MARCH - APRIL 2018 The Voice of St. Jude Voice...Jyoti Printers, NOIDA: 9790630835 Those Wish to...

| MARCH - APRIL 2018 | The Voice of St. Jude

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The Voice of St. Jude

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GOD BLESS

- benny palliparampil


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CONTENTS

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GOD BLESS

Vol.: 78 No. 02 March - April 2018

| MARCH - APRIL 2018 |The Voice of St. Jude

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editor

I saw the sky and the weather changes; Of course the seasons return.I saw the greens in the land that fade; Of course it revives with a monsoon shower.

I wondered at the birds that shed its feathers; Of course new ones restore.I have heard snakes shed their hood; Of course they have gained new one.

For all the living things on earth there is a unique cycle.A balanced style with the time.

Now is our time during the season of LENT.To shed for the new ones to sprout.

Not for spirit alone; but also for the body.Not merely our body and spirit; but also our neighbor's as well.

Because we are spirit and body in service to the Lord.That is why it is said: "Prayer, Abstinence and Alms-giving..."

God Bless!

benny palliparampil


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Shepherd’s Voice

Roman Catholics keep three seasons in their yearly Calendar of worship. 1. Sea-son of Advent. 2. Season of Lent. 3. Ordi-

nary time. With the Ash Wednesday we are start-ing the Lenten season which ends with Saturday in the Holy Week. Lent is recognized as days of fasting and penance for 40 days. According to the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church, Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday is 46 days, but Sundays (Lords Days) are not counted, therefore we say forty days of fast and penance. Unlike the oriental churches which keep 50 days of lent, the Roman Catholic church advocates 40 days of lent for the people of God based on the Scriptures. In the book of Genesis Noah and family spend forty days in the Arc fasting and doing penance before they arrived the shore of redemption af-ter the deluge. (Gen.7:4, 8:6). Moses was on the Sinai mountain for forty days and forty nights ( Exod 24:8). The Lord told Jonah that after forty days Nineveh would be overthrown (Jonah 3:4). After the Baptism of Jesus, he spent forty days in the wilderness fasting, preparing himself for the great ministry of accomplishing His Father’s Mission. (Mt Ch 4; Mk 1:12-13). The Lord Jesus after his resurrection appeared to his disciples for forty days ( Acts 1:3).The season of Lent provides for all the Catho-lics a ground for meeting God who suffered, died and resurrected by the way of charity, prayer, fast and penance. We need to do reparation for the failures that occur in our life. This forty days of fast and penance signifies that we are all sinners and we need mercy and compassion from the Lord. The fruits of redemption and salvation can come to us by our good deeds to the poor and needy people around us. We meet Jesus suffering and disfigured in the exploited and subjugated poor and sick. Charity is one of the rich sources of grace by which we come nearer and nearer to God who is gracious and merciful to each one of

us. Let us spend a little more time reading and reflecting the Word of God: Ephesians 4: 31-32 “Get rid of all bitterness, all passion and anger, harsh words, slander and malice of every kind. In place of these, be kind to one another, compassionate and mutually for-giving just as God has forgiven you in Christ.” Philippians 2: 14-15 “In everything you do, act without grumbling or arguing. Prove yourself innocent and straight forward, children of God blameless and pure Luke 6;27 “Love your en-emies, do good to those who hate you.” Psalm 34:14 “Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.” Proverbs 21:23 “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.”The Word of God impels us to remove from our life those things which make us selfish, egocen-tric and proud. In the lent every Catholic makes a promise that they will sacrifice certain bad hab-its that they were indulged in. The bad habits like smoking, drinking, gambling, betting, excessive addiction to TV, unnecessary use of the mobile etc can be sacrificed in order to make room for generous service to someone in need or make a visit to a sick or a lonely person in our parish. This is the way of the cross and the sacrifice that the good Lord wants us to do to participate in His passion, death and Resurrection. Let us look out to the day of resurrection where the victory of the Cross invites us to join the glory of Salva-tion and Redemption. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old order has passed away; now All is NEW” (2Cor 5:17).I wish all the readers of Voice of St. Jude, all the devotees and pilgrims of the shrine of St. Jude a very Happy and Joyful Easter season with much hopes and happiness in life.

+Peter Parapullil,Bishop of Jhansi

LENTEN MESSAGE 2018From The Bishop


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Preparing our hearts is a process of preparing our desires. This means practicing our sense of anticipation. If we imagine Lent as an "ordeal" or a time to dread in some way, then we've al-ready pre-disposed ourselves to not get very much out of it. These days before Lent are a time to start anticipating something wonderful that is about to happen. Our sense of excitement and anticipation will grow more easily if we begin to imagine what God wants to give us. There is something coming that we can truly look for-ward to. If we get too focused on ourselves and what we are going to do or not do, we could risk missing the gift God wants to give us. We have to keep aware of the fact that grace comes from God. This is about God's great desire to bless us. With this mindset, it is easier for us to imagine that what we really want to do is place ourselves in a space to receive what God wants to give us.We receive God’s gifts as body-persons. We experience things with our senses, relish them with our imaginations, and share in God’s own creative and loving activity when our hearts and hands work together for and with others. We can let our homes be places full of the holy – things that help raise our minds and hearts to God. Our world is full of so many images that lure our minds and hearts elsewhere. Some symbols will carry the ongoing meaning we give them, for us and for our families and loved ones.We can make sure that we have a crucifix in a central place in our home during Lent. A bowl of water on our dining room table can be trans-formed into a reminder of our preparing to re-new our baptismal promises. A candle can be lit at each meal to remind us of the light of Christ among us in Lent and to prepare us for the new fire being lit at the Easter Vigil. Placing a Bible in a central place in our home reminds us of the central place of God’s Word in our lives on this Lenten journey. Pray: We know the importance of prayer in

our lives—as individuals, as families, and as a community. Prayer is especially important during Lent. The Lenten season is a time for reflection, evaluation, and repentance. “What needs changing?” Lent calls us to a personal conversion and renewal—to a recommitted life in Christ so that we might not just celebrate Eas-ter forty days later but also feel the risen Christ alive in us and in the world. This means prayer. During Lent we set aside time for prayer that is reflective in nature and reveals places where we have failed to open ourselves to God.Give: Every day we witness situations of injus-tice, violence, and hatred. Television, Internet, facebook, whatsapp and so on bring these into our living rooms, but we also observe and live them in our own cities and homes. The Church calls us during Lent to be especially conscious of the needs of others and to act accordingly. Giv-ing materially to another is an act of Christian charity known as “almsgiving.” During Lent, the Church also calls us to first convert ourselves and then to transform the world for justice, so that we might serve the Kingdom which Jesus lived and preached.Sacrifice: Fasting and abstinence are not sacri-fices for the sake of pain or vain discomfort. Sac-rifice for the sake of sacrifice is not a Christian virtue. We are asked by the Catholic Church to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and not to eat meat on the Fridays of Lent. Feeling an empty stomach, or fighting the urge to eat some-thing that we like very much does more than just remind us that for some people an empty stom-ach is their daily bread. Fasting and abstinence help us to ask ourselves the question: “What sus-tains me and gives me life?” What nourishes me on my journey of life? We will find the answer in the Resurrection of Jesus. We fast and abstain because, when we do, we are reminded of who we are—followers of the risen Christ.

- Extract from Andy Alexander SJ

Through TheLENS OF GRACE


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Holy Week and Easter are “big events” in the liturgical year of the Church and in the spiritu-al life of a Christian. As Christians, we prepare spiritually for these through the forty days of Lent. This means that, during Lent, we rededi-cate ourselves to prayer. There are as many ways to pray, but a few prayer methods can help us in particular to spiritually prepare ourselves during Lent:

1 Make your abstinence a prayer-in-action: As Catholics we are called to give up something

for Lent. Chocolate, coffee, that extra helping of dinner, one less hour of Whatsapp, video games or watching TVs—whatever it is, you can make what you’re giving up for Lent a prayer as well: a prayer-in-action. Whenever you encounter the thing you are abstaining from or the time of day that you would normally enjoy it, take a moment to say a prayer in recognition of your wholeness in God even without the thing you have given up. Thank God for the freedom to be wholly yourself and acknowledge the gift of its existence in the world.

2Renew yourself through personal reflective prayer: Lent is a time of spiritual renewal.

This could also mean, giving more value time for prayer. Using regular intervals to Reflection and prayers that are commonly used to elevate our-selves to the presence of the Lord.

3 Pray the Stations of the Cross: One of the most common traditions of Lent is to pray

the Stations of the Cross. This prayer helps us reflect on the passion and death of Christ in preparation for Good Friday observance and the Easter celebration.

4Meditate on Holy Scripture with Lectio Div-ina: Perhaps the oldest method of scriptural

prayer known to Christians is lectio divina or “holy reading.” This method of prayer is charac-terized by the slow reading and consideration of a text from Scripture, with repetition and med-itation on key words or phrases. Lectio divina is rooted in the belief that the scriptural word

speaks in the human heart as the word of God and can reveal the thoughts of our hearts in re-sponse to God. In this way, lectio divina leads to a deeper communion with the Divine.

5Reflect deeper on your liturgical prayer: When you attend Mass during Lent, be con-

scious of and meditate on the words you pray in the liturgy. For example, the Eucharistic Prayer, the highlight of each Mass, has special signifi-cance during Lent. After receiving communion, you may want to sit and reflect more deeply on this great prayer of the Church.

6Join or start a prayer group: There are many benefits to praying with others. In group

prayer you’re able to offer and experience a pos-itive example, needed support and encourage-ment, different perspectives, and the inspiration to grow in the Christian life. A simple way to get started is to invite your spouse, a family member, or close friend to pray with you on a regular basis throughout Lent.

7Pray with children or as a family: Being a parent, guardian, or teacher is a holy ministry

and a sacred promise. Share your faith with chil-dren by letting them see and hear you pray, and by praying together. And don’t forget about fam-ily dinners. Dinnertime is a great opportunity to start or enliven a tradition of family prayer during Lent.

8Start a practice of daily prayer that will last af-ter Lent: Perhaps the best prayer advice is to

use Lent as a time to instill prayer habits that will last long after Lent has concluded. This would mean that we have a long term effort to be united and grow in the Lord apart from the celebration of Easter. Enjoy your Lenten prayer, and don’t think you have to do all the above. Perhaps choose one or two of these prayer methods in the beginning and experience the pilgrim journey toward Eas-ter that is Lent.

-Extract from Loyola press articles on eight ways to pray.

Eight Ways to Pray DURING LENT


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Lent is a time of reconcilia-tion: a time of God's healing a wounded world. But, if we are honest, it is also a time for us to be reconciled with God again. It doesn’t mean that we have left the church or even sinned seri-ously. Hopefully not. But it is a time for us to come to the Lord in a sense of repentance for our failings—great or small. And that is why we have the Sacra-ment of Reconciliation. It gives us an opportunity to do some-thing externally to reflect what is going on in our hearts.Jesus gave us this sacrament for that very purpose. There was no one who knew more about the human personality than Jesus. When he said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you” (Jn 14:27), Jesus was speaking to his apostles hud-

dled in the upper room, scared to death for their lives. They had failed Jesus, running from his side when he faced his passion. It was one thing to heal the sick and cast out demons. But when the chips were down, they fold-ed like houses of cards.Jesus came to them not with scolding or blame. “Peace” is what he said—and he meant it. They had to have despised them-selves when they came face-to-face with their cowardice. That’s not what Jesus wanted them to feel. He wanted them to expe-rience forgiveness with them-selves. “Who sins you shall for-give, they are forgiven.” Strange, isn’t it, how the weakest of Jesus’ followers are told to carry the forgiveness they have received to the whole world? The Sac-rament of Reconciliation is not about beating ourselves up. God is not about blame. God is about forgiveness, new life, and mercy. Approaching the Sacrament of Reconciliation is one of the most mature things we do as human beings. We don’t make excus-es for our behavior, nor do we hide from it by playing games. We simply come to the Lord in the Sacrament, honestly present our sins and ask for forgiveness. God, through the ministry of

the priest, says: “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Go in peace.”Let me share something that may surprise you. I’ve been a priest now for 50 years. I’ve wondered in all those years how many con-fessions I have been privileged to hear. I can say, conservatively, about 20,000 confessions. But I can tell you honestly that I don’t remember anything anyone ever told me. It's true! Why would I want to remember people's sins? I have my own sins to remem-ber and that’s enough. I and all priests (including the pope) go to confession. However, what I remember is raising my hands in absolution, “I forgive you,” and reminding all who came all those years that God loved them with an infinite love. Some peo-ple, I think, floated out of the confessional with joy and relief in their hearts. Words could not describe that moment. This Lent, there will be ample op-portunities with various parish penance services to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation. If you approach Jesus this Lent, you know he will be waiting with open arms to embrace you.

-Jim Van Vurst, OFM

A Season of Reconciliation and Mercy

A STORY OF TRUE FORGIVENESS AT THE LAST-MINUTE...In Iran, it is standard practice for families of murder victims to oversee the execution of murderer of their family member. They are also given the choice to pardon the offender. Such was the fate of a young man who had already served seven years for killing 17-year-old Abdollah Alinejad in a street fight, according to The Associated Press. In May 2014, Samereh Alinejad watched as a noose was slipped around the neck of Bilal Gheisari, her son's killer. This was her chance to have the vengeance she'd waited seven years to have. Instead, she and her husband stepped forward at the last minute and removed the noose from his neck. Gheisari's death sentence was commuted and he will finish serving a 12-year prison sen-tence instead.

- Katie Nielsen


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For many years, I never associated the celebra-tion of Mardi Gras with any sort of religious ob-servance. After all, the news footage of hordes of people in the streets in various levels of drunk-enness doesn’t seem to depict holiness. Growing up in a Protestant denomination that did not ob-serve Lent, the whole holiday just seemed to be an excuse for public intoxication. For many of the people celebrating in New Orleans and other parts of the world, that is all that the celebration represents.But as I’ve grown older, I have learned of the beautiful traditions of some of the other denom-inations. For Catholics and some Protestant denominations, Mardi Gras (literally translated "Fat Tuesday") is the final day before the obser-vance of Lent. Mardi Gras didn’t start out as a time of drunken revelry. It originated just as a final opportunity to feast prior to the fasting of Lent. While Mardi Gras has gained a reputa-tion for its hedonism, Lent is known as a time of prayer, repentance, and recommitment lead-ing up to the celebration of Christ’s resurrection at Easter. Starting with Ash Wednesday, the day after Mardi Gras, and culminating 40 days lat-er, Lent is a time of spiritual preparation for the most important religious holiday for believers. (Sundays are not included in the observance of Lent as Sundays are supposed to be holy days of celebrating the resurrection for all Christians.)Traditionally, observers participated in Lent by abstaining from certain types of food (particular-ly meat, eggs, and milk products). In some tra-ditions, partial fasts were observed where partic-ipants would eat only one meal on certain days. Many who observe Lent today are not as strict. Often they choose to abstain from a particular food or particular behavior (such as watching TV, for example) during Lent. The idea is to ab-stain from pleasurable activities and instead use the time and energy usually spent in those activ-ities to focus on taking stock of one’s own spiritu-al condition and repenting for spiritual failures.

This idea seems foreign even to many Christians in our culture of immediate gratification.The 40 days of Lent are also a time of grief. All Christians celebrate the resurrection of Christ each Easter. Unfortunately, we often don’t spend much time grieving over our sins that caused the brutal execution of Christ. This tradition be-gins with the first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday. Ashes are put on believers’ foreheads on Ash Wednesday as a sign of repentance. The practice of putting ashes on one’s head is an ancient sign of mourning that was often done at funerals or similarly sorrowful occasions. In this case, the ashes represent sorrow over our sins and the pain and death caused by sin. Perhaps if we are to truly appreciate the great cost to Christ of our salvation, we should meditate on our sinfulness. This meditation should lead observers of Lent to turn away from their sins and recommit them-selves to holiness. Perhaps, after we examine our hearts and lives, we will be led to cry out to God as David did, "Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me" (Psalm 51:9-10).While my particular denomination does not traditionally celebrate Lent, I have come to ap-preciate its relevance. As we prepare to celebrate Easter, perhaps we should all use the next few weeks to focus less on our physical appetites and more on our spiritual needs. Perhaps such med-itation would lead us to appreciate anew the cost of grace and the victory of the empty tomb.Can God change your life? God has made it possible for you to know Him and experience an amazing change in your own life. Discover how you can find peace with God. You can also send us your prayer requests.

-Elliott Ryan

Celebrate Lent


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Living the way of the cross is inevitable. The Lenten journey begins with a reminder of our own mortality: “From dust we came and to dust we shall re-turn.” Not one of us, as they say, escapes this journey alive. Death is the universal end of our earthly lives, and every one of us, if we live long enough, dies smaller deaths along the way. -These are the moments that can most try our faith—the fears, grief, and failures that pock-mark the road and cause us to stumble or to crumble. An accident. A cancer diagnosis. Abuse. Betrayal. Divorce. Bro-ken dreams. Every one of us carries a burden, often in secret. We put on a brave face. We cry out to God—and we some-times wonder if God hears. In this we are in exalted company. The Lord Jesus himself cries out

from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) As Je-sus shares our burden of death and the fearsome prospect of being abandoned by God, he also lights the path of hope: “…those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:25).How do we pray to and with Jesus when we feel we’ve lost ourselves? Some have suggest-ed that one of the most potent prayers we have at our dispos-al is also one of the simplest: “Help!” When my mother died at 53 after a short and brutal battle with leukemia, I was in a dark hour and discovered for the first time what it means for someone to pray for me. A wise pastor reminded me that when I could not pray, my brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ could pray instead. Our Cath-

olic heritage offers us refuge in knowing that all the saints, liv-ing and dead, can lift up prayers on our behalf. We have the de-votional prayers of our tradi-tion—the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Memorare, and the book of Psalms—which give us words for the times when we have no words of our own.We also have silence. “Silence is God’s first language,” teach-es St. John of the Cross. In our dark hours, it can be enough to lift our sufferings in wordless silence to God. Lent ends with an empty tomb and the resur-rected Messiah whose triumph promises our own resurrec-tions. May our prayer this Lent unite our suffering with the Lord’s suffering so that we can find in him the life he promises.

-Chris Sullivan

“I asked Jesus, “How much do you love Me?”Jesus replied, “This much" And stretched

his arms out on the cross and died.”, Anony-mousAs humans we are always in need of someone to love and care for. We are in search of that per-son everywhere, not knowing that "The Cross" which stands firm is the only answer to all our questions, doubts and problems. We pray to God to take away our cross which eventually detaches us from Christ. If you accept what is

good, why not accept what is bad? When Je-sus is on the cross the only person who speaks to Him is another person who like Him is on the Cross. Every day when Jesus lowers him-self in the form of bread He wants us to speak to Him, whether verbal or silent, He under-stands. He is with us in our trials. He knows our sorrows, anxieties and worries; because He too was stripped and humiliated. We often put God to a test, asking Him "why He did this to Me? "The cross is still the answer. Do not remove The Cross and Christ from your life. Let this Cross which is before us during this season of Lent, cleanse us of our sins so that our souls resurrect with Jesus our Lord.

- Sibia Augustine

PRAYING ON THE ROAD TO CALVARY

THE LIVING CROSS


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Ash Wednesday begins our Lenten journey to Easter. During this journey we will ask God to deepen our relationships — not only with God, but also with our fellow human beings. Lent is a time to reflect upon the many pathways and min-istries where God has led us and walked with us. The word “paschal” refers to the Hebrew Pass-over. In a larger sense, the Passover is the exodus or liberation or deliverance from the Israelites’ oppressors.Palm Sunday brings a reflection on the paradox of triumph and tragedy — the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, the Gospel proclamation of the passion and death of Jesus. Even in the trage-dy of Good Friday, there is hidden the triumph of Easter — Jesus, crucified, risen, and in our midst, transformed. Thursday, Friday and Saturday of Holy Week are the Triduum. On Thursday, we commemorate the Lord’s Supper — a sacrificial meal and a symbol of our oneness with God and with the human family.On Good Friday, we meditate upon the Garden of Gethsemane; the trial; the crucifixion; the burial; veneration of the cross; and a simple com-munion service. At the Easter vigil, we reflect on the passage of Jesus from this earthly life through death into eternal life; the resurrection of Jesus is the pledge of our own liberation or deliverance. The vigil includes: fire, a symbol of Jesus as the light who scatters the darkness around us; the proclamation of the story of our salvation in the Scriptures; the renewal of our baptismal promis-es; and the Eucharist. Easter proclaims that Jesus is risen, alive among us, and especially alive in the sacramental life of our Catholic community.Forgiveness is an overriding Lenten theme. It in-vites us to reflect on our own willingness to for-give people who have wronged us, intentionally or unintentionally. There’s a folk wisdom that says: “forgive and forget.” But sometimes we can’t forgive wrongs done to us unless we remember; for example, a once happy relationship, then a wrong done, and finally, a shattered relationship.

At times, we have to forgive ourselves as well as others so that we can move forward with life.Let me illustrate forgiveness with a favorite book of mine. In The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom describes how she lectured and preached throughout post World War II Europe about the need to forgive one another. Following one of her talks, a former SS guard came up to her. She re-membered him: the laughing SS, the frightened face of her sister. And when this former SS guard extended his hand to shake hers, she, who had preached so often about forgiveness, kept her hand at her side. And then she remembered: Je-sus Christ had died for this repentant man; and forgives him. Lord Jesus, she prayed, forgive me and help me to forgive him. She tried to smile, to raise her hand. But she couldn’t. And so, again, she breathed a silent prayer: “Jesus, I can’t forgive him for what he did to my sister and so many other people. Give me your forgiveness.” Ten Boom discovered that forgiveness depended not on her, but on God’s grace.When Jesus tells us to love our enemies, he also gives us the grace to love, to forgive. To forgive as Christ forgives is sometimes impossible to do on our own. But Christ doesn’t ask us to forgive on our own. He simply asks that we participate in his gift of forgiveness. God has already forgiven those who are truly sorry — and all he asks us to do is to participate in his forgiveness. Forgiveness is possible when we trust in God to bring healing, forgiveness and reconciliation to our broken re-lationships. As God constantly searches out the lost, so should we; and as God always welcomes back the stranger, so should we. Forgiveness can be a long journey, but at the end lies freedom and new life. May God, during this Lenten season, give all of us the grace to participate in the for-giveness of Christ so that we can be at peace with ourselves and one another, as true disciples of Jesus.

-Extract from Kevin Mackin OFM

Lent AndForgiveness


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pkyhlk riL; vkSj thou


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JESUS SAID: “I AM”In the Gospel of John chap-ter 8: 56-59, Jesus in re-sponse to the Pharisees’ question, “Who do you think you are? And how you have seen Abraham?” Jesus answered, “I tell you

the truth, before Abraham was born “I AM!” ….This statement indicates that Jesus was the eternal God incarnated. Jesus was equating Himself with the “I AM” title as God revealed His name to Moses as “I AM” in Exodus 3:14. Jesus was and is God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity, equal to the Father in every way.Jesus used the same phrase, “I AM” in seven declarations about Himself. All appear in the book of John. These are:- I AM the Bread of Life (John 6:35 ), I AM the Light of the World (John 8:12 ), I AM the Door of the Sheep (John 10: 7 ), I AM the Good Shepherd (John 10:11), I AM the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25), I AM the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6 ), I AM the True Vine (John 15: 1-5 ).By saying “I AM”, Jesus made specific revela-tions regarding His identity and nature and claimed to be much more than a Rabbi or Prophet. Jesus claimed to be the Messiah—God in human form. In these verses we find Jesus as, one who satisfies ( Bread of Life ), One who gives Life ( Light ), One who offers salva-tion ( Gate ), One who dies for us ( Good Shep-herd ), The Resurrection and the Life, the Way, the Truth and true Vine ( Real, Legitimate)and through this Jesus fulfills the prophesies of the Old Testament regarding the Messiah, predict-ed His resurrection and presents Himself as the way of salvation. We were created to have fellowship with God but we sinned and the fel-lowship was broken. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and so “The wages of sin is Death,” that is spiritual separation from God, but God is a loving God, He loves us and wants to save us from the fire

of hell, so God offers a wonderful plan for our life. The Bible says “God so loved the world that He gave His one and Only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eter-nal life”. God plan to send His only Son Jesus Christ to shed His blood for us on the Cross. Jesus Christ is God`s only provision for our sin, through Him we can know and experience God`s love and plan for our life. Jesus said, “I came that they might have life and might have abundantly”. God demonstrates His own love towards us, is that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” He was buried and was raised on the third day and He appeared to His disciples. Jesus said, “I AM the Way, the Life and the Truth and no one can come to the Fa-ther except through Me”. God has bridged the gulf which separates us from Him by sending His son Jesus Christ, to die on the cross and to pay the penalty for our sins. And therefore we must individually receive Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord to experience God`s love and plan for our lives. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for our sins is not enough. Receive Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of the will. John 1:12 says, “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name”. In the midst of death, sorrow and weeping Je-sus said, “I AM the Resurrection and the Life, he who believes in Me will live even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die”. This points us both to this life and the life to come. Work out your salvation with fear always awaiting the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ in Glory as the Bible says in 2 Pe-ter 3:10, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also the works, that are therein shall be burned up”. Be Blessed.

- Kenneth Benjamin


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Lent will be a wonderful season of grace for us if we give ourselves to it. And we will give ourselves to it if we want it badly enough. We need to prepare our hearts. We can do so by realizing how much we want to grow in freedom, how much we need to lighten our spirits and experience real joy, and how much some parts of our lives really need changing. Pre-paring our hearts is a process of preparing our de-sires. This means practicing a sense of anticipation. If I imagine Lent as an “ordeal” or a time I dread in some way, then I’ve already predisposed myself to not get very much out of it. Lent is a time to anticipate something wonderful that is about to happen.Our sense of excitement and anticipation will grow more easily if we begin to imagine what God wants to give us. Something is coming that we can truly look forward to. If we focus too much on what we are going to do or not do, we risk missing out on the gift God wants to give us. Lent is about God’s great desire to bless us. All grace comes from God and is, therefore, God’s gift. It is given to us to free us to love others as our Lord has loved us. What we want is to receive what God wants to give us.Lent is a season of being invited by God in a deep-ly personal way. “Come back to me, with all of your heart,” our Lord beckons (see Joel 2:12). “We will,” we respond, but we aren’t quite ready; our hearts are not prepared. We want to squirm, evade, avoid. We note that our souls are not yet perfect. We think we are not ready for God to love us. Yes, of course I want to

have a deeper relationship with God, we tell ourselves earnestly. And we will...soon. God calls to us again: “Come back to me, with all of your heart.”Something all of us can do is committing ourselves to being more reflective during Lent. We can simply make a point of being more observant, more aware of what we’re experiencing, more cognizant of our au-tomatic behavior. We can then start paying attention to our many desires. During Lent, we can examine these desires and see which of them we need to pu-rify, which we may need to abandon, and which are positive desires that we need to act on. Naming our deepest desires will guide the choices we make to es-tablish new patterns for Lent.From the first day of Lent, the Ash Wednesday read-ings make God’s call to us clear: “Return to me with your whole heart” (Joel 2:12). It is an extraordinary invitation from God to each one of us—to me in a personal, individual way. God invites me to drop the defenses that I hold up between myself and God. God wants us to realize that our standards, our ways of judging and loving, are very different from God’s way, and so much smaller. God loves each one of us. For an entire Lenten season, for an entire lifetime, God loves each one of us. “A clean heart create for me, God,” Psalm 51:12 offers. “Give me back the joy of your salvation.” That is exactly what our loving God wants to give us, the joy of salvation.

-Andy Alexander SJ

Renewing Our Lives This Lent

There is Power in Those Ashes... A few years ago, on Ash Wednesday, I attended a noon mass at a downtown church near our local university campus. As I sat down a small group of students sat in the row with me. We smiled, and as the mass began, I could tell that they were there for the first time. I help the young girl next to me find the opening hymn and the readings for mass and she did the same down the row, as everyone nodded to me their thanks. As I looked around the church, I could tell that they weren’t the only non-Catholics at mass that day. When the time arrived to distribute the ashes, I stood and they followed me down the aisle to the distributor in our section. “Remember you are dust and unto dust you shall return,” the words spoken and each student received their ashes. They made their way back to the pew and mass continued. At the conclusion of mass, I had the opportunity to speak with each of them. “Are you Catholic?” I asked the first young lady. “No, she replied, I am a non-denominational Christian.” Of the four students only one was a marginal Catholic, having been baptized as an infant but raised in a family that didn’t practice their faith. The two remaining were agnostic. “What brought you to mass today,” I inquired? “The ashes,” they responded in unison! “What about the ashes,” I asked. They explained, “there is just something about the concept of lent that is very appealing to us. The dying to self, the giving up of something we take for granted, things that others might not have, the idea of a period of time where we reflect on our lives and what are purpose in life is, that is very appealing.” Wow, I thought! Young people are always searching, searching for some meaning to their lives, searching for answers to life’s biggest questions. And, you know, if they are going to find these answers, then this is a great place to start! For forty days, we are asked to die to self, rend our hearts and return to The Lord, and to pray, fast and give alms. We sat in church and talked for a half hour after mass. We discussed the great homily the celebrant gave, and we talked about lent, ashes, and what lies ahead, the life, death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As they left the church, they thanked me. In return, I thanked them for restoring my faith in their generation. At least these four, really got the message. -Tony Agnes.


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I had been to Jhansi Railway station several times: either to meet someone passing through, or to meet someone coming to Jhansi, or going for a plea-sure trip, or to attend a meeting etc. However, on 6th February 2018 I was standing at the platform, waiting for the Kerala Express heading towards the

Capital – my heart and mind engrossed in mixed feelings: a sense of gratitude for what has been accomplished, a throbbing pain to leave behind so many loved ones, an uncertain anxiety of what awaits the other end. At last the train crawled in most reluctantly on her heavy wheels and stopped with a jolt. My lug-gage was pushed in by two employees who came with me and the sisters got me into my reserved place- to be alone for the next 7-8 hours. They waved their hands as the train was moving- un-aware of the reality, my tears rolled down my cheeks – two hefty fellows (Later I discovered they were army men) sitting on the opposite berth was looking at me in compassion- I tried to look out of the window. The train was picking the speed, my memories unraveled…

“Life changes in every second,We never know what will happenWe smile, we cry, we win, we lose

It turn around so quickly,That’s why life is a subtly puzzle…

Strong wind or friendly breezeHard rain or little drizzles

Burning rays of the sun or cool moonlightAdd so much wonder to our life.

We come, we goWe arrived and we departure from the world

In this little time we liveAmidst birth and death.” (Anonymous)

Jhansi was a cherished home for me for the last seven years and eight months. Nirmala Convent, SFC, Krist Jyothi, again Nirmala Convent – How fast the years rolled by!!! I had come to Jhansi in June 2010. In the same year, I was elected as the Local CRI Secretary. For the next five years, I carried on that ministry which gave me a great opportunity to know the sisters in different Mission Stations and also to get involved in the Prison ministry under the able guidance of Frs. Valerian, Paul Chandru and Marceline. Visiting the inmates of the jail especially women who had been there for a long time, praying with them, organizing programs for them during special festivals had been my precious moments to feel with the suffering humanity.To me Jhansi seemed to be a place of ‘get together’ and celebration – either in St. Anthony’s Ca-thedral, or In St. Jude’s Shrine, or in a Mission stations, or some schools- Seminars, workshops, anniversaries etc. always there is something to look forward to- where we could meet a number of priests, sisters and laity, have a chit chat, say a ‘hello’ – a golden chance to create a bond of love and friendship. The ever smiling presence of the shepherd on these occasions, is encouraging and enriching. The twenty four hours active ‘media person’ “The Bee”, giving up-to-date news and information, keep the entire diocese alert as to what is next!!!I felt ‘alive’ always, and I am sure, others too feel that way especially when Fr. Sahayanathan

Memories...


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Bible Quiz for Children – 16Learning the Word of God – Gospel according to John1. Where was Jesus when the Pharisees and Scribes brought to Him a woman caught in adultery ?2. What was their intention in bringing the woman to Jesus ?3. What did Jesus tell the Pharisees and the Scribes ?4. What was their reaction ?5. What did Jesus tell the woman ?6. Learn the sentence “I am the light of the world…………. He shall possess the light of life.”7. Where did Jesus tell the blind man to wash his eyes ?8. What did the blind man say about Jesus ?9. Why were the parents of the blind man afraid to tell the truth ?10. How do you know that the blind man believed in Jesus ?

-Mary CJ

makes endless announcements each Sunday; one has to pay attention or else we may miss something. Truly I appreciate the zeal and enthusiasm of the priests in Jhansi, and I am proud that I was part of this ‘holy ground ’ for the last seven years and eight months.I am grateful to my C.J. Sisters in Jhansi and Mauranipur for their love, care and support. I owe much to the priests in Jhansi Diocese for their loving support and friendly relationship with Nirmala Community. At the end, I must thank each one of you for celebrating the 50 years my of religious life in God’s service. When I look back to the fifty long years I see:

“My life has been balanced with pleasures and trialsI’ve had many tear drops and thousands of smiles

I’ve soared to the moon, and I’ve plunged to the sandMy life has been balanced by God’s loving hand

I‘ve had my friendships, I‘ve had a few foesIn the life of a person, that’s just the way it goes.

Should I simply accept only good from God’s hands?No, I must endure it all whatever He plans

But of one thing I can be certain, and you can be tooAll things work out for the best, as God deals with you.” (Anonymous)

- Sr. Mary C.J.

Computer Quiz for All - 91. How much space in minimum must be provided between columns? a. 0" / b. 0.5" / c. 1" / d. 1.5" 2. What is the smallest width of a column? a. 0" / b. 0.5" / c. 1" / d. 1.5" 3. By default, your document prints with: a. 1 inch top and bottom margins. / b. a portrait orientation. / c. 1.25 inches left and right margins. / d. all of the above 4. Word is preset to use standard 8.5-by-11-inch paper with _____ margins.

a. 1-inch left, right, top, and bottom. / b. 1.25-inch left, right, top, and bottom. / c. 1.25-inch left and right margins and 1-inch top and bottom. / d. 1-inch left and right margins and 1.25-inch top and bottom

5. What is the default left margin in Word 2003 document? a. 1". / b. 1.25". / c. 1.5". / d. 2" -Bharat Kumar


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The Power of PrayerThere are many castes, creeds, sects and religions in India. And everyone pray to God, but in different ways, at different places and at different times. What is the necessity of praying to God?

God is kind and showers His blessing equally on all of us whether we pray or do not pray to Him. He has gifted us with many things free of cost. He is a great forgiver. He does not punish us for our sins. He forgives the sins we have sins unknowingly. We must remember God and pray to Him to express our thanks. We must pray to God because God has bestowed us with all the gifts we possess. We must pray and thank Him for all those favors He has bestowed on us. God has given us innumerable. Hence, prayer is to thank and to show our gratitude to God for all the gifts He has bestowed upon us. Prayer also enables one develop devotion and has untold powers. People of different sects and religions use the ability to pray as an advantage. Prayer can help anyone who is in need of healing from sickness, diseases or problems that interfere with their daily lives. Prayer can not only help heal sickness and diseases, but it can also help people heal problems that go on in their daily lives. Prayer can also help people achieve goals, dreams and other tasks they may want to accomplish.

- Jubel D'Cruz, Mumbai

Here are few things we all must need to know regarding lent. This year Ash Wednesday falls on 14th of February i.e. the Valentine's day truly signifying the day of Love. For us it's a privilege to love Christ our Saviour who rendered his love on us by sacrificing his very own precious life. The lent lasts for 40 days (which are count-ed excluding all Sundays in between). There are mainly 3 pillars of lent: 1.Prayer 2.Fasting 3.Alms-givingFasting and Abstinence: As per the Canon 1251, Fasting and Abstinence are to be ob-served strictly at Ash Wednesday and at Friday of passion of our Lord (Good Friday) and also, As per Canon 1250, all Fridays throughout the year and at the time of lent are Penitential days in which the Laws of Fasting and Abstinence are to be followed.Law of Fasting: As per this law, the Fast con-sists of only 1 Regular meal and 2 Small meals (which if added together would not exceed the Main meal in quantity). Rest entire day must be entirely free from consumption of anything. The Fast is broken at the time of Supper, after at-tending the Church mass of Ash Wednesday by engraving the ash on our forehead. Then Fast is broken by eating between meals and by drinks

which could be considered food (milk shakes but not milk).Law of Abstinence: No Meat to be consumed in the entire period of lent as well as on all the Fridays of the year. No meat i.e. flesh and organs of mammals and fowls. Consumption of Fish, shellfish, amphibians and reptiles are allowed in the Lent.Obligations: It is obligatory for Catholics from 14 years old, until death are bound to practice the Law of Ab-stinence i.e. (Denying Flesh) and Catholics who are 18 to 59 years old are bound to practice the Law of Fasting i.e. (Denying Food).Those excused from Fasting and Abstinence:1. Persons which are of Unsound mind,2. The sick, the frail, pregnant or nursing wom-en according to need for meat or nourishment,3. Manual labourers according to need,4. Guests at the meal who cannot excuse them-selves without giving great offence or causing enmity,5. Any other situations of Moral or Physical im-possibility to observe the Penitential discipline.-Compiled from Catholic Fortress by

Ambrose Peter, OLPH Sipri.

LENT


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Born to the Christian parents of Konkani Brahmin caste

Christopher Vaz and Maria de Miranda, Joseph attended his primary and secondary school in Sancoale, where he learned Latin. He studied hu-manities at the Jesuit Goa University, philosophy and theology at saint Thomas Aquinas Academy.Ordained in the year 1676, became a Preacher and confessor. He opened a Latin school in San-coale for seminarians. Always devoted to Our Lady, in 1677 he consecrated himself as a “slave of Mary,” sealing it with a document known as his “Letter of Enslavement”. About this time Joseph learned the condition of Catholics in Ceylon; per-secuted by the Dutch, they had no priests for past 50 years. He sought permission to work in Cey-lon, but was asked to go to the mission in Kanara. He accepted, but his thoughts and heart were in Ceylon. Vicar of Vara in Kanara, preaching, hearing confessions, visiting the sick, helping the poor, ransoming Christian slaves, working to set-tle jurisdictional disputes that interfered with the sacraments. Meanwhile, a small congregation of priests had formed in Goa with the Church of the Holy Cross of Miracles as their residence. Joseph joined and was elected superior. He gave a defin-itive canonical status to this Oratory, introduced religious exercises and charitable activities, and trained its members for the mission. In 1686 he gave up his position, and set out for Ceylon. Dis-guised as an itinerant worker, he reached the port of Tuticorin on Easter 1687, and then the Dutch stronghold of Jaffna in the north of the Ceylon.He suffered from acute dysentery, contracted from the terrible travelling conditions, and upon recovery he began his mission by contacting Catholics and hiding from the Dutch. He was taken in by a courageous Catholic, and minis-tered to his secret flock by night. One step ahead of the authorities, in 1689 he went to the Catholic village of Sillalai and began ministering to folks in surrounding villages.In 1690 Joseph moved on to Puttalam in the Kingdom of Kandy, where 1,000 Catholics had not seen a priest for half a century. He decided to make Kandy the centre of his apostolate, and in

1692 he left for there, hoping to obtain royal per-mission to travel freely. Instead, he was preceded by Calvinist accusations of being a Portugese spy, and was imprisoned with two other Catholics. There he learned Sinhala, the local language, and since the prison guards left the prisoners alone as long as they didn’t try to escape, he built a hut-church and later a proper church dedicated to Our Lady, and began converting other prisoners.In 1696 the Kingdom of Kandy was suffering a serious drought, and the king asked the Buddhist monks to pray to their gods for rain; there was no rain. He then turned to Joseph who erected an altar and cross in the middle of the square and prayed; abundant rain began to fall, while Joseph and his altar stayed dry. The king granted Jo-seph license to preach throughout the kingdom. He made a mission visit to the Dutch zone and visited Catholics in Colombo. Three missionar-ies from the Oratory of Goa arrived in 1697 to help him with the news that Don Pedro Pache-co, Bishop of Cochin, had appointed him Vicar General in Ceylon. He was organizing the basic mission structure when smallpox broke out in Kandy. Joseph carried his mission to the main centre of the island. He returned to Kandy in 1699. He completed the construction of his new church, and went into service for the king, trans-lating Portuguese books into Sinhala. From this vantage point, he intensified his ministry, and converted some Sinhalese notables. St. Joseph Vaz died on 17 January 1711 at Kandy, Sri Lanka of Natural causes. Due to the size of the crowds of mourners his body, had to be exposed for three days and was buried in the church in Kandy. He was venerated on 13 May 1989 by Pope John Paul II. He was beatified on 21 Jan-uary 1995 by Pope John Paul II at Colombo, Sri Lanka, his cause having been pursued since 1737. He was canonized by pope Francis on 14 January 2017, in Galle Face Green Park, Colombo sri lan-ka. He also known as a patron of Archdiocese of Goa and Damao, India.

- Aditi Jha (Class-XI)St. Joseph Vaz Vidyaniketan, Talbehat

A Brief History of St. Joseph Vaz


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Career Guidance ProgramA career guidance program for the youth was held on 30th April, 2017 from 7:00 a.m. It was a one day program. Mr. Ashish Michael, a renowned busi-nessman was the resource person for the first ses-sion who made known to the youth about how to choose a career in life according to each ones skills and interests. Mr. Siddharth Jain, a Chartered Ac-countant and Dr. Seema Margaret took the second session in which they gave inputs to the youth re-garding the career selection. The second session was followed by the panel discussion.Diocesan youth convention 2017The ICYM Jhansi unit in association with ICYM UP Region organized “Diocesan Youth Convention 2017” a 3 days residential program for all the youth of Jhansi diocese which commenced on 23rd June 2017 to 25th June 2017 at St. John’s parish, Prem-nagar, Jhansi. The convention was on the theme “Character formation and Team building”. Our resource person was Mr. Ajay Phillips (Youth Pres-ident of Jhansi diocese) who gave all the sessions regarding the team building and formation of the character. About 60 youth attended this convention. This convention camp concentrated on informative sessions, special mass celebrations, prayer services, cultural events, group activities, opening and clos-ing ceremony etc.Diocesan premier league (DPL 2K17)Moving further in the year 2017, the Youth of Jhansi diocese in collaboration with the DEXCO team or-ganized a cricket league for the youth. In this league a total of 6 teams participated representing their parishes. The 10-over league matches took place from 11th to 13th August 2017 with each team play-

ing 2 matches. The league matches were followed by the final on 15th august 2017 and the winning and runner up team were awarded Rs. 5000 and Rs. 2500 respectively.Mission MelaIn order to raise funds for the Mission Sunday, the youth of Jhansi diocese organized a fair on 22nd Oc-tober 2017 at St. Jude’s Shrine Church campus. It was a successful event consisting of several eatables and games. The whole amount profited was further donated for the Mission Sunday collections.ICYM Jhansi diocese DEXCO Elections 2017-18The DEXCO elections of Jhansi diocese for the ses-sion 2018-19 were held during the monthly youth meeting at A/V Hall, St. Anthony’s Cathedral par-ish, Jhansi on 12th November 2017. The awaited re-sults were as Mr. Leander D’Cruz being elected as the new president of ICYM Jhansi unit for the term 2018-19. Other elected members were Mr. Rishabh Lucas William as Vice-president and Mr. Ambrose Remy Peter as General Secretary. Youth director of Jhansi diocese Rev. Fr. Julian presided over the program and addressed the youth regarding Lead-ership. The program ended with the thanksgiving to Old DEXCO Members and welcoming of New DEXCO Members.MeetingsA total of 9 meetings were held in this entire year to keep up the good spirit in the youth. Our Youth Director Rev. Fr. Julian, Assistant Youth Director Rev. Fr. Ambrose and Youth Lady Animator Rev. Sr. Shanti presided over these meetings.

-Ambrose Peter (General Secretary), Sipri Parish, Jhansi.

JHANSI DIOCESEANNUAL REPORT fROmICYM 2017-18

The Eyes of Love...A grandmother and a little girl whose face was sprinkled with bright red freckles spent the day at the zoo. The children were waiting in line to get their cheeks painted by a local artist who was decorating them with tiger paws.'You've got so many freckles, there's no place to paint!' a boy in the line cried. Embarrassed, the little girl dropped her head. Her grandmother knelt down next to her. 'I love your freckles,' she said. 'Not me,' the girl replied.'Well, when I was a little girl I always wanted freckles,' she said, tracing her finger across the child's cheek. 'Freckles are beautiful!' The girl looked up. 'Really?' 'Of course,' said the grandmother. 'Why, just name me one thing that's pretti-er than freckles.' The little girl peered into the old woman's smiling face. 'Wrinkles,' she answered softly.


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Nostalgia - Part-5

From the DSS Family on the Feast day of St Angela MericiThere are 230 Congregations of Merician Fam-ily as their Patroness or as Foundress and DSS is the 230th one. Angela Merici was born of virtuous parents at Desenzano, a town in the diocese of Verona, in the Venitian territory It-aly in the year 1474. In the evening hours An-gela's Father Giovanni would gather the chil-dren and his wife Vaterina around the fire and either read a Bible passage or tell some value based stories or let the children share any such stories. which helped Angela to lead a spiritu-al life. She began to teach little children those who are poor. At the age of 57 she had orga-nized a group of girls to help her in Catecheti-cal work. She formed them in to the company of St Ursula patroness of Medieval universi-ties and venerated as a leader of women. Her purpose was to Christianize family life though solid Christian education to future wives and mothers. They observed the practice of Chas-tity, Poverty and Obedience. Angels founded the first teaching Congrega-tion of women in the Church and what is then call a "Secular Institute" of women. Her auster-ity was severe in practicing chastity. She would also abstain and fast for day long. After the parents demise she embraced the rule of the Third Order of St Francis, received the hab-it and united evangelical Poverty to the merit of Virginity. She embraced a simple life style, offered a portion of her own food which she procured by begging. She gained the reputa-tion of great sanctity in several places, which she visited by comforting the afflicted or obtain pardon for criminals or reconcile them that

were at variance, or reclaim sinners from the sink of crime. She had a singular hungering after the bread of Angels, which she frequently received; and such was the vehemence of her love of God, that she was often in a state of ecstasy. Angela possessed more of divine than human. This was her teaching to her daughters "Do in life which you wish to have done by the time you die". She was a person so active yet always with her mind in the sky. Her work focused on updating the societies, by reforming the fami-lies, giving education and by promoting wom-en empowerment or a recognition of women in the society which is part of the Modern times. On 27th November 1535 she established St Ursula Society on St Catherines day with 28 members. On 27th January 1540 she died. She was beatified in the year 1768 and proclaimed saint in the year 1807. During Angela's times of in 11 of her monasteries there were about 3000 nuns. The Unshaken confidence and the noble virtues of St Angela namely her open-ness to the world, her deep intimacy with God and tender concern over the poor and her loy-alty to the church inspired Mother Petra, the Servant of God to adopt her as the Patroness of DSS Congregation. Mother Petra herself was the member of St Angela's congregation before founding DSS Congregation. Angela died four years after starting her com-pany Clad in the Franciscan habit, she was laid away four hundred and seventy two year ago. She remains today, the habit grayed with age and her skin delicate parchment, but entirely preserved, one of the incorruptible saints.

- Sr Hephziba DSS“Reflect that in reality you have a greater need to serve [the poor] than they have of your service.”

- Angela Merici


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Answers for the Bible Quiz: 1) 8:2 2) 8:6 3)8:7 4) 8:9 5) 8:10-11 6) 8:12 7) 9:7 8) 9:17 9) 9:22 10) 9:38Answers for the Computer Quiz: 1) - A, 2) - B, 3) - D, 4) - C, 5) - B.


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A Saga That Ended atThe 50th Year: DIL BAHADUR...

Dil Bahadur was born in the year 1944 at Palpa Town in Thansen, Ne-

pal. He was the third child among three brothers and a sister. His Parents Chandra Bahadur and Mannkumari held good fortune: Indeed a wealthy family that held vast land and a three storied building at Palpa.

However Dil Bahadur travelled off from Tansen leaving all those fortunes. In the year 1968, at the age of 14 he reached Jhansi. Initially for about three months Dil and one of his companion stayed with their acquaintance Shyamsingh Lama at Cantonment, Jhansi. After about three months he found a place at St Jude's Shrine Cam-pus as a watchman. That was the beginning of a long saga that tell a loyal story of a man of royal character; Dil served at the Shrine of St Jude's for five decades.

Bahadur was a familiar person for all the pilgrims who came to the Shrine of St Jude. At Jhansi many people know him to be someone who never went back to his home. But a few people remember him to have gone home once. But those who are close to him would re-member his home visit two time in the past five de-cades. Once for a couple of months and a second time when he heard about the death of his mother. Apart from this for few months he was absent for few months; in the recent past Dil was away in the hospital for more than a month due to his leg injury. That would make Dil Bahadur absent from Shrine campus 'only four times in five decades'. Indeed heart of Dil is well planted at Shrine.

Though he arrived as a small boy, he grew in strength and courage in the Shrine campus. He grew up in his knowledge in technical fields like electrical works and plumbing. Any of the faults could be easily rectified soon no matter at a switch board on the ground floor or the bulbs on the fifteen feet long cross on the top of the dome of the Shrine of St Jude. Those who have climbed atop of the dome would know, how scary a feeling it is to be there to withstand the sight of height and the wind that strike too hard. But that was only an adventurous job for Dil Bahadur.

No intruders would easily dare to plunge in the campus. There were occasions when some thieves who tried to break in and Dil was injured by them. Still Bahadur's heart faced no tremor; indeed he is Bahadur not only in name but also in character. His name is Dil, indeed he was full of heart for those in need. Lot of money he has given out to those in need, especially to his co-workers.

Bahadur was physically weak past few years. On the 5th February evening hours, he became ill. Sixth morn-ing health condition was again down, due to giddiness

he had a fall as well. But Bahadur would never want to go to hospital. By 4 O'clock in the evening he was found to be extremely sick, unable to get up himself. So Fathers and his close acquaintance decided to take him even if he never wanted to go to hospital. However he had to be carried to the vehicle to take him to the hospital. There it was found that his sugar level had shot up to five hundred. Up to 8 O' Clock Bahadur was responding to all who visited him in the hospital, and even said good bye; that was 6th night. After 9 O'clock at night he slipped in to coma; he was slowly sinking. At early in the morning at 4.30 am on the 7th February Dil Bahadur breathed his last in the hospital at the age of 74, on his 50th year in St Jude's Shrine campus.

Morning hours His body was brought to Shrine campus. At 11 O'clock his last journey began; carrying through the Shrine of St Jude; pausing in front of the miraculous statue of St Jude; the journey continued to the place of his final rites according to the customs and traditions of his home town; final rites were administered by Dil Bahadur's one and only dear friend from Nepal Shyams-ingh Lama.

Of course Dil Bahadur is no more a voice that resounds in the campus. But the sweet memories of him would munch our minds. I see it as a great privilege to serve him past three years; to feed him; to spent time with him; to talk with him with very-very limited words. But few are the moments when Dil used to unfold himself in words that speaks antic tales from his life in St Jude's Shrine, and those stories would have a difference like 'pearls among pebbles...'

-TheBee


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