Episcopal Ordination: 11th February 2018

When is your Episcopal ordination?
It will be on Sunday 11th February 2018. As a case of rare coincidences, we have on that day the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, it is the day of Bp Stephen’s episcopal ordination and it is the Sunday before Ash Wednesday.

What have you chosen as the motto of your episcopate?
I have chosen this prayer from the Missal as my motto: “Da pacem in dièbus nostris” grant us peace in our days, O Lord.

That is the concluding part of the Our Father, isn’t it?
Yeah, it comes after the Our Father. We need above all a lot of peace inside, the divine peace of reconciliation. We face too much conflict, debates or fights. So I desire to work for peace and reconciliation. I was inspired by St Francis of Assisi’s prayer for peace to make the choice for my motto.

In what sense are you speaking of conflict?
I am speaking of the conflict among religions, cultures and among different Christian denominations. Peace should come now as a gift. We are now far from makers of peace.

Violence is on the increase as the culture of intolerance to otherness is spreading. The otherness are other religions, other castes and other cultures. Why do you think intolerance has grown in our country?
I am still struggling to find out the grounds for the conflicts. There is a culture of superficial comforts of life, religion gone very sentimental and external rather than profound and personal. Pope Francis said Christmas can be meaningfully celebrated in silence. We face aversion to silence and aversion to peace.

Fundamentalist tendency is raising its head in every religion and community. Does fundamentalism have anything to do with the consumer culture in which we are living?
I would think so. Consumerism and fundamentalism go hand in hand. Consumerism prompts people to think that everything is meant for them only. When everyone thinks that way, it is impossible for peace to exist in society. Unless we understand that we have something in common to share and cherish, we will have no respect for each other.

A group tried to prevent the celebration of Christmas in the schools of UP. Nothing of this happened in the history of India. As a bishop for the next generation of this country, how do you think it will affect the small Christian communities of North India?
On the one hand, Christians are attacked because the majority feels scared of the values they represent, on the other, the Church has to take the blame for provoking it by too much show of institutional power. People think of us as a small minority that wields high influence through the institutions of high standard that we run. We should take this as an opportunity to show our solidarity with the minorities and suffering people. The minority should lead a simple life and invite others to share with them. I think the established churches are not doing so.

Would it be right to say that Hindutva is actually a degenerated form of Hinduism?
The speakers of Hindutva are themselves degrading Hinduism, which is a noble culture in which people of diverse religions can cherish the values of fraternity, togetherness and tolerance. But today it has degraded into a political card. Religion plays a dominant role that we are becoming intensively polarized on the basis of religion.

What is going to happen to the idea of India? Do you think the constitution of India will withstand the lure of fundamentalism?
I still believe that the Constitution has the power to withstand the onslaught of fundamentalism, provided we stick to secular education but for that, greater awareness should be created among the people about their constitutional rights and duties. Sometimes even educated people are not aware of their constitutional rights. So there is a growing need to teach the constitution in schools and even in our Sunday Catechism. If people are educated in the constitutional values, then they will be equipped to stand up to fundamentalism because ultimately fundamentalism cannot lead a nation to progress. It will only take the nation backwards.

Hindutva has plenty in common with Fascism and Nazism. The Hindu Maha Sabha was very much aligned to the Nazi movement. Like the Nazis, Hindutva proponents believe in the supremacy of the Arian race. Are you anxious about this movement gaining strength in India?
In every culture, be it in India or in Europe, people will try to gain power using every imaginable means. While we profess our allegiance to the constitution, as Christians we also profess our allegiance to the Gospel which teaches us about the counter culture, which is about fundamental values that all men should cherish. The Bible teaches me to see every person as the image of God. That is also the basis for the fundamental equality of every person before the law. It is the antidote to the conflicts that social differences have given rise today.

Don’t you think the Bible is basically a book that teaches the dignity of man, irrespective of caste, religion or nationality, and also that the central theme of the Gospel is to see the world as one family?
The Bible begins with humanity, not with religion as its central theme. It also ends completing its vision of humanity. When the Word became flesh, the Lord became flesh, which means the Lord became human. Everything is seen in universal dimension, but that vision has been misused. The basic way to read the bible is by keeping in mind that in the heart of it is humanity and God. Man is the image of God, not of a particular religion.

What will be your priority for Alleppey?
My predecessors have already prepared the way for us. I think the key to peoples’ development and integration is education. My first priority will be to promote education as a tool for change.

What can education mean to the poor and marginalised Latin Catholics of Alleppey’s coastal belt?
Education should be first of all bring them job opportunities in fields like marine technology and the Marine Industry. The Marine University of Kochi is engaged in a lot of Marine Research. The children of fishermen must be equipped to take advantage of the available opportunities and scholarships. They should study the technology to be a help to local people. In other words, education will provide them jobs, knowledge and an opportunity to contribute to their community. I believe that, if we give a chance, they can really come up in life. They have the potential for it. I myself is an example for it. I come from a very poor fisherman family. Better opportunities made me what I am. I believe that is true for most of the people.

Would you give some statistics about Alleppey diocese?
We have approximately one hundred and sixty-seven thousand Catholics. Besides, we have 80 parishes, 22 stations, 109 priests, 360 nuns and 23 religious priests.

The Okhi Cyclone was tragic experience for coastal people. What lessons have you learned from it?
This time it was indeed a crippling cyclone. Every year something or the other of this type visits our people. Each time they have to take refuge in schools or other public shelters. Since similar things happen year after year, hardly any effort is made by the government to provided for emergency situations. I also feel that the affected people don’t have proper representation in decision making, an advantage which other communities enjoy. Our people also don’t have enough leaders with a prophetic mission to guide. And so the Kerala Church has a common responsibility towards them. The needs of these poor and starving community should get the importance it deserves in the state’s budget.

The Kerala Catholic Church is a three ritual community. Do you think a true and honest communion exists in the KCBC?
My feeling is that we had such a time immediately after Vatican II. The whole Church made a serious effort to be in communion then. But now we become more polarized and communalized. Every Church, Latin, Syrian or Malankara, is obsessed with building up its own identity. Now that we have a common enemy, it offers a new opening. We have to grow in communion of faith. We suffered severely from ritual division, so, in that sense, we may have a new faith and greater sensitivity for each other’s concerns. The Church in Kerala is rich enough to look after its poor.

In contrast to the spring we enjoyed immediately after Vatican II, we have now the Ghar Vapsi slogan by sections of the Church borrowed from the advocates of Hindutva. Are we also not guilty of the fundamentalism which we accuse other religions of?
That is especially true when we speak of matters of history. A kind of nostalgia for the past is gaining dominance everywhere. Speaking about the past without looking critically, it has led people to fundamentalistic and communalised thinking. And so we end up not finding Christ and not living our faith. This leads to conflicts which cause a lot of waste of money and energy. In that sense, there is a kind of intolerance existing between the different Churches. The Latins have a particular version of the Church, and so do the Orientals. A common evaluation of history will help us to understand and appreciate each other’s traditions. In the Catholic tradition, being Latin does not mean one should follow only the Latin rite. If I am a Latin, it simply means that I am baptized in the Latin Church. I am entitled to follow all the rich traditions of the Church. Which means I have an equal right to seek nourishment of faith through the Oriental traditions. Thinking in that line will help us to appreciate the other.

The political parties are fully aware of the division within the ritual Churches. Don’t you think this division is having a crucial impact on state politics?
Absolutely. I think we are playing into the hands of politicians. They want a fragmented Church. They are happy about our fractional tendency. The strength of the Christian community, the Oriental Church and the Latin Church put together is great. Politicians have succeeded in keeping us divided.

The BJP has different policies with regard to the ritual Churches, don’t they?
That is true. They are close to people with whom they are affiliated through vested interests. That way, they make sure that the Church remains fragmented. Politicians precisely want the Church to be divided.

The bible is very close to your heart. Why are you so madly in love with the scripture?
It all started in the minor seminary. I find “Lectio Divina,” meditating on the Word of God is very inspiring. Words of the gospel can have a great transformative power in life. Understanding the New Testament and the Old Testament are a key to understanding life. The Old Testament has got a wider spectrum of literature compared to the New Testament. “Lectio Divina” is something which I ardently promote among seminarians.

What do you find so inspiring and empowering in Jesus Christ?
Sentimentally, it is His message of reconciliation, communion and the prophetic aspect of His life. Jesus’ life is an all time classic for the human heart. His message is soothing to the wounded and the wavered. I think Pope Francis is giving voice to His message of mercy and reconciliation. The Sant’ Egidio movement which gives a lot of importance to the gospel and the Word of God has also influenced me greatly. I got some training to understand the richness of the Word of God and the humanity it teaches.

As the rector of Carmelgiri seminary, would you share with our readers the idea you have about future priests?
The personal aspect is missing in our seminary formation. What we have is a systematic and organized formation package. That will not be sufficient to form people of committed faith whose Christian convictions have overcome challenges. Unless formation becomes a journey in faith for the seminarian, it will not make him a formed priest. In its absence, each one forms himself, holding on firmly to his own favourite ideas or attachments, which somehow may lead to setbacks in the life of a priest.

Systematic formation does not produce the desired output; isn’t that what you mean?
The formee was not the central focus of the formation process until now. The focus is still on the formators or the system of formation. Bringing the formee centre-stage will automatically orient him to the Spirit, to the challenges and to the demands of the time. It is not necessary that every seminarian should be ordained immediately after completing three years of theology. The decision on that should be made separately for each person by a mentor who has spiritually accompanied him. Time should be provided as per individual requirement for a candidate to come to a firm decision that he is ready to make a life-long commitment, understanding the demands of the time. Sadly, the conversion process is absent sometimes in formation. Coordination among various seminaries in formation is a welcome initiative.

Please tell us something about your parish, family and education?
My parish is St Francis Xavier’s, Kandakadavu. I was born as the youngest child of five in March 7th 1962. My parents are no more; my mother passed away in 2011 and I lost my father when I was 9 years old in 1971. In the seminary, I got good opportunities and encouragement. I completed my philosophy and theology in Alwaye at a time when the seminary was inter-ritual, that I think seminary has provided me a better experience. I did my doctorate in Biblical Theology in Rome at the Pontifical Urbanian University. It was a beautiful experience of living in an international college with two hundred priests from forty-four countries, a lot of them Africans. There I experienced the communion of Churches. Because of my interest in the Old Testament, I continued my studies and took my Masters in Judaism from the Pontifical Gregorian University.