Fr Adolf Washington
Bangalore Feb 5 : From serious talks on Priesthood and Priestly ministry to the enthralling humour and card tricks of Archbishop Emeritus Michael Augustine (former Archbishop of Pondicherry-Cuddalore) and other priests 264 priests from across the country experienced what one would call a "joyful reunion with every opportunity to go down memory lane", as a priest put it at the St Peter's Seminary Alumni gathering February 3rd and 4th in Bangalore.
The gathering that is held once in five years saw the participation of Bishop Singaroyan of Salem, Archbishop emeritus Michael Augustine, Bishop Thomas Vazhapilly of Mysore. Bishop Singaroyan who presided over the Eucharistic celebration said "Jesus came from an ordinary family, ordinary place and was an ordinary carpenter. People didn't appreciate Jesus for being one among them of his time. So was John Maria Vianney, an ordinary person, who struggled with his studies and faced many challenges. Despite this, they continued their mission joyfully".
Bishop Thomas Vazhapilly in his inaugural address said "The alumni get-together is a happy occasion to meet our old friends, recollect our formative years in the seminary and to share our pastoral experience. This gathering is a meeting of both the young and the old priests who carry different pastoral experiences and an exchange and sharing of these experiences enriches each of us priests".
"This year being the year of priests is so apt a reminder for us to emulate Saint John Maria Vianney, the patron of parish priests who was given the great title the ‘priest of God' because he found happiness as a priest. This should also help us to reflect if we are happy as a priest and happy serving God and his people' Bishop Vazhapilly said.
Father Dennis D'Souza acting President of St. Peter's Pontifical Institute who welcomed the gathering said "Along life's journey we meet to part and part to meet, every meeting that happens after a long time is always an emotional experience that brings to mind a lot of memories that cheer us up. It is a happy co-incidence that we are meeting during the Year of Priests".
Father Joseph B Francis former professor at St. Peters and former Vicar General of Bangalore presented a paper on ‘Ministerial Priesthood'. "The ordained Priesthood will not lose its relevance even as changes take place around us. Just as the Church remains, so will priesthood too. However the manner in which a Priest carries out his ministry can change from time to time and from place to place depending on the circumstances" Father Joseph B Francis said in response to a question about hyphenated-priests (Priest-lawyer, Priest-doctor etc). "Though we find such priests, the most popular of them is a Priest-teacher" he said, mentioning how he continues to teach ‘Julius Caesar' and sometimes History in a school close to his parish.
Father Olivier Artus, Professor, Institute Catholique de Paris presented a paper on ‘Priesthood; A Biblical Perspective' which highlighted the emergence of the Priesthood from the Old Testament times. "Surprisingly, there is very little about the cultic Priesthood mentioned in the New Testament" he said. Father Rayappan, Professor in Canon Law in his presentation spoke about the hierarchical structures in the Church and the Consultations made by the Bishop. Responding to a participants' observation that "Too much power is given to Bishops and the very fact that the bishops are obliged to ‘consult' the various bodies of priests implies that the Bishops are not all-knowing", Father Rayappa said "The Bishops consult but can make a decision even against a unanimous opinion of the body he has consulted if he finds it goes against the Church and the Faithful. This power is vested with the Bishops because it can happen that by numeric majority a community can be bulldozed completely. This can happen in the name of caste and language-based groups". "Any Bishop in his mind, after consulting, will never make a decision that goes against the Faithful or the Church structure", Father Rayappa said.
Bangalore Archdiocesan Priest Father Joseph Abraham speaking on the ‘Challenges of priesthood and pastoral life' said "Visiting families is a very powerful and essential part of priestly ministry. Unfortunately, many priests these days do not even visit their own parish where they are posted. They visit their own parish like visiting professors. If people are drifting away to other denominations the blame is also upon us. When we preach lengthy and irrelevant sermons that do not touch the lives of our people, there will be a natural exodus from our Churches". Father J B Xavier who moderated the panel discussion said "A new phenomenon has begun in St. Philomena's Cathedral in Mysore. Every morning the priest is shocked to see several rosaries, scapulars and pictures of Mother Mary are left at the Grotto"
Later in the evening a football match was organised between the seminarians and alumni priests. The English, Kannada and Tamil Academy delighted the audience with dance, music and a skit on the life of John Maria Vianney with a modern tinge. Archbishop Emeritus Michael Augustine released a hymnal he had prepared. A special mass was offered by Archbishop Emeritus Michael Augustine for all deceased priests and prayers offered at the tombstone of deceased MEP priests (Paris Foreign Missionaries).
St. Peter's Pontifical seminary has so far produced 1693 priests, 2 cardinals and 35 Bishops.