Brief reports, Deanery-wise from the ASCC on the ZAP events of 04.07.2015 are carried below. Next week the reports of the ZAP events of 18.07.15 will be carried here.
Kolkata Deanery
The Zonal level of the Diocesan Pastoral Plan Animation Programme was held for Zone III and Zone IV at Archbishops House, July 4, 2015.
A total of nine parishes from the Kolkata deanery attended the programme: Church of Our Lady of Vailankanni, Picnic Garden; St Thomas’s Church, Middleton Row; Auxilium Parish, Gobra; Cathedral of the Most Holy Rosary, Murgihata; Church of Christ the King, Park Circus; Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Dharamtala; Queen of Peace Church,Tollygunge; St. Mary’s Church, Ripon Street and St. Patrick’s Church, Fort William. About ninety persons in all.
As during the event for Zone I and II, 27 June, 2015, six commissions working papers was presented by an animator, having an expertise in the selected sector. Sessions was presented in a scientific manner - the first section of all the sessions introduced the area of the paper, the sessions then moved on to the “light situations” (present positive in each sector,) thereafter an attempt was made to look into the drawbacks or the “shadow situations”. To combat the drawbacks of each sector, sessions were concluded with goals contained in an action plan. Each session was followed by a seven-minute question-answer-discussion, where the audience queried, and also gave their view points to the respective animators.
The programme started at 9: 40 a.m. with an invocation to the Holy Spirit by Rev. Fr. Vincent Lobo, Dean of Kolkata. He then introduced the various speakers before handing over the proceedings of the day to moderator, Ishita Chowdhury.
Sr. Mary D’Souza, presented the Pastoral Plan paper on Ecumenism & Inter-religious dialogue. Linking the Ecumenical movement to the inter-religious dialogue she emphasised that in India’s multi-religious and cultural milieu, the Church wants to promote inter-religious dialogue, by identifying the common, acknowledging the differences and identifying areas of appreciation. When a parishioner asked “how was it that non-Christians came to our Church ceremonies, but we never took part in their pujas?” the answer emerged from the group itself – while acknowledging the good in our non–Christian brothers and sisters, we cannot forget our faith by adopting their practices.
Sr. Joicy Maddassery presenting the Pastoral Plan Paper on Education and Culture, quoted Pope Francis, that education is very important for the formation of free responsible human beings. According to the Second Vatican Council she mentioned that the Catholic school has as its aims the critical communication of human culture and the total transformation of the individual. To increase Christian values in schools it was suggested that all Catholic schools must be made aware of the All India Catholic Education Policy 2007 and the Archdiocese Pastoral Plan and organise seminars and workshops to motivating teachers and stakeholders.
The next presentation was taken up Dr. Mary D’ Cruz, on Health. Health is all round well- being of an individual; not just physical wellness. She then pronounced that 95% of the world suffers from health problems and therefore health is a major sector that cannot be avoided. Quoting various sections of the Holy Bible she showed how sickness, disease, health were recurring motifs in it. She spoke of Christian values in health care and highlighted Christ’s work among the sick.
Post a ten minute tea break, Ms. Bemvinda Pereira led the next session presenting on the Pastoral Plan Paper on Laity, she informed the audience of the role of the laity in the Church as recognised by the Second Vatican Council. The laity are in Baptism made one body with Christ and are established among the people of God, so their actions in the church communities is necessary without it the apostalate of the pastors will fail to achieve full success. The laity thus she said in abiding by the Second Vatican Council must work in close union with the pastors.
Mr. Farrell Shah carried forward the importance of the laity in the Church through the presentation of the Pastoral Plan Paper on Social Communications. Social Communications consists of personal communication, and through arts and media communication. We, with our Christian values, are called to be a communicating Church and using media for the Common Good. Today communication needs a planned approach and a constant preparedness as media is of a great influence in our world. He proposed that both priests and lay persons must be trained in professional communication skills to make social communication effective within the Church.
The last session was taken up by Sr. Monica, the Pastoral Plan Paper on Social Justice. She highlighted the Seven Principles of the Catholic Social Teaching, i.e; the teachings of the Catholic Church on social justice issues. The right of life and dignity of the human person who is created in the image and likeness of God, The Call to Family, Community and Participation, Family and Community being the core regions for the protection and development of the human person. Sister emphasised the ill-treatment of the girl-child and the trafficking racket. Even after efforts by many, worldwide human trafficking is still rampant. She concluded her session with a call for action rather than continuous passive planning.
By Ishita Chowdhury, Wellspring
Midnapore Deanery
Event Location, 4 July, 2015 was Kamalasole Church (Midnapore Deanery). The following parishes and institutions attended:
Kiristo Jyoti Ashram, Basinda - 17 members
St. Joseph Church, Namasole - Fr. Rapheal Hembram and19 members
Holy Cross Church, Baligeria - 11 Members
Sahari, Sitela - Fr.Kuldeep Dungdung and 2 members
St. Joseph’s Hospital - Fr Reggie Fernandes
Holy Family Church, Keyarchand - Fr. Shyam Charan Mandi
Seva Kendra, Hijli - Fr.Basil & Fr. Cyril Fernandes
The event was moderated by Fr. Rapheal Hembram, and reported by Ms. Lily Prasad.
After Opening Prayer was conducted by Fr. Cyril Fernandes, a brief introduction was given by Fr. Shyam Charan Mandi, Holy Family Church, Kearchand, regarding the pastoral plan.
Sessions:
Ecumenism & Interreligious Dialogue – Mr. Dilip Gomes said that after Vatican II, we are all united as one Christian body and different denominations should come together as one family as we have one FATHER. The church has also been divided into many new ‘churches’ and sects who go under the name of Jehovah’s Witnesses, New Life, Christ of Life, etc. This has caused a great division among God’s people. Jesus is still praying that all his children should become as ONE. Mr. Gomes explained about the light and dark situations – the stronger side being our fight for justice for the minorities and also organising prayer services. On the negative side we lack in promoting our faith in Christian schools and colleges.
Education – Fr. Reginald Fernandes spoke in detail about Education and the aim and responsibility of a Catholic school today. Father informed there are 97 schools including Higher Secondary/ISC/ICSE/primary schools in the Archdiocese of Kolkata. Two TTC institutes and Two B.Ed colleges are also present. These schools and colleges take Christians on priority. To promote education among the Catholics, the cut off marks are lower for admission in higher education, weak students are given special attention. Shadow situation was that boarding facilities are few and some Catholic institutions are closing hostel facilities. There was a slight murmur from the participants stating the high fees for education in Catholic school / hostel and so they have to find alternative school for the child’s admission.
Health – This was also taken up by Fr. Reginald. Various religious congregations of women and men along with other health care institutions such as Cheshire Home, Little Sisters of the Poor, Missionaries of Charity, etc. take care of the sick, the aged, the differently abled and people suffering with leprosy, HIV Aids and the dying. St. Joseph’s Hospital in Midnapur, Goethals Memorial Health Centre in Kolkata and St. Vincent’s Health Centre in Barasat provide ongoing treatment to the general public. The negative faced here is that there is not a single Catholic hospital or Nursing Home in the city of Kolkata. There is a lack of facility for pregnant women and children.
Laity - We are called the children of God, continued Fr. Reginald. Laity members have a lot of work to do for the church. Priests/Nuns and Laity we all have different role to play and we are all equal in the eyes of God. Some of us have chosen the life of family whereas the Priests/Nuns have chosen to serve the Lord. The Laity people are very important for the priest and nuns, without us they cannot work and vice versa. As per canon law, we have to serve all the people of God irrespective of our caste and creed and proclaim the word of God. Pastoral Council has been formed in Kamalasole and Namasole Parishes. Mixed marriages are more in Kamalasole and Namasole. The lay people felt nuns and priests should work with them to teach children to marry Catholics.
Social Communication – June Coelho animated on Social communication, a concern very vital to the Church in today’s society. Today different mediums are used to spread the Word of God. All have mobiles and Whatsapp, sms and can be used to spread God’s message. Formation of groups among the community, visiting the sick and the suffering, and other Christian acts, will help to build a strong society while communicating God’s love. June also spoke about Vision/Mission/Action for Social Communications – that is to emulate Jesus, the Master Communicator, train our lay persons and priests to communicate better, with modern tools, and to thus bring the Kingdom of God to all, and not to keep it to ourselves.
Environment and Social Justice - Fr Basil started his talk with a Santhali action song and at once gathered the interest of the people. He then began in Santhali explaining about the environment and social justice. He expertly combined all the various commissions in his talk.
The thanksgiving and closing prayer was given by Fr. Shyam, Dean of Midnapore Deanery. A lovely lunch of rice, egg curry, vegetables and jackfruit followed the sessions.
It was a beautiful and enriching experience to travel three and half hours all the way to Kamlasole, crossing the great river Subernarekha.
Though there was a language barrier as the people gathered knew no English, less Bengali and were conversant in Santhali only, yet their enthusiasm to know more about the Plan was astonishing. Kamalasole itself is a thriving Parish under the great leadership of Fr. Basil Mendes and all the other priests who work for the tribal village. The priests do help them to provide financial assistance through the various Government programs for the minorities. Interaction with the people from the cities and villages is an eye opener for both and we find there is so much more we can do for each other.
-By Lily Prasad, Wellspring
24 Parganas Deanery
Rupantor, Barrackpore, was one of the venues for the second round of PPC sessions held 4 July 2015. Around 50 people from a total of 4 Parishes (St. Joseph's Church, Barrackpore; Kanchrapara; Cawgachi; Rupantor) attended the trilingual session which dealt with 6 Commissions/concerns, Ecumenism and Inter Religious Dialogue, Health, Education, Social Communication, Social Development and Laity.
After an introduction by Fr. Anthony Rodericks and a prayer by the Parish Priest Fr. Paul, the programme began with an invigorating presentation by Mr. Dipankar Basu on Ecumenism and Inter Religious Dialogue. He used a lot of relevant analogies to get his point across and stressed on the importance of understanding common areas of the various religions, accepting differences and appreciating each other’s uniqueness.
Mrs. Mary Ghosh was next to present the Laity Commission presentation. She urged the laity present there to increase their involvement in the church as a whole and not remain outsiders and just "Sunday parishioners".
Up next to talk about the Health Commission was Dr. Shipra Goswami. Dr. Goswami spoke to the audience about the role suffering plays in the ideology of the Catholic Church while also clarifying that we can do so much more to ensure that the physical health of our community is improved.
After a short break for tea, Mr. Samaresh Pramanik took the stage to guide the audience through the Education Commission’s presentation. He used a lot of stories to put his point across. He spoke about the 4 D’s one can follow in life, Devotion, Determination, Dedication and Discipline.
Fr. Robin Gomes followed Mr. Pramanik to take the group through the plan for Social Communications in an animated and non-conventional way.
The last presenter for the day was Mr. Mukul Halder who dealt with Social Development/ Justice and the need for equality among society.
After the presentations were over, the Parishes got together in groups to discuss the action plan. The action plan basically consisted of What, Who, How and When. Fr. Rodericks impressed on the audience that they focus on what they can achieve in their own Parishes.
Overall the session was quite interactive with quite a few of the Parishioners participating in the presentations by asking questions and clarifying points raised by the animators. In the primarily Hindi speaking community, one of the main concerns was looking for a way to bring the youth to Church. In today’s world, the youth are paying more attention to social media and losing themselves in the online world and as a result losing out on the reality of their faith.
- By Edward D’Castro, Wellspring
Howrah-Hooghly Deanery
The Animation Programme on Pastoral Plan of six Commissions was held 4 July 2015, at four zones viz. Archbishop’s House, Rupantor/Morning Star College Barrackpore, Bandel Church and Kamlasole Church Midnapore. The programme at Bandel Church was done for Parish Pastoral Core Teams and representatives from the following four parishes, under Howrah-Hooghly Deanery:
1. Sacred Heart Church, Chandannagar
2. Maria Sneha Sadan, Gurap
3. Bandel Parish
4. Pandua
Due to traffic logjam on Delhi Road, the Animators from Kolkata had to take another route. They reached Bandel only at 10.15 a.m. and thereafter the programme started at 10.30 a.m. with an opening prayer.
After this, Dominic Azavedo, Moderator took over. Each Commission was given 20 minutes time to give a Power Point Presentation. This was followed by a 5-minute question-answer session. Participants were given a 2-page synopsis on each Commission.
The order of the presentation was:
(1) Ecumenism & Interreligious Dialogue by Fr. Timir Sinha
(2) Laity by Charles Sassoon
(3) Education – Sr. Grace Mary
(4) Health by Sr. MeenaTirkey
(5) Social Development – Asutosh Biswas
(6) Social Communications – Isaac Harold Gomes
All the presentations were well-made and questions answered. Two pertinent questions asked were: (1) How to develop good conscience in students (Education Commission) and (2) Why should the Laity be called in church administration, especially its institutions and whether the Laity was ready to take up such responsibilities? Question 1 was answered by Sr. Grace Mary and Question 2 was answered by Isaac Gomes in Bengali, on behalf of Charles Sassoon.
However before the PPT presentation on Social Communication, the link between the computer and LCD Projector failed. To save time, the feedback session on the presentation by other commissions was brought forward. The parishes formed groups and discussed the various points. Then they came and presented their viewpoints on the Commissions including the problems they are facing in their respective parishes. They also gave written submission (except on Social Communication) to the Moderator.
Isaac Gomes, who helped all the commissions to put up their presentation, could not do so when his turn came, as the LCD Projector connection could not be restored even after the Workshop Discussion session. Ultimately he had to make do with a speech on the salient points of the Pastoral Plan on Social Communication and participants took his message home.
After the closing prayer, all went down for a good lunch. Fr. T.L. Francis, Prior, deserves special thanks for his hospitality and all the support.
-By Dominic Azavedo, ASCC
Detailed reports on the Workshops will also be uploaded on the website of Calcutta archdiocese, www.archdioceseofcalcutta.org.
