Category: From The States

The Vatican’s strategy to make up for shrinking numbers of the faithful in the traditional catchments of Europe and the West has energized the Catholic Church in India.

However, the process of canonization, mandating two miracles, has nevertheless led to a controversy over the archaic practice, centered on medical as well as theological grounds.

On October 13, Pope Francis conferred sainthood on Thrissur-born Mother Mariam Thresia, the founder of the Congregation of the Holy Family.

This prompted the Kerala chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to seek an explanation from Doctor V.K. Sreenivasan, a neonatologist at the Amala Institute of Medical Sciences in Thrissur, for reportedly “certifying the miraculous cure of a newborn afflicted with a seemingly incurable primary pulmonary hypertension.”

The child reportedly recovered dramatically after its parents prayed to Mother Thresia from the hospital bed in 2009.

“Dr Sreenivasan, who travelled to the Vatican as a witness, has to tell us what specific markers he had found in the child’s condition to claim supernatural healing. We come across many instances of a cure, often very rare and medically the least anticipated. But to call them miracles is outside the pale of medical ethics,” says Doctor N Sulphie, the IMA state general secretary.

The criticism from within the Church against miracles is centered on the legacy of saints, hailed as iconic examples rather than miracle workers or intercessors. The fullness of heroic lives of virtues, as witnessed by fellow humans, should be sufficient for their veneration as role models. Miracles are merely the interpretation, attributing divinity to causes mortals espouse.

Says Fr Paul Thelakat, the chief editor of “Sathyadeepam” (Light of Truth): “I do know that the Church has strict procedures with respect to miracles and relics, but I may suggest a real rethinking from the theological and scientific point of view two items in canonization, namely the necessity of two miracles and relics. It is time to have a cultural, theological and pastoral re-evaluation of the meaning and the relevance of relics in our times.”

India, home to Christianity for centuries, has survived the paradox of being without a saint for nearly 2,000 years. The first Indian saint was Gonzalo Garcia, a martyr, canonized in 1862. Out of a total of six saints in the country, five were canonized after 2000.

Amid fears of the collapse of 22-year-long peace talks between Naga tribal insurgent groups and the Indian government, hundreds are praying for peace in Christian-majority Nagaland State. Several Naga militant groups fighting for a separate tribal homeland joined on the Oct. 23 fast to pray for the success of the ongoing peace talks.

Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan led the Indian delegation at the ceremony in which Pope Francis will declare Mariam Thresia a saint in Vatican City on Oct. 13. Muraleedharan visited the Vatican City on October 12-13 for the canonisation of Sister Mariam Thresia, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

Sister Mariam Thresia, born on April 26, 1876, in Thrissur, Kerala, founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Family in 1914. She passed away on June 8, 1926. On April 9, 2000, she was beatified by Pope John Paul II.

In his ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio program last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also referred to Sister Thresia.

“Sister Thresia, in her short lifespan of 50 years, worked for the good of humanity becoming a noble example for the entire world. Whatever task Sister Mariam Thresia undertook and accomplished, she did so with utmost dedication and devotion,” he had said.

The 44th annual research seminar of the Association of Christian Philosophers of India (ACPI) will take place at the St Joseph Vaz Spiritual Renewal Centre, Old Goa. The October 23 to 25 addresses the theme: “Philosophizing Science: Promises, Perils and Possibilities.”

The seminar will be co-hosted by the Indian Institute of Science and Religion (IISR), Delhi.

Goa and Daman Archbishop Filipe Neri Antonio Sebastião do RosárioFerrão is the chief guest and inaugurate the seminar. Jesuit Father Job Kozhamthadam, director of IISR, will deliver the keynote address.

The theme “Philosophizing Science” has to do with the philosophical critique of science from diverse yet wholesome Indian and Christian perspectives, according to Jesuit Father Keith D’Souza, president ACPI.

The subtheme “Promises, Perils and Possibilities” lends itself to discussions on positive, dysfunctional and futuristic aspects of various features and disciplines of the scientific enterprise.

There are still areas in which the Jesuits can work to protect the environment in India, according to a member of the order.

On February 19, Father Arturo Sosa, the superior general of the Society of Jesus, urged his men to give a pastoral priority to ecological issues, as a direct response to Pope Francis’s 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’.

Jesuit Father Luke Rodrigues said it was also a response “to the crisis we experience today in terms of environmental degradation.”

The Jesuits of the Bombay Province – based in Mumbai – took up this call, building on already existing programs to protect the environment.

“In the rural areas, there are many ecological initiatives in the field of agriculture. Farmers working in dry regions – such as Nashik district – are encouraged to take up water harvesting schemes,” the priest said.

“This works on the principle of catching the water where it falls, thereby replenishing the groundwater table. This assures farmers of at least one good crop and at times the possibility of a second one too. Fruit plantations are now coming up, thanks to the enhanced supply of water,” he said.

Nashik is located about 120 miles north of Mumbai and has a large agricultural sector, most famous for its vineyards.