised by ICYM and YU4C India.

The event was aptly named 'KAIROS' (a Greek word that translates to 'an opportune or decisive moment'), and true to its name, Kairos gave every young person an opportunity to experience God in an intimate and personal way.

Diverse youth from every corner of our nation, divided by cultures, traditions and language, united to celebrate their universal Catholic identity. The grand opening celebration was a melting pot with the youth from every state portraying their distinct heritage through song and dance.

Each day of the event commenced with the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. This was the critical element of Kairos that enabled us to be fully aware of our privilege as Catholics to receive Christ fully — body, blood, soul and divinity, and our need to respond to that love.

Spread across four days, Kairos saw bands like By Grace as well as bands from YU4C i.e. YU4C Mumbai, YU4C Goa and YU4C Delhi leading the youth into praise and worship through a mix of English and Hindi gospel songs as well as contemporary Christian music. It was heartening to see youth dancing and praising God through these beautiful renditions.

Kairos would be incomplete without the various speakers who took time to share their powerful testimonies. Kairos saw speakers like Lenny Soares, Ajin Joseph, Naveen Richard, Sr Paulina, Rijo John and Rachel Chittilapilly cover a wide range of topics like 'The Dangers of Porn', LGBTQ and Homosexuality, Dating and Courtship, etc.

Every speaker, gifted on a particular topic that was crucial for young people, shared their insights, words of wisdom and encouragement. Their words propelled the youth to be fearless in their call to lead a life rooted in Christ.

Another highlight of Kairos was the pro-life art exhibition organised by Eva Pro-life, an initiative of the Kalyan Diocese. In a world where the crime of abortion is portrayed as women's rights, this dynamic team of youth are advocating for the rights of the mother and her unborn. This interactive exhibition portrayed the facts about abortion, the disastrous effects of contraceptives, and the dangers of the porn industry through carefully crafted art installations.

Adoration and confession was also an integral part of the event, and everyone was encouraged to make a good confession and start afresh. There was also a team of gifted sisters who were available for one to one spiritual counselling. This helped many young people get clarity on various aspects of their lives.

Kairos 2024 was a one of a kind experience, with everyone having a story to share by the end of it. This opportune moment did not stop once the event was over; it will continue to edify and renew the heart of every young person who was present. The Lord works in mysterious ways, and surely He will make this moment last an eternity if we only surrender our lives to Him.

Via Amor: Following the Way of Love

Fr Denis Lemos, MSFS Director, Fransalian Youth Pune Province

The Youth from the Fransalian parishes of Mumbai, Vasai and Pune dioceses met at St Joseph Church, Kurla West on November 17, 2024 to celebrate their ' Fransalian-ness'  and reflect on the theme of Friendship and Love. 110 youth coming from Dahanu, Khopoli, Koparkhairane, Kurla, Mumbra-Diva, Nallasopara and Pune filled the hall with their energy, enthusiasm, excitement and exuberance.

The whole youth programme was meticulously planned by the Core Team involving Sr Fatima Azavedo, RSCJ, Sr Rani O.P., Diana Gudino, Carol, Carson, Arnold, Fr Roxy and Fr Denis.

The spirit and flavour of the gathering was elevated by some beautiful action songs, hymns and games conducted by Mr Carson Mendes and Ms Carol Anandraj from Pune. The first session on friendship was conducted by Fr Denis, and the second session on love was conducted by Sr Elizabeth Rani, O.P. Fr Denis elicited from the youth their experience of friendship through various activities and group discussions, while Sr Rani expounded to the youth about the reality of their feelings and emotions of love, and how it all takes place in their brains. She also explained how we can handle these sometimes difficult emotions of love.

The day-long celebration concluded with the Eucharistic celebration. The main celebrant for the Holy Eucharist was Fr Daniel Pareste, while Fr Roxy and Fr Denis concelebrated. Fr Daniel' s homily brought out the theme of "Remaining in the Love of Jesus" and walking in His way of Love.

The programme was laced with a tribal dance performed by the youth from Dahanu and a Bollywood dance by the youth from Pune.

The youth enjoyed their day, meeting many new friends, singing and praising God, bonding together as a Fransalian Youth Unit, and went home enriched and encouraged to be missionaries of Love.