Sometimes it‘s good to treasure our treasures!
-Bernard Fernandes
16th June
2014
The readings at Mass today present an important reminder to us
to value inheritance. The first reading from 1Kings recounts the story of
Naboth, whose vineyard is next to the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. Ahab
wants to plant a vegetable garden where the vineyard of Naboth is located. When
Ahab asks Naboth to buy the land, Naboth refuses, saying he has heard the Lord
tell him to keep his ancestral heritage. Ahab becomes despondent about this and
complains to his wife, Jezebul (who is from another land, and does not ascribe
to the accepted religion or practices). In support of her husband’s desire for
the land, Jezebul engineers a plot that gets Naboth killed and frees the land
for Ahab to acquire.
This vacation I have been at home in Goa longer than usual,
and am getting to experience at close hand the many happenings (and
controversies) surrounding my motherland.
Newspapers are screaming with headlines moaning the exodus of Goans to
Europe, the sale of property, the flattening of hills, and the concretization
of our fields. Today’s local daily newspaper (Herald) has a commendable
people’s edit, ‘Goa without Goans’. It
addresses these issues, and points pertinently, ‘ 20 years hence, there will be
no Goan on the road, no Goan on the beach, no Goan nest of singing birds, and
no Goan music bands growing on Goan trees.’
Add to this, the callous attitude of builders and
developers, and a few short sighted ambitious and environment endangering
development plans of the Goa government, have brought the environment to the
brink of destruction. This has galvanized many honest crusaders into action in
a fight for justice. One of them, Fr. Victor Ferrao from the Rachol seminary in
Goa decries the destructive impact that a proposed bridge across river Zuari
linking Siroda and Rachol would have on the environment and heritage. In his
article, ‘The bridge that threatens to bury the history and heritage of Raitur’,(Herald,
13 June 2014) Fr. Victor speaks about the damaging impact of this bridge on the
historical village of Rachol that houses many a historical and heritage
monument and structure.
The happenings today in Goa and many other parts of our
country reflect the plight of Naboth before the imposing king Ahab. King Ahab
lures Naboth with ‘a better vineyard in exchange’, or monetary benefits - ‘will
give you its value in money’. Naboth is
unmoved. ‘The LORD forbid that I should
give you my ancestral heritage’ says he. Naboth was strong-willed and courageous.
In the end, he was stoned to death for his decision. Where does this leave us?
In a world moving at a frantic pace, the lasting values of respect, service, concern
and love seem to lag behind, only to be replaced by wealth, possession, selfishness
and indifference under the garb of development and growth. True, some in Goa (I
have mentioned Goa; however this can take place – and is happening – anywhere
and to anyone!) are genuinely lost or searching for better prospects and
greener pastures; others overly ambitious and proud. A sizeable number (luckily) though are still
with their feet on the ground strong in their beliefs and conviction. These
give us hope and assurance. They remind us every moment that we cannot – and
should not - be led to a land of ruin and extinction, devoid of precious
heritage.
God does want us to respect our land and our heritage, and
be proud inheritors of history, culture, property and LIFE! At times, it’s good
to treasure our treasures!
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