Category: Church Reform
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ANOTHER WICKET (D) DOWN!
In cricketing parlance, once five wickets are down, the tail is exposed. The batters have been exhausted and only the bowlers remain, to put up some resistance. After the fall from grace (pun intended) of Cardinal George Alencherry and Abp Andrews Thazhath of Ernakulam, I had commented that for the Indian hierarchy it was now…
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CLIMATE CHANGE – A CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE
Is there a Christian perspective to Climate Change (CC)? If there isn’t, there should be, because Christians, at least notionally, constitute 50 % of the world’s population. Secondly, some of the worst polluters are industrialised nations that have a Christian history. Thirdly, some of the most densely populated countries in the southern hemisphere are Christian,…
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MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?
For the likes of Tom Cruise, James Bond, Superman, Batwoman or our own desi Shaktiman, there is no such thing as impossible. These superheroes can attain or achieve anything. The word “impossible is also not to be found in God’s lexicon. “What is impossible for man is possible for God” (Lk 18:27). What about us…
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DOGGED BY WAR
In India it is common to see street dogs chasing two-wheelers. When someone or something is persistently chased by another the phenomenon is called “being dogged by something”. With the latest flare up between Israel and the Hamas, following closely on the heels of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, one is constrained to conclude that…
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DANGERS OF A POST-CHRISTIAN WORLD
I recently read an article “Why are Christians Persecuted Today?” by Mumbai Jesuit Myron Pereira. It was a brilliant analysis that, unfortunately, offered no solutions. It forced me to think. Are we indeed living in what Pereira describes as a “post-Christian” world? If so, then what are the implications and the solution? I am reminded…
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LET’S FACE IT
Those on death row face the wall, before being shot in the back. Police also frisk criminals while making them face a wall. Never a pleasant experience. Even in Jerusalem the Jews face the Western or Wailing Wall, to mourn what remains of Solomon’s magnificent Temple, the abode of the Ark of the Covenant. The…
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FOOLS NEVER DIE
While searching for a book in my library this title caught my eye: “Fools Die”, by Mario Puzo, of “The Godfather” fame. Its opening line is even more telling. “Listen to me. I will tell you the truth about a man’s life”. I have not read the novel, but the commissioning of this article pushed…
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GRANDPARENTS REJOICE
Though a creature of the day, I am not particularly enthused by various “Days” like Father’s, Mother’s, Doctor’s, Constipation etc. I suspect that in the era of greeting cards (now extinct) they were invented by manufacturers like Archies, to promote their wares. However, I got a pleasant surprise when my parish priest, Rev K.K. Antony,…
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THE BLAME GAME CONTINUES
A highly respected and erudite clergyman from Kerala sends me his articles. Of late he has made three claims: 1. The Jews killed Jesus 2. Priests have always manipulated people to commit violent acts, justified in the name of religion. The innocent “lay faithful” consider it their religious duty to white wash or defend the…
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THE ROLLING STONES OF EASTER
Senior citizens like me would remember the 1970’s musical by Andrew Webber, “Jesus Christ Super Star”. It was an artist’s creative attempt to recast the Lord Jesus in a modern idiom. But nobody will associate Jesus with the Rolling Stones begun by Mick Jagger in 1962. That’s because Jesus’ association with rolling stones has nothing…