The audience enjoy the Family Diwas
Pope Francis, February 20, 2014
Chief Guest being welcomed with a bouquet of flowers
Long long ago we were members of
Delhi Malayalee Association (DMA). DMA
would organise the annual Onam or Vishu programme with songs, drama, skits, mimicry,
etc. Perhaps, taking a cue from this we
in the family used to organise a day of celebration, usually during summer or
winter holidays along with neighbourhood kids. The stage was a double bed, very
rare in those days, in the early seventies.
Bedsheets became the curtains for stage.
I never thought that I would be involved in something similar after more
than 40 years. The Family Diwas with 12
groups coming together to perform a skit, song or play brought back
memories.
One of the teams performing and the others keenly watching
2. Father George
Manimala, Parish Priest of St Thomas Church, RK Puram announced that the
Central Deanery of Delhi Archdiocese is celebrating Family Day or Family Diwas
on the occasion of Pope Francis’ visit to Philadelphia for the World meeting of
Families. The early Church Father Saint
Irenaeus famously said that “the glory of God is man fully alive.” In like manner, the glory of men and women is
their capacity to love as God loves.
Life in a family is a summons to embody this love in everyday life. What Catholics believe about human purpose, marriage,
and the family – this is the substance of the following preparatory catechism
for the 2015 World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia.
i.
The Fr George Manimala, Parish Priest of St Thomas Church, R K Puram
Mission of Love. God works through
us. We have a mission. We are in the world for a purpose.
ii. Two become one.
We are not made to be alone. Human beings need and complete each
other. Friendship and community satisfy
that longing with bonds of common interest and love. Marriage is a uniquely intimate form of
friendship that calls a man and woman to love each other in the manner of God’s
covenant.
iii. Light in a Dark World.
At its best, the family is a
school of love, justice, compassion, forgiveness, mutual respect, patience, and
humility in the midst of a world darkened by selfishness and conflict.
iv. A Home for the wounded heart.
Christian families should be
sources of mercy, safety, friendship and support for those struggling with
these issues.
First Prize winners : Sector 1 and 2 RK Puram and Mohamadpur
3. Two or three SCC units were clubbed
together to produce and perform an item on the theme ‘Love is our Mission: A
family fully alive’. It was a challenge
to our unit leaders, a challenge in creativity and a challenge in bringing
people together. Father made it clear
that the objective is to depict how a family, SCC unit or the church can reach
out to others and express love. The time
was limited, the demand great. All are
busy, work, children, family commitments, etc.
The unit leaders were faced with the task of bringing more than one unit
together, to create and produce a five minute programme, involve the entire
unit and compete with others.
4. The first
confirmation came from Mr John Swaminathan of Arjun Nagar. I was thrilled. I waited for other confirmations. Creativity does not come off the shelf or
even internet. We at Netaji Nagar and
Laximibai Nagar spent two valuable meetings discussing what could be done. A song or a game, a skit or a dance. It was test of leadership. I sent SMS after SMS to the leaders urging
them to send the theme of their unit’s performance. The first target was to get a commitment. The moment the leader commits the topic, the
theme, the title, the intention; he/she is committed to organise a
performance. This is a lesson for
life. The moment you commit, commit to
someone other than yourself, you are compelled to deliver. And deliver you will. Whenever you want to achieve something in
life, commit to yourself and then to others, you will be motivated to show
results. Declaring your goal to others
requires guts and declaring the goal of a group of people shows leadership. A declared goal, is like a writing on the
wall. You know the target, the target is
visible and working towards it becomes easier and focused. The Church of RK Puram, the Priests, the Core
Team, the Parish Council, all acknowledge the leadership of each SCC unit who
have taken the challenge, who have shown exceptional leadership qualities, who
have brought the people together, of more than one unit, to come together and
perform.
Third prize winners: Moti Bagh, Nanakpura, Satya, Anand, Shanti Niketan & West End
5. What is
leadership? It’s the unique ability of
infusing among the people the desire to come together, to compete, to bring out
their talents, to trust in the leadership.
The leader has to bring his/her team come out of the shell, to perform
without fear of ridicule, of failure. It
takes courage for a leader to instil the quality of an innocent child in each
member. They have to be enthusiastic,
oblivious of their limitations, perform in public, exhibit talents that they
never knew they had, not to be worried about public opinion, be childlike and
innocent. Perhaps that’s why Jesus liked
children, they were totally themselves.
Can we be as innocent? A leader
has to work more than the others. I am
sure that our leaders were there before the start of each meeting, before the
start of each practice. They must have
ideas, suggestions and practical ways of improving the performance. The leaders have to convey a sense of
confidence that what they are doing is the best. A hope has to be felt by each member. A leader has to lead from the front. The dialogue has to be enacted so that the actor
can learn and perform. A leader must be
ready to face ridicule too. A leader has
to be convinced himself and then must have the capacity to convince
others. He would have to continuously
encourage, coaxing each member to deliver the optimum.
6. Two or three
SCC units clubbed together. 12 groups
were declared and each had to give one performance. There was no option to quit. It could be drama, play, skit, song, panel
discussion, anything. The limitation
was that the performance has to be limited to 5 minutes, atleast 7
participants, participants from different families and on the given theme. Not easy.
Everyone had a job or class or tuition or something important. It is a matter of prioritization. Where would you place God’s work? Despite the compulsions of daily chores
people got together. They planned,
schemed, they practiced, innovated, bonded as a group, sacrificed for each
other, took pains, showed concern, etc. In the process they bonded together as one
family. They came to know each other
better. They opened up and exposed a
little of their inner self. All this
led to a better family, a better relationship, a better bonding.
Second Prize winners : Netaji Nagar and Laxmibhai Nagar
7. On the D day
the event unfolded. Ms Tania Lobo was
the compere for the day. Sr Ash Lata
Karketta, Principal of Holy Child Auxilium School was the Chief Guest. We had Bro Stephen, Bro Manojin and Sr Lily as judges. The performance was to be judged based on the
concept, performance, creativity, adherence to time limit, number of participants
and Public appeal. All the leaders were invited to a draw of lots, undertaken
for deciding the sequence of performance.
Chief Guest and the Judges,
Fr Jesuraj, Assistant Parish Priest, St Thomas Church, RK Puram announcing the winners
8. The
performance started. The level of
participation was very high. There were
more than 20 participants from some teams.
Three generations came together.
So the kids, their parents and their grandparents came together and
performed. Isn’t it great that
individuals in a family who rarely talk to each other, are in front of the TV
or glued to their mobiles, who don’t seem to be on the same wavelength were
however, bonded together for the Family Diwas.
A great success and three cheers to our leaders.
9. Motibagh,
Nanakpura, Satya Niketan, Anand Nikten, Shanti Niketan & West End came
third. Netaji Nagar Laxmibhai Nagar came
Second. Sector 1, 2 and Mohamadpur came
FIRST. Everyone worked hard, scoring was
not the objective and I am sure the marks scored would have been close to each
other. Prizes were given away by the
Chief Guest. Prizes and certificates for
the Game Utsav organised by STAY were also distributed. Mr Bernard Toppo proposed a vote of thanks.
Man cannot
live without love. He remains a being
that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not
revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it
and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. This, as has already been said, is why Christ
the Redeemer “fully reveals man to himself.”
If we may use the expression, this is the human dimension of the mystery
of the Redemption. In this dimension,
man finds again the greatness, dignity, and value that belong to his humanity.
Pope Saint
John Paul II
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