GRACE...!

Aurelius Maschio was born on 12 th  February 1909, in the village of Vazzola in Italy. His father Giuseppe was a firm, hardworking and kind business man who was noted for his devotion for God. Aurelius’ mother Orsolina Dalla Cia was known for her prudence and qualities of heart. She attended to all her children’s needs with utmost love, of which Aurelius was the sixth of the twelve. Thus with her nature and grace she won the affection and friendship of the other mothers around the village. In spite of a big family, twelve children, nine brothers and three sisters they were yet a happy family. That highlights the saying ‘a family that prays together lives together.’ Once his elementary school master said: “He is an intelligent and diligent student endowed with strong good will.” So, his parents chose Genoa, a long way from home, about two hundred miles over the plains of Lombardy to reach the Salesian school at Sampierdarena. There came a time where he revealed to his parents...

Before I begin to write my reflections I wish to share about how I spent time struggling to frame the title. Sincerely speaking, there were many thoughts going crossing my mind, for example, off late sex in the nation , values taken for granted , Sex violence in India and etc. What I want to tell you is that, the sex violence has become so common that, any title is accepted for the issue to speak on the indecent situation widely prevalent in the country. Especially those are hidden under the carpet.   Today sex is a well known phenomenon in the society and much more about the current generation. Why all this? However I wish to leave this to your reflection. But I want to bring to your notice something which is shocking indeed. If I ask someone about Indian culture and tradition and value system I am dam sure that the entire nation will roar saying India as the hub of cultures and values. Yes it is all true only in the history of the country, in the books and religions. It is ...

On the Fourth Advent Sunday, Fr Tony (the Confessor) celebrated the mass in the Parish. During the Homily he told us about the celebrations of Christmas from a different perspective. I personally liked the way the homily was put across to us, and so I feel like sharing it. Christmas celebration has been changing from time to time and from generation to generation. Christmas is the feast for the entire humanity. It is the feast where God himself chose to be born as human to redeem the humanity. So it has been our great joy to celebrate the feast in great pomp and sound. Unfortunately this celebration has become today as merely a commercial event and a date to get together and to make merry. As a result the baby Jesus is given less priority and much less about our personal reflection on life.   Gradually we have lost the mystery of Christmas where God becoming man and we only preoccupied with the myth of the Christmas. Well, what is this myth of Christmas? A good questio...

We all know that prayer is an essential aspect in Life. Prayer is in a way very much part of our life. This is the same case in the life of Mother Mary, who in spite of the danger yet she completely trusted God and kept all her faith in God. She will teach us that Humility is the condition of Prayer. In all her humility she accepted the will of God not just blindly but trusting the grace and mercy of God. Can we think of the condition of Prayer? I would say 'Yes' like MARY to God. Prayer without feeling is mere impression and pleasing Prayer without humility is pretense Prayer without forgiveness is a show Humbly acceptance of correction is a prayer. When you are sensitive to the needs of the other is a prayer To be humane (thank you, please and sorry) is an attitude of prayer. Prayer need not always be of ceremonies and loud utterance of prayer But, Prayer is about meaning and feeling for the other.

The world today is in deep turmoil due to the communal violence and many other social and ethical ills. Today the human being in the world is preoccupied with the rat race of power, prestige and possession. As a result societies and states are losing the sense of values, morality and God. Thus, God has become a rare phenomenon in life, reduced to a concept in the modern and technological world. God is a concept, thought of only in times of need, danger, ill health, favors, jobs and rituals. Otherwise God is kept in the back seat as if he is a stranger to life.  And to add fuel to the fire and to make things worse, the technology, scientism, new age thinkers, materialism, consumerism, individualism have crept into societies crumpling down the edifices of human values, social relations and the dignity of the families. This is seen very much when the youth and the students isolate themselves while using the latest technologies and social networks. It is no wonder that relations...

Today (07/10/2012) I am thinking about life and death in the world. Both of these words are very abstract in description but very real in the world. Well, why am I telling all these  things. Yesterday in my neighboring community there is an old missionary nun Sr Maria Marketi passed away. Basically she hails from Italy and lived most of her life in India and served many youngsters and inspired many sisters in her congregation (F.M.A) So, beings a Christian I believe that life is very real as much as the death in the world. Now  the question is what is life and what is death? Many of us usually say life is full of energy and action where as death is absence of life. Meaning to say death is nothing but non-experience, non-function of all the senses. I think this is indeed true. But for me life is a grace and blessing. Life is service and life is attending our brothers and sisters and not attending to others. To simplify it Life is to live and l...

Today seeking meaning in life is a common phenomenon that we all come across. Now it is sought in things, gadgets, celebrities, movies, sports, drinks, music, business and what not. Thus we have reached a state where meaning is to be found very instantly and immediately. The picture aptly depicts the attitude of today’s new generation where meaning is to be found totally out side the self and end up terribly disappointed, discouraged and disgusted. Some prominent examples can be that of Michael Jackson, Whiney Houston, Marilyn Monroe and Tiger Woods etc. What was missing in their life? What could be the reason why they failed to strike the balance between life/career and meaning? In this multimedia era finding meaning is very crucial and challenging. In this context Victor Frankel is one person who inspires me with his life; in spite of struggles he lived his life with a purpose. In this regard there are so many others like, Hellen Keller, Mother Teresa, John Paul II, Steve Jobbs...