SJL Chapter (Bengaluru): Inaugural Homily 12Sep2022
Readings: Phil 2:4-11 and Jn 15:1-11
Religious Life:
Seeing the invisible, Listening to the inaudible, and Doing the impossible
Introduction:
In religious life one shuttles between the Lord and the people with the mission as via media – The Lord calls the religious and the people need the service of the religious. In this swinging as a pendulum between taking people’s need to the Lord and bringing the Lord’s blessings to the people, the religious often comes to take the touch of the Lord, as Tagore would say, before one begins the day of mission. We come to the Lord for deliberations and clarity to do our best to the least among the Lord’s people. We need to have the right perspectives.
Once a King, in his old age, wanted to get his son ready to his throne. As a preparation, he sent him to a Guru in the forest. The Prince came to the Guru; and the Guru asked him to live in the forest for a week and to come back. When he came back, the Guru asked for his experience and the Prince reported that he saw animals, mountains, wild flowers, water falls, etc. The Guru sent him back as he was not satisfied with the report of the Prince. After a few weeks the Prince came back and said that he heard the sounds of the nature – animals, insects etc. He was sent back once again. After sometime, the Prince came back and reported that he understood the meaning of existence of plants, animals, nature etc as well as the harmony among the creation; and he was able to draw inspiration to live out his life and to perform his life assignment. The Guru realized that the Prince was now able to see the invisible, to hear the inaudible, and to do the impossible.[1] And he sent him back to the King. Religious vocation is like this – to see the invisible God amidst His people; to listen to His inaudible voice in the silent cry of the poor and the marginalized; and to do what is needed, even if it appears to be impossible. The Religious is called to live out the life of the people in mission.
My Vocation and Mission:
Vocation to religious life is a moment of grace and it is a continuous call of God for service. God called us, each one, whether we were aware of His plan or whether it was a total surprise or unexpected. The disciples of Jesus had their call at unexpected moments while they were making other plans in life: while in duty at the customs, or while busy with fishing etc. Let us recall our call. Let me recollect my journey so far with the Lord. I know He was with me all along but have I been with Him? I was called to live for and to serve others, especially the needy and the marginalized. Has my mission been with and for them? I belong to a group of people called in, like me, by the same charism of service. How much have I been a team-person? Let me visualize my achievements and successes: Let me reflect on whether they are out of my own efforts or team-work or God’s art? Let us feel and realize how God has been working with me and with others to realize His purpose.
My Encounter:
In this journey of my religious life, have I ever encountered God, like Moses encountering God in the burning bush while tending his sheep or like Paul encountering God in the lightning enroute Damascus? What brought me in and what has been keeping me going in religious life? Has my life meaningful to me and useful to others in my mission? I have spent some years and I have been at various places engaged, perhaps, in different types of work as a religious. Have I encountered myself? What have I learnt more about myself over the years? Have I grown in relationship with myself, with others, and with God? What do others say about me? What do I feel about myself? And what would God say about me? Would all sync and resonate or would there be any disparity? It is time to pause and reflect, before I proceed further on in my life of prayer leading to service; and before my faith in God becomes concrete in justice for the downtrodden and the discriminated.
Looking back the road I have walked through, was my religious life meaningful or resentful, overwhelming or tolerant, useful or purposeless? I have received much from the religious formation and the Congregation. Could I say that my output in service is more than input I have received? Have I ever said: Enough Lord, I have everything I want and I need? Where have I grown in life?: knowledge, wisdom, expertise, experience…. Let me look back and see whether I am relevant for the future.
I think of the role played by my fellow religious in my formation – formal and ongoing. Can I recall those who made impact or influence on me? What have I learnt from each one who touched me and impressed upon me? Can I be grateful to those who have shaped me? I might have been chiseled out, especially through rough going in life. Each moment of challenge or doubt or failure has been a hammer-touch chipping away unwanted or unnecessary junk from me – physically, mentally, spiritually, socially in order to emerge something beautiful for God and meaningful to people.
And I remember the people I have had in my mission. What does ‘contact’ and ‘connection’ mean to me. Contact is work related. I need to establish effective team to accomplish the best – It is work related. Connection springs forth from the Religious Community – It is building up relationships. The connecting link between ‘contact’ and ‘connection’ is the ‘mission’ entrusted to me, which creates and sustains not only working relationship but common vision. If we only concentrate on strengthening our working ‘contacts’, we might lose the essence of ‘connection’ with the life in the Community. We need a balance between the two. Our ‘connection’ in the Community energizes our ‘contacts’ in mission.
Discernment in Common:
We are gathered here for the Province Chapter meeting. Why do we meet now? Is it a regular/periodic meeting or is there any specific need for our coming together and spending so many days in prayer and deliberations. We are here to take stock of our life and ministry – We shall review the quality of our Community life and we shall deliberate on how our ministries are going. We shall compare what we planned last time with the present scenario or status of the Province – If there is any gap, we shall think of remedy. This coming together is also for the purpose of gap analysis in order to realize that our vocation in mission should be more meaningful and useful. We shall discern in common and we need to let the Spirit speak from each one of us, with the outcome of symphony leading to harmony in mission. We need to rethink to go ahead or in some cases to halt and wind up or in some other cases we could open up something new. Besides, rethinking of our ministries, we need to seek and find unity among ourselves and with our people in our mission. Our ministries should serve as link between us and our people. The focus of the Chapter meeting would be to elect delegates to represent the Province in the General Chapter in France a few months from now. We need to reflect and identify people who could reflect on the State of the Province, who would serve as the spokespersons and the face of the Province, and who would stand for the need of the people, especially our option people.
Spirit of God:
Above all, we shall encounter the Spirit of God, both individually and collectively. It would be an encounter, enlivening, enriching, and enchanting us, in order to enact His will and wish in our mission. This encounter would not be spectacular but gentle. Let us recall Elijah encountering God at Mt Horeb (1 Kg 19:11-13). As he was waiting to meet up with the Lord, there was a strong wind capable of breaking even mountings; then there was a frightening earthquake followed by a devastating fire. But God was not there in all these frightening and traumatic events but He encountered Elijah in an unassuming and insignificant way – There was, finally, a gentle whisper and God spoke in that small voice. Let us listen to the same whisper of the Spirit of God, spoken from others. This moment could be in an unexpected time like the healings at the pool of Bethesda, where periodically an angel would come down and stir the pool (Jn 5:4) and whoever gets down first to the pool would be healed. Let us be alert for the Visitation of the Spirit of God to speak to us, to inspire us, to take hold of us, to lead us on, and to make use of us.
Task at Hand:
Our task here at hand is i. Review (Our past experience would indicate whether we need any course correction); ii. Preview (Our future dream would draw up the road to walk on); and iii. Vision (Our action plan, local, regional, national, and global level would set the timeline). We need to look for signs of times (based on the current needs of the people we serve), for we cannot apply yesterday’s solution to tomorrow’s problems. Based on our past experience and keeping in mind our future dreams, we need to plan for the present. We need to be visionaries with regard to the future. We need to capture the whisper of the Spirit which might be momentary flash of inspiration; we need to take note of and remember dreams that might occur in passing; and we need to stir our heart and mind in order to lead ourselves in action. The result is life to the full – not only my life, not only the life of the Congregation members, but also the life of people we work for and also the entire creation. We have to create a new world with new vision. We are not only the keeper of our brothers/sisters (Gen 4:9), but also we are the steward of the creation (Gen 2:15).
Social and Spiritual Impulses:
We could recollect Martin Buber’s I-Thou concept and we could extend it to I-Thou-It (namely, me, you, and the nature). We can imbibe the African Ubuntu principle, which underlines that, “I am because we are”. We are the cumulative product of the society and we have received much from the society and it is our turn to give back. Jesus gives us the living philosophy of the vine and the branches (Jn 15:1-11) and Paul gives us the modality of operation (Phil 2:4-11) with regard to I-and-You. Irenaeus proclaimed that ‘Glory of God is human being fully alive’. Our Religious vocation is to be fully human and fully alive – It is not for each one of us exclusively but for others inclusively.
When we reflect on our life and mission, we need to reflect whether we have served our purpose? Whether the Charism of our Founders is still relevant? Is there anything we need to adopt with regard to ministries or adapt ourselves in our understanding of our existence? We need to find the Finger of God pointing to the direction to follow in the future. It might lead to a different mission; and our way of life might be different. But our focus and criteria might be that we are with the Vine and we have the same mindset as Jesus (Phil 2:5).
Onward March:
Armored with the Spirit of Jesus and convinced of His being with us and leading us, on we go serving His people. The Lord who chose us, who called us, who have been walking with us, will see us through. All one needs is conviction in one’s call and confidence in the leading grace of God. On we go with the One who invited us.
* St Joseph’s of Lyon Province Chapter @ Bengaluru – Inaugural Homily (12Sep2022)
[1] https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/895072-the-formless-way-we-look-at-it-and-do-not