The Pope keeps it simple

The Pope keeps it simple

-Bernard Fernandes

Pope Francis amazes me.  Ever since he was ordained the Pope of the Universal Catholic Church, he has not ceased to impress and inspire.  His training, his discipline and his strong beliefs do not make it difficult for him to reach out to and strike a chord with the masses.  Media, heads of states and religion, artists and ordinary people hold him in high esteem and have not stopped singing paeans of his extraordinary yet simple deeds.  

His jovial and emotional appearances are not to be missed. At the recent World Youth Day celebrations in the highly strung Brazil - remember the recent spate of riots and unrest at the time of the Confederations Football tournament - he went about with an ease that comforted millions. While Brazil may have pulled out all the stops to make this trip a safe and memorable one, yet much of its success will be owed to the strong magnetic personality of Pope Francis.  It was reported that he opted to travel in open-air vehicle instead of the insulated, armored Popemobiles of his predecessors. An estimated one million people surrounded him at every turn. On the last day he drew a crowd of three million at an all night-vigil.

He is known to speak his mind – and that is simple, down-to-earth, concerned, honest and brave.  Here is what he said to the youth in Brazil – that which has hit the headlines of every magazine, journal and social networking sites:

"We need saints without cassocks, without veils. 
We need saints with jeans and tennis shoes. 
We need saints that go to the movies, that listen to music, 
that hang out with friends.
We need saints who put God in first place, 
ahead of succeeding in any career. 

We need saints who look for time to pray every day and who know how to be in love with purity, chastity, and all good things. 

We need saints, Saints of the 21st century 
with a spirituality appropriate to our new time.

We need saints that have a commitment to helping the poor 
and to make the needed social change. 

We need saints to live in the world, to sanctify the world and 
to not be afraid of living in the world by their presence in it.

We need saints that drink Coca-Cola, that eat hot dogs, 
that surf the internet and that listen to their iPods. 

We need saints that love the Eucharist, that are not afraid or embarrassed to eat a pizza or drink a beer with their friends.

We need saints who love the movies, dance, sports, theater. 
We need saints that are open, sociable, normal, happy companions. 
We need saints who are in this world and who know how to enjoy the best in this world without being callous or mundane. 

We need saints."

In another message, addressing a rally, he said, ‘The measure of the greatness of a society is found in the way it treats those most in need, those who have nothing apart from their poverty.’  No wonder the Pope made an equally strong statement when he challenged priests to bring the message of the Gospel to the world’s slums.  “It is in the favelas… that we must go to seek and serve Christ,’ he told thousands of bishops, priests and seminarians from around the world gathered for a mass at Rio's St. Sebastian Cathedral. ‘We cannot keep ourselves shut up in parishes, in our communities, when so many people are waiting for the Gospel!’ Speaking exclusively to the Bishops of Brazil, he said, ‘It is not enough simply to open the door (of the Church) in welcome, so that they (the faithful) may enter, but we must go out through that door to seek and meet the people!”

The Pope will not stop challenging us. His message will continue to echo – lo, it should not be lost or forgotten – in the world, the streets and in the hearts of the people.  ‘Go, do not be afraid and serve’ was his parting message to the youth in Brazil; he invites each of us to do likewise! 

The telegram is history

BEGINNING TODAY, THE TELEGRAM IS HISTORY

-Bernard Fernandes

In the summer of 1981, after having answered my SSC board exams in Lonavla, I was a picture of nervousness at home in Goa. The results of the Maharashtra board were due any moment.  Soon, the postman was at our doorstep with a telegram addressed to me - the first of its kind for me!  And the start was indeed joyous - that of glad tidings!

A telegram was indeed something special.  It was feared and respected. In our family only the strong would step forward to study the contents of the telegram.  Was it about death of a relative, an accident, or some grave tragedy? Or could it be the bearer of good tidings - birth, success in exams, arrivals of loved ones from distant shores?  A terse statement that carried enormous weight!

In sending a telegram one had to 'measure' one's words, for every extra word meant extra money! It could beat the modern day Twitter for short effective statements.The telegraph service was deeply woven into the fabric of Indian society. It bonded families, gelled neighbourhoods and even held a nation together.  

I have not received nor sent many telegrams, but the few that my family and I received have left an indelible mark on me. That’s why I chose to celebrate the last day of the telegraph service in India – reports have it that the last telegram will be sent tonight - through this composition.  A telegram will retain its uniqueness - it could evoke deep emotions of joy and grief, tranquillity and anxiety, courage and fortitude in a manner only it could. No electronic media can ever replace this small piece of paper bundled with love and laced with apprehension. 

Au revoir telegram – beginning today, 14^th July 2013, you may be relegated to history but I pride myself in a generation that lived to see yet another illustrious ‘way of life’.

My school

My school

-Bernard Fernandes

As a primary student, I was asked to write down an essay on ‘My school’.  I cannot recollect what my composition was at that time –I do recall a pat on the back for that effort from my teacher - yet, it was not an expression of some pious platitudes but rather something I experienced in a home-away-from-home called school.  Four decades later, I choose to write on the same topic, albeit, in the role of a mentor, leader and teacher.

My school is a place where a child comes to learn, period! S/he learns in the classroom, on the corridor, on the playground, in the dining room.  S/he gains knowledge from the teachers, friends, peers, workers on the campus, and scores of people with whom s/he interacts at workshops or programs. S/he learns from the textbooks, workbooks, audiovisuals, assemblies, dramas, art, games and competitions. Values to care for environment, society and school are imbibed primarily in the school.

Book knowledge doesn’t fancy our students anymore – they wish to learn something more.  Hence innovative and creative teachers interest them, ‘predictable’ teachers bore them. Considerate and understanding teachers are their friends, ‘uninvolved’ and ‘distant’ teachers remain just ‘subject teachers’ to be respected and admired from a distance.

It is sad that coaching classes has taken the sheen off the classroom of old – over-knowledgeable students, tired and drooping heads from an overdose of tuitions, coaching class ‘cliques’ are but a few ills of the modern day classrooms.  Yet, the appetite to learn is still there. The children are inquisitive, restless for answers and quick to invent.  This provides an ideal meeting place for the teachers and students to explore ideas and share responsibility in the task of education.

Sadly, my school lacks proper direction from the higher ups in education in the state and country. Poor planning and an equally ineffective execution of schemes/proposals are leading us nowhere.  Unimaginative training schedules for teachers at the drop of a hat are incomprehensible to a discerning mind. RTIs and RTEs have become tools in the hands of the opportunists for harassment and personal gains.

Yet, the challenges and dreams for a better education outweigh the disadvantages and drawbacks of the system. ‘One cannot refuse to eat just because there is a chance of being choked’, so goes a Chinese proverb! And so, my school moves on!