Cry of the Oppressed:

The Lord God asserts: Even if a mother forgets a child, I shall not forget you (Is 49:15). A 20-year-old woman, according to The Hindu paper (Oct 13^th 2013), refused to take possession of an infant born to her and her Dalit husband. The hope of such abandoned children is the Lord.

The social and economic conditions of the Dalits in India are very inhuman:

• 37% are living below the poverty level.
• 83 per 1000 children born die before the first birthday.
• 45% do not know to read and write.
• Public health workers refuse to visit their homes in 33% of villages.
• They are prevented from entering police stations in 27.6% of villages.
• Their children have to sit separately while eating in 37.8% of Govt. schools.
• They do not get mail delivered to their homes in 23.5% of villages.
• Half of India’s Dalit children are undernourished; 21% are severely underweight; and 12% die before their 5th birthday.

And they are also created in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26) as anyone else! Why are they not treated as human beings? Such discrimination violates the image and likeness of God in our Dalits and hence, it is unethical and sinful; and such discrimination is not merely a social aberration nor just denial of justice to the Dalits due to the practice of untouchability, but it is a sinful act in the moral life. Hope in the Lord and hope in themselves are their refuge. And the Christian community could also become the anchor of that hope for the marginalized.

Barack Obama in his US Presidential inaugural address (Jan 2009) said: “a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant, can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath”. The marginalized should have their recognition and their rightful place in the society – The starting point is recognition by the Church and by all the Christians of their human face and their human rights, as they are also created in the likeness and image of God (Gen 1:26f).

As Jon Sobrino would say (in: Witnesses to the Kingdom):

They are silenced, robbed of dignity and words to speak; they are im-potent, powerless to claim and use their rights; … they are in-significant, counting for nothing; and they are increasingly non-existent within the machinery of economic production. The poor are non-beings, who have become poor because everything was snatched away from them.

These are the crucified people of our nation and of the Church in India – Crucified on the cross of discriminating society, neglected by religion, and ignored by politics. They are economically poor, socially outcastes, religiously and culturally ostracized, and health as well as education are denied to them. And they are scattered like bones in the open valley of neglect and abandonment but the ever living Spirit of the Almighty God will give them shape and meaningful life and might.

The Prophet Ezekiel (Ch 37) was commissioned to preach to the dry bones in the valley of humanity. And Lord brought together the scattered bones, put them in shape, and gave flesh and nerves, and breathed in life. Today, the Dalits are leading lifeless existence and they are broken in every aspect and are minimized and humiliated in all walks of life. They are ignored due to their poverty and they are avoided due to their lowliness in the society. But the Lord is their hope – The Lord, who liberated the lacerated slaves of the mighty Pharaoh and made them a mighty nation, is the hope of liberation and power and salvation. They would be led by Jesus, who identified Himself with the untouchable social lepers and the social outcast Samaritans. Both Yahweh and Jesus will bring justice to the marginalized and empower them. There are rays of hope everywhere – As the night has to come to an end with the day-break, the fetters of darkness and oppression would dawn with liberation of equality and human dignity for the Dalits and the other oppressed. As the Crucified Lord rose again from the dead, so the Dalits will rise up from all the clutches of oppression. The Lord would listen to the cry of the oppressed and they would bloom into laughter of joy with freedom.

The Lord is aware that the oppressing social system might stifle the cry of the oppressed but cannot stop their voices. Their moaning voice will be louder than the cyclonic thundering and lightning. The 5^th anniversary of Khandamal that has devoured the blood and lives of so many Dalits and Tribals, will find avenging in this year of faith.

Sign of Hope: Is 11:1-10; Rom 15:4-9; Mt 3:1-12

Today’s readings are scattered with elements of promise and hope for the better. Prophet Isaiah sets the goal for our journey of faith, namely righteousness. And the apostle Paul lays ahead the path of hope to walk on towards the goal. Finally, John the Baptist gives the ultimatum with regard to our concrete life – a life of justice and fairness.

Righteousness as the beginning: The Prophet Isaiah paints the picture of the coming leader as follows:

• The spirit of the Lord will rest upon him.
• He will take delight in the fear of the Lord.
• With righteousness he will judge the poor.
• With equity he will decide for the meek of the land.
• Righteousness will be the belt around his waist.

Thus, as the delegate of the Lord Almighty, a little baby to be born would establish equity and righteousness in the world – He would take His stand with the poor and the marginalized. And the outcome would be:

• The wolf would dwell with the lamb.
• The calf and the lion cub will feed together.
• The cow and the bear will be friends.
• The lion will eat hay like the ox.

The little fragile child to be born on Christmas will become the focus of the universe and the nations will come in search of him and his dwelling place will be glorious. The meek and the oppressed will become mighty and would become the power-centre of the nation. The Lord of hope becomes the hope of might for the exploited.

Hope as the way of journey: St Paul points out that our Lord Jesus made himself a servant of the Jews – He fulfilled all the Jewish traditions and customs but he eventually became their Lord. In the same way, the slaves of the society, namely the Dalits who do the dirty and difficult works for the society will, in and through the Lord, become the equals in the society they serve today. They walk today with hope along the road of neglect and humiliation, but the Lord of History would make them leaders of the society. Paul assures that unrelenting hope would see them through all sufferings and humiliations, just as the humiliation of the Cross, for Jesus, led to the glory of resurrection and assumption into heaven and sitting at the right of the Father.

Ultimatum by John, the Baptist: Today’s readings are not merely sympathising with the oppressed but also give an ultimatum to the oppressors as well. John the Baptist takes up the whip of justice and demands change of attitude lest they should be ‘cut down and thrown into the fire’.

He represents the emaciated people: Dressed in scanty clothes of camel’s skin with leather belt and eating the bare minimum food available in the forest, he gives the picture of the marginalized in the society. He spews out the bottled up volcanic millennia suppressed anger of the exploited. He resonates with the marginalized in his words, when he says:

• Brood of vipers! Who told you that you could escape the punishment that is to come?
• The axe is already laid to the roots of the trees – to be cut down and thrown into fire, (if there is no fruit of equality and dignity for all).

And finally he invites all for the baptism: Not the baptism that could wash the original sin but cannot wash away untouchability in the Church; but a baptism of the spirit and fire that would burn the social evil of caste mindedness and social discrimination and renews the entire person with the spirit of Jesus who could embrace all, the Samaritan, the lepers, the working-class as well as the dominant class, provided they repent and change their way of oppression.

Jesus too today invites us –

to follow him to touch the social leper and feel healed with him;

to follow him to the well of Jacob to accept the religious untouchable Samaritan woman and to learn from her that the Lord is to be worshipped in spirit and truth;

to question the servant of the High Priest for justice who unjustly struck him on the face; and

to forge our solidarity with the Dalits who have been baptized, like anyone else, in the Catholic Church and to give them their rightful place in the Church and the society.

Power of the Powerless:

On the part of the Dalits we are invited to reflect on the inner power and the external action:

1. Confidence and confederation;
2. Education as key to empowerment; and

• Four agreements with ourselves today.

Jesus had the conviction and confidence that He was the Son of God even amidst his failure of rejection of people and humiliation of crucifixion. Let us be convinced that we too, as Dalits, are invited to build the Church. And as the Bishops Conference has declared (in the Marian year of 1988) 65% of the Catholic Church is of Dalits – This should lead us to a confederation of solidarity building. When the Dalits come together they become a formidable power to lead themselves to liberty and equality. And all along the history, education has been the eye-opener to social thinking and societal rebuilding. The missionaries have done their best to establish schools and colleges and today, the Dalits have to fight for admissions and appointments in the schools and colleges run by the Dioceses and religious congregations in order to be empowered in the society.

And finally let us make today the four agreements with ourselves:

1. Do not make assumptions;
2. Do not take anything personally;

• Let your words be impeccable; and

1. Always do your best.

Let us ask ourselves the question: Where are we now and where should we head on? In life:

1. Do not make assumptions: Make things clear to yourself. Find the courage to ask questions especially about discrimination and inequality and to express what you really need. This would completely transform your life.
2. Do not be unnecessarily influenced by others – What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you become immune to the opinions and actions of others, you would cease to be the victim of needless suffering and humiliation.
3. As Jesus said, let your words be Yes, yes or No, No. Speak with integrity and say only what you mean and want. Use the power of word for truth and love and service.
4. Whatever you do, do it ever more and ever better. Your best is the changing parameter for yourself and for the society. When you do your best, you would avoid self-judgement, as well as criticism from others  (Cf Four Agreements with Yourself by Don Miguel Ruiz).

Finally, let us be convinced of our dignity. With Martin Luther King let us say: do not judge people by the colour of their skin (or by the origin of social birth) but by the content of character. And, let us count on our strength and as the majority of the Catholic Church we could resonate with Nelson Mandela: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us”. Pope Francis, during his recent visit to Assisi, said that the Roman Catholic Church must strip itself of all ‘vanity, arrogance and pride’ and humbly serve the poorest in society – The poor include the marginalized as well. Let us march on with the Lord of the poor and of the oppressed and in solidarity with the fellow crucified people of oppression and marginalization, towards the glory of resurrection of liberation, equality, and dignity. May the Lord of History be our way, life, light, and truth.

Francis P Xavier SJ

LICET, Chennai