The location of a monastery or church is always very distinct. For example, the CMI (Carmelites of Mary Immaculate) Monastery at Thevara in Cochin, an indigenous Syrian Catholic religious organization founded in 1831; the founder friars of that monastery had a vision. They knew how to generate funds from the Catholic Community for their development projects. These far-sighted friars bought large extents of land in Thevara. This area was predominantly dominated by the fisher folk. These fishermen were then economically weak and socially, culturally, and educationally backward. At the outset the friars set up a primary school, and a small printing press. The school gradually developed into a high school with a hostel; and recently they set up a CBSE School as well. They further expanded into the making of Sacred Heart College, an Arts and Science College, which was established in 1944 with magnificent buildings fringed with attractive gardens and potted plants, a large library, a spacious auditorium, sprawling play grounds and facilities for both sports and games. At present the college is accredited with five star statuses and a grade by the NAAS (National Assessment and Accreditation Council) and it has become an autonomous college. The college offered 14 under graduate and 14 post-graduate courses in varied subjects to cope with the demands of the modern age. The printing press too grew considerably. They renovated the church and monastery building. These institutions offered jobs for a lot of people. A different class of people with intellectual acumen, abilities, good values and virtues came to be associated with these institutions. A good number of them settled close to the college out of convenience. The elite in the City of Cochin also moved to this area not only for its scenic backwater location but also due to the availability of important amenities for the development of their children. This made drastic changes in the lives of common man. Now the people living in Thevara are all literate; they are all employed, living in stylish and modern buildings. Their living conditions too have improved considerably. Privation and sufferings are stories of the past. Nobody can ignore the great contribution and services of the friars and the nuns of varied congregations in the field of education, health and social service sectors. The yeoman services they have rendered for the peace and progress of common man especially in the State of Kerala is highly laudable. I cannot but comment that these ideals they upheld are realities of the past. I am amazed to note the changing scenario.
Day by day the values and virtues are failing; deterioration has extended its tentacles to all walks of life including Christianity. The profession of a friar and nun especially secular priests have degenerated into a mere livelihood for many. Indiscipline disobedience, lecherous behaviour and materialism are the rules of the day.
I was flabbergasted when a protest march was taken out by the secular priests brazenly through the public roads in the City of Cochin, a few years back, against their spiritual leader and Bishop Dr. Sebastian Mankuzhikari, who tried to introduce the ancient Chaldean order of worship in churches under the Ernakulam Diocese. The secular priests finally succeeded in ignominiously transferring him to an insignificant diocese at Thamarassery in Kozhikode district.
Another unfortunate and shocking episode reported in the news media was that of the vicar of St Mary’s Church at Njarakkal and a section of the fanatic religious group of parishioners, who criminally intimidated and brutally assaulted two CMC sisters with the common intention to take control and management of the Convent School situated on the first floor of the convent building and the Poor Home, which was established in 1945. Both these belong to the CMC Convent at Njarakkal. The vicar’s futile attempt was on the basis of a fraudulent by-law fabricated by him in connivance with the Bishop of Ernakulam diocese. They manipulated and obtained orders from the Deputy Director of Public Instruction. This was done without the knowledge of the sisters of the convent. The provocation for the atrocious and concerted acts was due to the dismissal of the service of their Manager, who was the vicar of St. Mary’s Church at Njarakkal. He was appointed to the post of Manager by the Mother Superior of the Convent. The Vicar was asked to leave on the charges of mismanagement and misappropriation of the funds of their school. In order to cover up his wickedness, conspiracy, and to wriggle out of the grievous felony, the Vicar of Njarakkal Church filed a writ petition, WP(C) No. 30106 of 2006 of the High Court of Kerala, and obtained a judgment dated 11-08-2010 from the single bench, which was technically in his favour. But the single judge erroneously omitted to consider the real bone of contentions in the case. What the judge failed to realize was -who bought, and to whom the landed property of the school belonged and who started the original Convent Girls School. That was the crux of the issue. Aggrieved by the judgment of the single bench, the Mother Superior filed an appeal, WA No. 28 of 2011 before the High Court of Kerala. A division bench presided over by Justice C.N. Ramachandran Nair and Justice B.P. Ray heard that appeal in detail along with other connected appeals filed, WA Nos. 28, 48, 66, 69 & 76 of 2011, and passed an elaborate, common, appellate judgment dated 12-4-2011, reversing the judgment passed by the single judge. The Vicar, the looser, moved Special Leave Petition No. 12909 of 2011 before the Supreme Court of India, but the SLP was dismissed as per order dated 17-5-2011 and upheld the appellate judgment passed by the division bench. The Court upheld the absolute right of the Mother Superior of the Convent over the Little Flower Convent School and Poor Home and the right of the Mother Superior of Little Flower Convent, Njarakkal, in Ernakulam district as the Manager of both the institutions. The Convent sisters further created history of sorts when they sued a Syro-Malabar Bishop of the Ernakulam diocese and the priest of St Mary’s Church, Njarakkal for criminal intimidation, conspiracy and forgery, and for man-handling two CMC sisters with their common intention to take control and management of the school and Poor Home belonging to the convent fraudulently.
I too have personal experiences wherein the Bishop of Ernakulam diocese and secular priests, through murky deals, were involved in making such blatant moves. I knew personally that the bishops tried to unduly influence and coerce owners of private chapels to assign their properties to the bishop of Ernakulam. On another occasion, they trespassed into my private property and illegally erected a ‘Bhandaram,’ the church offering treasury, which they removed when a complaint was moved against the bishop and the secular priest with a copy to the Sub Inspector of Police. Their concerted acts were in blatant violation of the tenets of Christian Commandments, teachings and practices.
The vows of “poverty, chastity and obedience” are conveniently forgotten by the priests. Nowadays priests liberate themselves from the cassock. They are often spotted in hotels and cinemas in the city. They drive around in their own posh cars, which is the new status symbol. Education has become a business for the secular priests; they charge exorbitant fees for admission to schools, colleges and professional courses. Lump sums are demanded for the appointment of teachers and lecturers; the Carmelite Missionary of India (C.M.I. friars and C.M.C. nuns) are no exception. Selfless service has become anathema, abhorrence and abomination to them. I was disturbed by a recent revelation in our leading local daily, “Malayala Manorama.” It had reported that the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Jacobite Bishop Kuriakose Mar Clemis, paid three crore rupees to the hierarchy to get the “Bishop title” four years ago. Merit is often overlooked.
St. George, at Edappally, Edathua and Arthungal in Kerala, was a Roman soldier posted in Palestine. He was carved as the representation of a man (warrior) on horseback pursuing a dragon. The tradition is that the hero is supposed to have attacked the dragon and killed the monster concealed himself, and preyed upon the human race. This episode had no foundation in history. However, in 1494 Pope Gelasius - I included George among those “whose names are rightly reverenced among us, but whose actions are known only to God.” In 1963 the Church, bowing to scholarship, removed St George from the Universal Calendar, Thirty-seven years later Pope John Paul II, bowing to popular faith, reinstated him. It is just a shame that nothing certain is known about him. I was rudely shaken up to hear that twenty-five crores of rupees were spent to construct St. George Church at Edappally. It may require another five crores to complete it. Most of the churches were reconstructed or are under renovation, spending exorbitant amounts when the global economy is in the grip of a recession. Aren’t economy, frugality, austerity and simplicity the need of the hour? I would have appreciated if the Church had invested this money for erection of an industrial unit which would generate employment and feed the hungry mouths and / or they utilized it for the modernization of their school and hospital at Edappally.
I was again perturbed at the revelation of Sr. Jesme, (Jesus and me), an able and efficient principal of St. Mary’s College at Trichur, Her university records eloquently speak about her outstanding academic brilliance. Sr. Jesme, in her autobiography in Malayalam namely “Amen: Oru Kanyastrhreyude Atmakadha” (An autobiography of a nun,) reveals the group interests, politics,, quarrels and fights for power and positions in their convents and educational institutions. It portrays the outbreak of suppressed sex among the convent sisters and in their college hostels and also exploitation of sex by the priests. It explains the harassment meted out to her as principal for her truthful and correct decision to oppose the collection of capitation fee for various new courses and illegal donations and unfair appropriation of caution deposits from students by the management. The hierarchy in their provincial house at Trichur and some of the superior nuns branded her insane and made endeavours to put her in mental asylum in order to usurp her seat of principal of the college. Ultimately she put an end to the bitter episode by taking a hard and painful decision to quit her Carmelite Missionary Congregation (CMC) at Trichur.
The friars, nuns and secular priests of various orders and congregations extract large amounts of money as capitation fees for admissions to medical, engineering, and other unaided courses in their management quotas. They do the same for appointments to the posts of teachers and lecturers in their institutions. Did they keep and maintain accounts for such money collected? Did anyone audit such accounts? Everybody knows that these amounts are misappropriated and mismanaged. Many of the friars and nuns and secular priests pilfer such funds to help their close relations. Who will bell the cat is now the moot question?
Sodomy, incest, the abuse of nuns and the molestation of children have been endemic in the Christian Church from its very origins. Abuse of children in Church-run institutions by celibate priests has become an international scandal. The Churches that once were the gathering point for entire communities are now half empty with only gray heads during worship. Disgusted with sex abuse scandals, highly exaggerated and fabricated gospels and fables, and for other reasons like exploitation of the laity on sacraments, mass attendance is declining among the younger generation, under age group of 30, in the western countries including Italy. Did a myriad of books and articles start to decay? Recently my cousins, Celin Jose and Jose Neerackal, who were working at Scotland, told me that a church at Dundee in Scotland has been converted into a beer parlour. How colossal is the problem? We have reached a stage where we cannot imagine being anything but a Catholic. Can the Church really reverse this exodus of young adults? The population of the world is exploding, but the Church is losing ground. The Church is in a steep state of decline. A few blind believers could be cheated and exploited throughout their life; the Church could cheat or exploit some of their sheep for some time but the Church cannot cheat or exploit all their sheep for all time to come. Everything, faith or institution, which had a beginning (birth) and growth has an ending too. Communism, an offshoot of Christianity, has gone astray. The vanishing of Berlin-Wall, the fall of the Soviet Union and the reforms in China confirm the same. This is a natural rule of law.
Shibu K.P. (Kalamparambil, Karukutty, a former friar of Vincentian Order) in his autobiography, “Oru Vaidikante Hrudayamitha,” (This is the Heart of a Priest) discloses, “The convents and nunneries are being converted into brothels. The priests have sex with nuns at night in these convents. Because of these acts, the chastity of the priests and nuns has come under suspicion. Their love for God has shrunk. Some of the clergy indulge in watching pornography and reading pornographic material. They lose themselves in this habit. These books and DVDs are kept in secret places and can’t be found easily.”
I was stunned, when Bishop John Thattungal, of Kochi diocese, who raised a storm following his decision to adopt a thirty year old woman as his daughter, has been suspended by Pope Benedict XVI, in 2008.
Some of the secular priests and their hierarchy would quarrel over doctrines during the day and sexually harass nuns during the night. Old wine and other people’s wives are their weakness. I was astounded by the revelation of Sister Mary Chandy in her autobiography “Nanma Niranjavale Swasthi,” (Peace to the One filled with Grace,) revealed, “The cry of a baby came from the bathroom of one of the inner rooms along with the sobs of a woman. We used our might to force open the bathroom door and what we saw would break anyone’s heart. A nun who had given birth to a child was pushing the head of the baby into the closet. The bathroom was filled with blood. The legs of the child, which were sticking out of the closet, were kicking for life.” She describes some of the sexual harassments meted out by a number of nuns in convents at the hands of some lecherous secular priests. Convent sisters are coerced to offer – how many jugs of wine, how many cauldrons of food, and how many young nuns to some of these secular priests! The hierarchy and the mother superiors of some of the convents abetted and encouraged such heinous crimes. They coerce these young nuns into “sin” as part of the oath of obedience. Those who questioned it were harassed and had to leave the convent like Sr. Mary Chandy, who was forced to hit the head of a secular priest with a wooden stool to avert an attempt of molestation and rape on her. Some of the secular priests and the hierarchy of the convent chase them even outside their territory and try their best to malign and ostracize them. I take this opportunity to bring to the notice of the priests and friars, especially those of the Roman Catholic Churches that Article 23 of the Constitution of India prohibits traffic on women. Therefore those who harass and sexually exploit the nuns on the basis of one of the vows they had taken which is “the vow of obedience” shall be prosecuted for offences, convicted and sentenced to undergo imprisonment prescribed under the Indian Penal Code.
The history of Borgia family hinges around a few individuals. Alfons from Valencia in Spain, graduated in canon and civil law, and he demonstrated talent and began to rise through the local church. After representing his diocese in national matters, Alfons was appointed secretary to King Alfonso V of Aragon and became deeply involved in politics, sometimes acting as envoy for the monarch. Soon Alfons became vice-chancellor, a trusted and relied upon aide, and then regent when the king went to conquer Naples. While demonstrating skills as an administrator, he also promoted his family, even interfering with a murder trial to secure his kin’s safety. When the king returned, Alfons led negotiations over a rival pope who was living in Aragon. He secured a delicate success which impressed Rome and became both a priest and a bishop. A few years later Alfons went to Naples - now ruled by the King of Aragon – and reorganized the government. In 1439 Alfons represented Aragon at a council to try and unite the eastern and western churches. It failed, but he impressed. When the king finally negotiated papal approval for his hold of Naples (in return for defending Rome against central Italian rivals,) Alfons did the work and was appointed a cardinal in 1444 as a reward. He thus moved to Rome in 1445, aged 67, and changed his name to Alfons Borgia. His nephews now arrived in Rome. The youngest, Rodrigo Borgia, was destined for the church and studied Canon law in Italy. In 1468, Rodrigo Borgia was ordained as deacon and created Cardinal Deacon of San Nicola in Carcera at the age of twenty-five and an elder nephew, Pedro Luis, was destined for military command and promotions and wealth flowed in; acts which scandalized Rome because of their youth, and ensuing debauchery. In 1471 Rodrigo Borgia was consecrated bishop and appointed Cardinal Bishop of Albano. When his uncle Alfons Borgia, Bishop of Valencia) was elected and renamed as Pope Callixtus III, Rodrigo Borgia inherited the post of bishop of Valencia. The following year, he was appointed vice-chancellor of the Holy Roman Church and became second in command of the church, and Pedro a Duke and Prefect, while other family took a range of positions. Nepotistic appointments were characteristic of the age. Each pope during this period inevitably found himself surrounded by the servants and retainers of his predecessors who often owed their loyalty to the family of the pontiff who had appointed them. In the conclave following Pope Calixtus III’s death, Rodrigo Borgia was the most junior cardinal. He played a key role in electing the new Pope – Pius II – a role that required courage and gambling his career. Rodrigo found himself a key ally of the new pope and confirmed Vice Chancellor. Rodrigo Borgia, having served in the Roman Curia under five popes – his uncle Calixtus III, Pius II, Paul II, Sixtus IV and Innocent VIII – Rodrigo Borgia acquired considerable administrative experience, influence and wealth. To be fair, Rodrigo Borgia was a man of great ability and was perfectly capable in this role, but he also loved women, wealth, and glory. Rodrigo Borgia was handsome, with a very cheerful countenance and genial bearing. He was gifted with the quality of being a smooth talker and of choice eloquence. Beautiful women were attracted to him and excited by him in quite a remarkable way, more strongly than how “iron is drawn to a magnet.” He is one of the most controversial popes partly because he acknowledged fathering several children through his mistresses. He thus abandoned the example of his uncle Calixtus III and set about acquiring benefices and land to secure his position: castles, bishoprics, and money flowed in. Rodrigo also earned official reprimands from the Pope for his licentiousness. Rodrigo’s response was to cover his tracks more. However, he had many children, including a son called Cesare in 1475 and a daughter called Lucrezia in 1480, and Rodrigo Borgia would give them key positions. Sixteen days before the death of Pope Innocent VIII, he proposed Valencia as a metropolitan see and became the first archbishop of Valencia. In 1492, with the death of the Pope Innocent II, Rodrigo Borjia put all his work together with a huge amount of bribes and was elected and renamed as Pope Alexander VI. There were wide spread rumours that he bought the papacy. Alexander VI had widespread public support and was capable, diplomatic and skilled, as well as rich, hedonistic and concerned with ostentatious displays. His son, Cesare, became a cardinal at the age of 18 in 1493. When Rodrigo de Borjia was elected as Pope Alexander VI following the death of Innocent VIII, his son Cesare Borgia inherited the post as second archbishop of Valencia. The third and the fourth archbishops of Valencia were Juan de Borgia Pedro Louis de Borgia, grand-nephews of Pope Alexander VI. Relatives arrived in Rome and were rewarded and the Borgias were soon endemic in Italy. While many other Popes had been nepotists, Alexander VI was promoting his own children and had a range of mistresses, something that further fuelled a growing and negative reputation. During renaissance in Italy, the pontiff at Rome, Pope Alexander VI (1492-1503) from the Borjia family of Aragonese became infamous for power, greed, corruption, nepotism, lust, cruelty and murder. Alexander VI soon had to navigate a way through the warring states and families which surrounded him, and at first, he tried negotiation, including the marriage of a twelve-year-old Lucrezia to Giovanni Sforza. He had some success with diplomacy, but it was short-lived. Meanwhile, Lucrezia’s husband proved a poor soldier, and he fled in opposition to the pope, who then had him divorced. We don’t know why he fled, but accounts claim he believed rumors of incest between Alexander VI and Lucrezia that persist to this day. France then entered the arena, competing for Italian land, and in 1494 King Charles VIII invaded Italy. His advance was barely stopped, and as Charles entered Rome, Alexander retired to a palace. He could have fled but stayed to use his ability against the neurotic Charles. He negotiated both his own survival and a compromise which ensured an independent papacy, but which left Cesare as both a papal legate and a hostage… until he escaped. France took Naples, but the rest of Italy came together in a Holy League in which Alexander played a key role. However, when Charles retreated back through Rome Alexander thought it best to leave this second time. Pope Cesare (1475-1507,) son of Pope Alexander VI became the pontiff. St. Francis Borgia (1510-72,) was the son of Juan Borgia, third Duke of Gandia, and of Juana of Aragon and grandson of Pope Alexander VI, was made a saint. [Pope Alexander VI was known for his patronage of the arts, and in his days a new architectural era was initiated in Rome with the coming of Bramante Raphael, Michelangelo and Pinturichio and all worked under him. There are sone books, films about him. The contemporary politician, political theorist and author Niccolio Machiavelli wrote his book of power politics The Prince in 1513, in which he refers to Pope Alexander VI as an astute politician who did much to strengthen the power of the Church. Pope Alexander VI and his family are the subjects of Mario Puzo’s final novel The Family (2001,) as well as Robert Ramkin’s humorous and fictionalized novel The Antipope.]
More shocking than the sex was the violence and cruelty that went with it. The CBI is once again directed by the High Court of Kerala to probe into “the Abhaya case. The ghost of Sr. Abhaya, the victim of a murder case in a convent at Kottayam, haunts top echelon in the religion and the society.”
Latest in the news media: Land scam shakes Kerala's Catholic Church. Hindu daily reports (March 12, 2018): -FIR against His Grace George Cardinal Alencherry in land deal case registered following an order High Court of Kerala. The City police have registered a case against the Cardinal, Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Church and head of the Ernakulam-Angamaly Archdiocese, and three others in connection with a series of land deals that reportedly resulted in financial loss for the archdiocese. The case has been registered under IPC Sections 120B, 405, and 415 police sources said. The case was registered following an order of the Kerala High Court on a writ filed by a Catholic layperson. The court had observed that there was prima-facie evidence to indicate criminal conspiracy, breach of trust, and misappropriation of money in the land deals. The police would probe the role of archdiocesan functionaries Fr Joshy Puthuva and Fr Sebastian Vadakkumpadan and a lay person Saju Varghese, who reportedly acted as the middleman in the land deals. The registration of the police case adds a twist to the land deal scandal that has divided the members of the archdiocese into camps opposing and supporting the Major Archbishop and the senior church functionaries named in the police FIR. A senior priest and member of the Presbyterian Council, a canonical body, told The Hindu that the archdiocese was now straddled with a loan of around Rs.90 crore in place of the Rs.60-crore loan it had set out to settle when the land sales were initially planned. The Major Archbishop owed an explanation on this. In a more strident voice, the Archdiocesan Movement for Transparency, comprising lay persons, has said it will prevent the Major Archbishop from taking part in public functions organized under the archdiocese. The Presbyterian Council, reflecting the sentiments of the vast majority of priests in the archdiocese, wants the Major Archbishop to step down until his name was cleared. But a forum calling itself the faithful of the archdiocese (Syro Malabar Vishwasa Sangamam) has alleged a conspiracy to unseat the Major Archbishop, blaming the auxiliary bishops for the mistakes now being heaped at the doors of the Major Archbishop. The land deal scandal relates to efforts by the archdiocese to settle a loan of around Rs. 60 crore by selling three acres of land under its possession in Kochi. The archdiocese did not receive the entire money it was to have received as proceeds from the sale even a year-and-a-half after the transactions. Out of a total of Rs. 27 crore it was to receive, the archdiocese had got only Rs. 9 crore so far. The police action follows legal opinion they received from Advocate General C.P. Sudhakaraprasad on Monday morning. Ernakulam Central CI Ananthalal is heading the investigation. While maintaining that all the accused will be interrogated, officials said the Cardinal would not be summoned for questioning. “If the charges are found during the initial round of interrogation, further course of action will be initiated. Otherwise, the investigators may file a report of the inquiry before the court,” they said.
Sex scandal rocks Orthodox Church in Kerala. Man alleges misuse of ‘confession’ by priests to sexually exploit his wife. The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, which has been enjoying a comfortable public positioning in recent times, especially after the recent Supreme Court verdict in the more-than-a-century-old legal battle with the Syrian Jacobite Church, now finds itself in the vortex of a storm following a sex scandal in which five of its priests have been named and ‘confession’, one of the seven sacraments of the Church, brought under a cloud. The issue had come up before the Church authorities in mid-May, 2018, when one of the members of the Niranam diocese, in central Travancore, complained to the diocesan head that at least five priests of the Church were sexually exploiting his wife, a mother of two kids, by blackmailing her making use of the secret confession she had made to them on separate occasions. He came to know about it when he checked his wife’s mails for a different purpose and found copies of hotel bills mailed to her. On being questioned, his wife told him that she was blackmailed and forced to offer sexual favours by a priest before whom she had confessed to a premarital relationship with a priest of the Church, who was also her relative and neighbour. According to the husband, she had named five priests in all, four of them connected with same diocese and another from the neighbouring diocese of Thumpamon. He also alleged that his wife had confessed to her relationship with two others, both outside the religion. The husband also produced a ‘statement’ by the wife which he had elicited from her. The issue remained at the diocesan level and the diocesan authorities had put the five priests under suspension and denied them the right to discharge their ecclesiastical duties. However, with the issue getting widely discussed in the social and visual media, and the National Women’s Commission taking up the matter, the Church authorities were forced come up with a response on Wednesday. Church Priest Trusty M.O. John told The Hindu that the Church had appointed a Commission consisting of priests and legal personalities to look into the issue. If true, the misuse of confessional information, whether for sexual or other favours, was a grave issue. The Church would like the whole truth to come out, he said. The woman’s husband appeared before the panel at the Niranam diocesan headquarters and gave evidence before the panel. One of his key demands is that ‘confession’ as a sacrament should be put an end to as it was being misused by priests.
After shaming and maligning the 44-year-old nun who accused Jalandhar diocese Bishop, His Excellency Franco Mulakkal of raping her multiple times, Missionaries of Jesus went one step ahead and released the picture of the nun along with a statement to the media. Attaching a photo of the survivor sitting with Bishop Franco Mulakkal at a private function on May 23, 2015, the congregation conveniently washed its hands off the responsibility of the picture becoming public. The last line of the press statement says that the picture is just for the evidence and that MJ would not be responsible if the picture becomes public. According to Missionaries of Jesus, the photograph was taken a day after the first incident of alleged rape took place. And according to them, the fact that the nun can be seen sitting in the company of the bishop was proof that she had not been sexually assaulted the previous day. Their statement says, “The Missionaries of Jesus has understood that the allegations about the Bishop repeatedly raping the nun multiple times between 2014 and 2016 is false and is part of a conspiracy. In the month of May in 2015, the sister had invited the Bishop for a function and even after that, it has been found that the sister has taken part in a lot of functions with the Bishop. Any woman, who was raped by a man, would never attend functions or travel with that man. This is a truth that cannot be denied.” It also said that other pieces of evidence to prove that the nun's allegations were part of a conspiracy will be handed over to the investigators as and when they are discovered. According to law, publishing the identity of a person against whom offences under section 376 (rape,) is alleged to have been committed is an offence by itself. It is punishable with imprisonment and a fine imposed by the court. Some of the nuns and laymen have started a ‘sit-in’ protest near the premises of High Court of Kerala demanding the arrest of accused Bishop. The
public supported the cause of the hapless sisters and appreciated the sister
who bravely exposed the Bishop. For favours received, some of the political
leaders made a futile attempt to support the Bishop. However the police
arrested him after severe grilling and he will be produced in court shortly.
Retreat is becoming the new money minting business of the last quarter of the 20th century. The spiritual leaders, inter-alia, advise the throng of believers to take care not to let the anger, the grudge, whatever they are harbouring inside them which poison their life; forgive your enemy and forget the episode is the elixir for chronic ailments like cancer. I don’t know the veracity of their statements. However people fall for it and gave alms liberally to them. Brother Dhinakaran became a multi-millionaire and started a university of his own. The self proclaimed Bishop Yohannan bought thousands of acres of plantations, built palaces, acquired schools and colleges. The friars of Vincentian congregation started popular mission retreats at Potta. When their retreat turned out to be a crowd puller; they bought sprawling areas on either side of NH-47 on the banks of River Chalakudy. They are extending their territory eastwards to the foot-hills of Sahyadri Mountains and hills. Their products like Jose Anathanam and his nephew has made huge investments in real estate. They bought a prime property, a vast area, at Kumbalam abutting the NH-47 on the western side and backwaters on the eastern side. Mullakkara Devassy is trying to outdo others by campaigns and by the sale of his CDs. Fr. Sebastian Kaiparambath, a charismatic product, former vicar of a church at Udayanapuram (2004-05) made a prophesy that the sun would vanish and the water is going to engulf the earth. His prophesy spread like a wild fire. The blind believers hoarded bundles of candle sticks and match boxes to deter the ensuing darkness. The candle and match box manufacturers made a quick buck. Such foolish prophets and self-proclaimed saints are mushrooming. They are misguiding and looting their blind believers. I recall the words of Desmond Tutu, “When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said ‘Let us pray.’ We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land.” (Desmond Mpilo Tutu, (born on October 7, 1931,) is the first black Archbishop of Cape Town of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa. He is a social rights activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid. He was awarded the Nobel Peace prize in 1984.)
The rabbi sighed, “How the days rush by, how rapidly the one pursued the next! Dawn, dusk, the passage of the sun, the passage of the moon after moon; the children became men, black hairs withered, the sea ate into the land, mountains were stripped bare and still the One they awaited did not come!”
The Catholic Church should stop the practice of recruiting in novitiates at a very young age. The young boys and girls who have the “Call of the Lord” should be fully convinced and aware of what they are going into. Only then will they be doing justice to their choice in life, the life of celibacy and sacrifice which will make them totally dedicated and devoted. In the event of he/she cannot stay a celibate, it is better to liberate them from the prison of celibacy. Let them abandon the holy life, strip off the cassock, and get married and settled in life. Holy Bible, Apostle Paul advised the unmarried and the widows (1 Corinthians 7 Verses 9,) “But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.” In the event of a priest or friar or nun desires to marry, their parental share/patrimony deposited in the monastery or convent or with their hierarchy should be returned forthwith with 6% simple interest on filing his/her application expressing his/her wish to leave the order/congregation. Such individuals may be permitted to marry and lead a normal life with their family. It is the duty of the Catholic Church and the society to accept and rehabilitate without any stigma attached to them. The Catholic Church should realize and accept the fact that sex is not a sin; it is only a biological necessity. Kamala Surayya (Madhavikutty,) the daring woman and a great novelist, ripped the mask of sexual taboos in the orthodox society. Morality is nothing but lack of opportunity. There are only two unpardonable crimes in the code of sexual conduct, rape and telling of lies or breach of promise. The outbreak of suppressed sex is one of the major problems our society faces today. The Catholic Church could also bring reforms, “like the priests of Ancient Christians, the secular priests of Roman Catholic Church also could be allowed to marry and maintain a family.” This would prevent sexual exploitation of hapless and unwilling nuns in convents.
I am of the opinion that a statutory Christian Board, similar to the Devaswom Boards in Kerala State, shall be constituted by the government to control and manage the church properties fraudulently obtained from the laities and to audit their accounts. Mismanagement and misappropriation of church funds and funds of educational institutions, hospitals and others have to be curtailed. Moreover, in the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of India and the security and safety of its citizens, a foreign sovereign or Pope or Patriarch or anyother person shall not be allowed to interfere in the affairs of our Churches or Faiths. Put an end to all the vestiges of the colonial rule. A competent and qualified person from among the laymen or a priest can be appointed as Pope or Patriarch to head the statutory Christian Board with the concurrence of the Govt. of India. Such Pope or Patriarch shall not have any allegiance or subjugation to the Pope at Vatican or Patriarch in Antioch or elsewhere and shall be treated as equal to Pope or Patriarch elsewhere.
Excerpts from
NEED OF THE HOUR
By
Joseph J. Thayamkeril,
Lawyer, Cochin
josephjthayamkeril.blogspot.com
josephjthayamkeril.google.com
