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SAINT KURIAKOSE ELIAS CHAVARA a Man of God's Thoughts

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SAINT KURIAKOSE ELIAS CHAVARA a Man of God's Thoughts Vol. 10, 1 (2014) Pages: 45-63 SAINT KURIAKOSE ELIAS CHAVARA A Man of God’s Thoughts Thomas Kochumuttom CMI Abstract: This study presents snap shots of the life of St Kuriakose Elias Chavara with a special focus on his ability for crisis management backed by his faith vision. Ability to assess events, persons, and objects in the light of faith generates judiciousness, which eventually contributed to the preservation of a tradition that Syro Malabar Church continues to safeguard in communion with Rome. Keywords: Justice, vocation, seminary, ordination, family, Rite, Malpanate, parish, consecrated life, community, Diamper, padroado, religious profession 1. Introduction St Kuriakose Elias Chavara1 can rightly be called a man of God’s thoughts. Looking at everything through God’s eyes he easily saw His 1The abbreviations used in the article are: (i) Am = Aatmaanutaapam in CWC II and CSK II. (ii) ASJM = Archives of St Joseph’s Monastery, Mannanam. (iii) CSK I/II/III/IV = Chavara-accante Sampuurna-krtikal in 3 vols, Ernakulam: 1981 (vols I-III), 1982 (vol IV). (iv) CWC I/II/III/IV = Complete Works of Blessed Chavara in 3 vols, Ernakulam: 1990 (vols I, III and IV), 1982 vol II). (v) Positio = Positio super Introductione Causae et Virtutibus… Vatican: 1977. (vi) SP = Sthaapaka Pitaakkanmaar (Founding Fathers), Mannanam: 1905. The other source works are: 1. Beccaro, Leopold OCD, A Short Biography of Blessed Kuriakose Elias Chavara, ed. Lucas Vithuvattical CMI, Mannanam: 2003. 2. Bernard of St Thomas CMI, A Short History of T.O.C.D. in Kerala (Malayalam), Mannanam: 1989. 3. Koyipallil, Philip CMI, “A Short Biography of Fr Kuriakose Elias Chavara…” (Malayalam Manuscript kept in ASJM) : 1920. 4. Kaniyanthara, Jacob CMI, “History of the Foundation of Mannanam Monastery” (Malayalam Manuscript kept in ASJM). 5. Mundadan, A. Mathias CMI, Blessed Kuriakose Chavara, Bangalore: 2008. 6. Parappuram, Varkey CMI, “Chronicle” (Malayalam Manuscript kept in ASJM): 1902-05. 7. Valerian (Plathottam) CMI, A Heroic Son of Mother Malankara Church…, (Malayalam), Herald of the East: Dharmaram Journal of Chavara Studies (ISSN: 2394-2290) 46 Herald of the East provident hands at work in all that happened to and around him and, therefore, every experience, pleasant as well as unpleasant, was equally acceptable for him. St Peter with the best of intentions tried to dissuade Jesus from carrying the cross. Scolding him sternly Jesus instructed that he should look at the cross “with thoughts from God, not from himself” (Mt 16:23). Those days the cross was the greatest punishment that a criminal could be given. To impose it on Jesus who was the most innocent of all, was humanly speaking the grossest injustice. However, from God’s side it was a necessary part of the work of the redemption of humankind and, therefore, not something to be rejected but welcomed. In a similar way, Chavara looked at everything from God’s side and gracefully accepted it. That indeed is the key to explain his spirituality. He understood everything that happened in his life as God’s will and nothing else. This realization, on the one hand, kept him humble and realistic and, on the other, made him grateful to and confident in God. In his good old age, looking back upon his life, he thought to himself: Are all those things that God made me do, within my power? How have you arrived so far? Who made you leave your family? How come you were ordained a priest? How did you join the monastery? Where did the religious congregation come from? Who appointed you as prior? How have you reached here? Are you worthy of anything of these? Not, certainly not! So what? God’s will is done. It will always be done!2 Indeed, in everything that happened to him, Chavara saw God’s will being done, and he was sure that it was so. In our search for the Chavara spirituality, we should not be looking for unusually mystical experiences such as those in the lives of St Teresa of Avila or St Alphonsa; nor should we expect highly theological thoughts as in the writings of St Thomas Aquinas or St John of the Cross. Even his initiatives, great as they were in his socio-cultural milieu, are not in themselves the yardstick of his spirituality. Generally speaking, he was not an intellectual or highly talented in many things. His asset was the Mannanam: 1939. This article was first published in Journal of St. Thomas Christians, Vol. 24. No. 2 (April-June 2013). 2Colloquies in CWC III: 1; CSK III: 1. T. Kochumuttom: “K. E. Chavara: A Man of God’s Thoughts” 47 simple faith which endowed him with a spiritual perception of people, things and events. That indeed made him different in his responses and dealings with the people and their affairs. We shall presently glance through the life of Saint Chavara in order to see some of the things that God made him do, and how he experienced God’s provident hands in all the occurrences in life. We are concerned more about how as a man of faith with God’s thoughts he faced the challenges of life with equanimity and Christian optimism. We do not propose to make an entirely original contribution but to reproduce almost verbatim a selection of instances presented in the author’s previous works,3 which clearly show that Chavara was a man of faith with God’s thoughts. The article also hopes to establish that Chavara’s life and mission were not all that pleasant and easygoing but full of trials and tribulations as well as agonizing experiences requiring the courage of faith and trust in God’s providence. 2. Brought up by God We may start with Chavara’s childhood recollections. He is full of gratitude to God for the birth as a healthy boy in a noble, middle class family: Oh! Lord of all good things, out of your compassion, you did not create me among the ignorant and non-believers, or those afflicted by various handicaps or those suffering from different diseases and poverty. This makes me obliged to serve you. You have granted me yet another favour by not including me among the kings and princes of this world, nor did you count me among the rich. How unfortunate it would have been if I were born among them! You graciously made me neither too rich nor too poor! That is the reason why I am so happy today!4 Chavara then praises God also for his spiritual birth by baptism: Oh! Merciful God, bathing me in the baptismal water, you cleansed me of the original sin, freed me of all fear, and adorned me with the beauty of grace and virtues. Great, indeed, is this blessing of yours! What can I render you, oh! Lord, for this gift of mercy? At the very start of my life you rid my soul of all stains, and blessed me. 3See my “Blessed Chavara: A Man in God’s Hands and Moved by God” in Journal of St Thomas Christians, 24 (2013) 2, 47-81; Blessed Kuriakose Elias Chavara (Mumbai: St Pauls, 2014). 4Am 2:68-96; CWC II:1982, 8; CSK II: 8. 48 Herald of the East Through baptism you made me your child, and extended to me the bliss of salvation in heaven.5 Chavara is equally aware of God’s providence in imparting to him an ideal Christian upbringing through his parents, especially his mother.6 Obviously, young Chavara was uniquely fortunate to have a good Catholic family with pious parents who were deeply rooted in faith, gospel values and devotions. The role they played in his character formation was certainly decisive. Gratefully recalling the gentle but firm manner in which his mother trained and taught him in all the basics of Christian faith, he exults in joyful praise of God.7 Here we have a perfect model of child-mother relationship, in which the mother, on the one hand, readily appreciates whenever the child behaves well and, on the other, firmly disapproves its misbehaviour, in both cases, her motive being pure love and concern for the child’s wellbeing. In studying Chavara’s spirituality, what is important for us to note is that he traces and attributes all the beautiful things he had in childhood to God. He is not speaking the usual language such as: “I was born in a noble family. I had very ideal parents,” and so on. Instead, in all humility, he says: “God in his mercy gave me birth in a noble family, provided me with good parents,” and so on. This is the language of faith, indeed. 3. Called by God Chavara has similar reflections about his vocation to priesthood as well. In the human way of speaking, Malpan Thomas Palackal happened to meet him and suggested to his parents to send young Kuriakose for priestly studies. Overcoming the natural reluctance to part with the child at such a tender age, they eventually agreed and sent him to the Malpan’s seminary in Pallipuram. But in Chavara’s recollections it was all God’s works: As I thus reached the age of ten, you out of great kindness called me! Within me I am deeply convinced of it. Otherwise I would not come to this [state of life]! Moreover, those days there was no priest in my family [Who would inspire me to follow this life]. 5Am 1: 33-42; CWC II: 1982, 2; CSK II: 2. 6Am 1: 45-60; CWC II: 1982, 2f.; CSK II; 2f. 7Am I: 61-86; CWC II: 1982, 3; CSK II: 3.
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