Bp Stephen Antony Pillai

“Tuticorin diocese is targeted because of Kudankulam
Nuclear Power and Sterlite copper plant.”

Episcopal ordination on February 24 in the Cathedral,Tuticorin

What motto are you going to take as the bishop of Tuticurin?
I have taken a passage from the gospel of St Matthew (11: 29) as my motto: “I am gentle and humble in heart.”

Why did you opt for it?
Today, all the authority is being questioned, because it is misused. People want to see us as ministers in the example of Jesus who washed the feet of the disciples. He humbled Himself, Philippians 2:6-11. Jesus was equal to the Father, but He did not cling to that divine status. He humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant. He was a simple and humble man. His authority was put into the service of the human being. He was manifesting His mercy, as the Holy Father puts it. Sometimes, though not always, mercy is absent even in the Church. People are disgusted with that. They can’t stand such kind of authority. They, rather, like compassion, mercy and love with humility. Going around, embracing the people, understanding them, listening to the ordinary people and going down to their level, that is what I visualize. This is my view of humility.

Hailing from Kottar, you became a priest in Vellore and now are becoming the bishop of Tuticorin. How do you look at your place of apostolate? I understand that, with more than four lakhs of Catholics and 287 schools, it is a well established diocese. What would be your priority for it?
My priority is spiritual awakening through the love for God, love for the people, mutual respect, harmonious living, deriving hope from God by studying the Scripture. God’s desire is the salvation of all the people. He doesn’t disown anybody. This is the way that we have to understand the Scripture. God has love for all. There are so many conflicts in the diocese; some disharmony, some dissension. All that is because of our ego. Each one is wanting to do as he likes. One must go to the Scripture and sit in front of the Eucharist, derive wisdom from them. In spite of all the conflicts and all the failures, victory will then be ours. We carry the cross up to Calvary. Victory is waiting for us, because our God is a God of triumph. But a Christian has to carry the cross, and so suffering is a part and parcel of the Christian life. Jesus says, carry your cross daily and follow me. So, my priorities will be unity of the people, peace for the people, and having special devotion to the Scripture and the Eucharist. I plan to evolve a system through which we are able to live the Christian life fully. That is what I visualize. Moreover, though I am from Kottar, I had shifted to Tuticorin, but had to leave the place while studying in the 9th for health reasons. I returned after two years to study in the 11th standard.

Are you a dropout from Tuticorin?
My root is in Tuticorin; I mean the vocational root. If God so wills, I will bear fruit. I am a grown up plant of forty years in priesthood service. This is God’s plan and His will. I never thought that, at the age of sixty-six, I would be made a bishop. God has fulfilled His own dream in this way. That’s how I take it.

You spoke about the spiritual renewal and rejuvenation of the diocese, and you also said there is some dissension. You also said authority is self-emptying, a kind of kenosis, and there is also another dimension to authority which is participatory Church. How do you visualize exercising that authority among your 115 priests, the nuns and the lay people?
Teaching, sanctifying and governing are the three main activities of a bishop. This governing is reigning. But, according to me, it is a kind of the reigning with compassion, with love and with understanding. At the same time, at the administration level you need to be disciplined. There is an apparent conflict between discipline, administration and spirituality, doesn’t there? In administration you have to correct the people. Jesus administered in humility by questioning the old systems, the inhuman system that has been practiced by the Pharisees and Scribes. He questioned them. He wanted them to change their life and comeback to the path of compassion. But they refused. When you preach and administer according to Jesus, you will be put into death. That’s the cost you have to pay for it. So, spirituality must accompany administration. But we need to be courageous enough to face all these challenges. Because, we are convinced that God has called us and He is with us and the Blessed Virgin Mary is praying for us and all the saints and the whole Church is praying for the bishops. The bishop is somebody who is unique, someone chosen by God to lead the people. He needs to have courage, discipline and holiness. Hope is now disappearing. As the Vicar General of Vellore diocese, I had to confront people and their problems. It was not always easy to understand a problem and find a solution for it. Any solution will please one group and disappoint the rival group. And those who are disappointed will keep a lifelong grudge over it. They will not forget. You have to face it. But that doesn’t mean our spirituality, our honesty; sincerity and justice should be sacrificed for the sake of understanding and humility. We should stand for justice.

How would you describe the diocese that you are entrusted with? What do you think is its urgent need now?
It is a historical diocese that has its own tradition and strong faith in the Lord. They have been living their faith. We see that happening in practice. The first area that need my attention is bringing the people together in cooperation. For that we must talk to them, understand them and enlighten them. That harmony is very important. They have been given a bigger responsibility. If they are able to execute that responsibility, the problems will get solved. Any problem is not beyond us: it is within us to handle them. If we have created them, we can also solve them, of course with the help of prayer. They must come up in social life. They must get educated and be taught to go out and build solidarity with the larger community.

We are living in a world where Christians are persecuted. Statistics say the highest number of atrocities against Christians happened in Tamil Nadu, at least in 2017. Do you find some sort of anti-Christian attitude emerging and also politically some sort of motivated division happening in your diocese?
It is very much happening. Tuticorin diocese is targeted because of two factors of which you and the world must be well aware of, the Kudankulam nuclear plant and Sterlite industries, a company owned by Vedanta Limited. People feel, it affects their day-to-day life because of the poisonous gas emanating from it. When people organize protests against it, the government paints Christians as Naxalites and anti-nationals.

As I understand it, bishop, your predecessor was targeted.
Yes, but suffering is not a fear factor for us. We are ready to suffer. We have to cooperate with the suffering people. We struggle against evil and injustice, and that we will continue. We will fight for the people. The history of Christianity is written through persecution from the time of Romans, and in so many places like the European countries people are suffering from secularism. The Lord is being forgotten. They deny God and live in egoism. They don’t want to trust in hope. Hope is almost lost and faith is weakened. In some places of this world, you are forbidden to display the Christmas crib in public. But the people of India, the Hindus, are very tolerant. But, there is a fringe element that is playing a political game. There are many Hindu brethren cooperating with us in our struggle to overcome this challenge.

The Kudankulam nuclear plants as well as the Sterlite industries are there in the name of development. Now development has become an enemy of the people, has it really?
Not over all. But, in certain aspects it became our enemy. In a positive sense, we need to have electricity in order to produce goods. But, when it germinates poisonous gas and the fish die and you cannot go for fishing and the people’s daily life is ruined, it’s a different matter. The people have to spend a lot of money on health issues. Many people die due to cancer. Development has to be go hand in hand with a healthy environment.

Is this an issue of ecology?
Yes, it is an issue of ecology. Our Pope has said all development should be done for the people. Everything has to be developed. In Europe, there is a recycling system; all the wastes are being recycled and they make good products with them. But, in India it is not so, all the wastes are dumped in the water, into the air or onto the villages. The restrictions placed by the government are not working. It is done with the knowledge of politicians, who are in love with money. If you have money you can do anything. They say that they are going to reopen the Sterlite industries, because Sterlite has money power and political power. Our poor people have only mental strength and unity.

The Indian Church is confronting some sort of religious fundamentalism. It is there all through the Arabian countries, it is also in every Asian countries and it is also happening in some form in the European Countries too. There is some sort of Christian fundamentalism in Hungary and America. How does it originate? How do you confront it?
Fundamentalism is caused by the radical teaching of some people who are not able to understanding the scripture and the mind of God well. They are not able to discern the inner core of the scripture. They interpret in their own way in accordance with their own views and egoism. They have the selfish intent of fulfilling their own desires. The persons who promote fundamentalism have ulterior motives like power and the authority over others.

Do you think fundamentalism is using religion as a cover?
Now a days it is very much used by politicians. In every feast, every ritual activity, even the pilgrimage like Kumbamela or taking the statues for processions, they bring conflicts and people are being even killed on account of that. They intentionally want to offend others. Everywhere it is happening. With regard to the CBCI, we have to follow the tradition of the Church, which is very tolerant, especially after Vatican Council II. We need to understand others, dialogue with others and listen to others. Without compromising our uniqueness, we have to learn to live in this society. For me Jesus is all, Jesus is my redeemer, my saviour. Jesus is loving them. Then, why should I not love them? I must love them.

May I now ask you a disturbing question? There are scandals within the Church happening and the scandals are very much affecting the faith of the people. How do you look at the scandals? How do you answer the people?
I am really saddened by the scandals. We need to say mea culpa, if we have done wrong. We have been protecting these people. But it is not a new issue. It is a centuries old issue. We did not have any media; we did not have people who have the courage to bring them all ouit. Dirty things of so called spiritual authorities are not brought out. Now the media and the people are taken courage to bring out that. I am sad, because people are scandalized.

There are lot of sins and scandals within the bible and they are all sort by some sort of as you said, mea culpa. That kind of confession as Augustine wrote is the Church is a Confessional Church. Don’t you think we need to be more of a Confessing Church?
Yes, we need to confess our sins and say to the people that we are human. The Church is constituted of holy people, sinful people, mediocre people and saintly people. Sinfulness is overpowering us. Even in the history of the Church like Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross have been persecuted in order to bring some changes and transformation. John of the Cross had been persecuted and put into the prison. Now, we declare him as a saint and consider him as a doctor of the Church. Humanity is weak. The flesh will lead you to sin, but the Spirit is there. We hope in the Spirit, because, Jesus has overcome sin and death. He has shown us the power of Easter, the power of glory. Goodness will ultimately triumph.

When you look back on the responsible posts you handled in your long journey of priesthood, how satisfied do you feel?
Personally, I am chosen by God to lead the people of what is the biggest diocese in Tamil Nadu. For Four lakhs fifty thousand people I must be a man of God. I must show the mercy and compassion of God. I cannot teach others unless I read scripture. I cannot proclaim holiness if I am not holy. First, I must purify myself, sanctify myself. I must lead a life according to the Scripture, according to the mind of Jesus. He is my mentor and master. I would like to imitate Him even to carry the cross along with the people. Thus we can turn the sufferings into joy. And in the Eucharist, I review my every day.

You are a man who read Scripture and interpret Scripture. What is in Jesus that struck you, amazes you, challenges you?
That is the Beatitudes. It has transformed many people. I think the Beatitudes and the cross challenge me. All that Jesus said and preached has been fulfilled on Calvary. Calvary is the fulfilment of the Beatitudes. The personality of Jesus is inexhaustible, unfathomable, within three years how much He has done! Personally I have a love for Him, I simply embrace Him, He is very close to me. Even if I keep away, He is very close to me. That is my conviction. His teachings are everlasting. His cross is beyond time and space.

You are a praying priest. What is prayer for you and how do you pray?
Prayer is a relationship, a personal intimate relationship with the Lord. So, for me prayer is a person to person relationship. Without loving my neighbour, even without loving my enemies I cannot fulfil the command of Jesus. For me, prayers mean living the relationship with Jesus. He was the friend of everybody, especially going out of the way to meet sinners and the tax collectors. That is His preferential option for the poor and the sinners. For Him justice is not the justice that we think it to be. He has more love for the sinners. According to justice you have to have more love for the just people. He leaves the 99 and goes out in search of the one who is lost, that is the justice being practiced by Jesus, which we are not able to understand even after thousands of years.