Has anyone answered the Family Survey CBCI Questionaire?
(Note: CCV Chief Editor, Dr James Kottoor, has sent letters to all Indian Bishops, Church Dignitories, prominent Citizen Reformists and all Church media, regarding the Family Survey Indian Dioceses were expected to conduct before the upcoming Synad in Rome. Below is the copy of this letter which was published by The Voice Of Bombay's Catholic Laity – The Laitytude. Alongwith we have given a note of thanks from CCV, written by Dr James Kottoor)
I am earnestly seeking your help to unearth a tall claim made by one of the Spokesperson of the CBCI family commission that they made a family survey in India, got over 50,000 responses from over 80 of the 131 Latin dioceses, distributed the Lineamenta related adapted questionnaire in local lanuages like hindi, Tamil etc. The person concerned asked me to check the CBCI family website.
I did and the above details are from there, but I could not find what responses they got from lay people, if they wrote anything specific in the last BIG column to make their suggestions on burning racial family issues like promoting pure blood marriages, blocks created for interRite marriages etc. But none could give me specific answers, not even the CBCI Family Commission. I wrote to all of them. The ones who answered ask me: Refer that, refer this etc. some of them non-existent,driving me from pillar to post.
I inquired with my many friends if they received any questionnaire sent by CBCI to be filled in. No one in my contacts received them, nor did my parish priest or the editor of Sathyadeepam heard of it. Please let me know if you have seen any questionnaire distributed anywhere. I would be immensely grateful TO YOU for your help.Thanking you in advance and conveying you my good wishes and God bless,
Thank you Arcanjo & Bombay Laity
My Dear Arcanjo and Bombay Laity,
Magnanimous, great and beyond all expectation. What I mean is, that I asked you for a small personal help like a piece of bread and you gave a whole loaf. I didn't ask you to publish my request in your Laitytude but you did it because you wanted to be of utmost help to me, like going 3 miles with me when I asked for only quarter of a mile. That is precisely, walking the talk of Jesus' teaching.
This is the kind of cooperation and collaboration to be fostered between the messengers of good news, irrespective of their being from east or west, north or south, from this Rite or that Rite, from a small community or a big community, from a leprous Lazar like me or from a well-fed Dives like our Bishops.
At present there exists such a brotherly helpful cooperation between laity sponsored portals like Laitytude, Matters India, Soul and Vision and Church Citizens' Voice(CVC).(we call ourselves "Church Citizens" not laity anymore since it has become pejorative like Sudras in the Indian Caste structure).
We also share everything with everybody. I take anything from Laitytude or Matters India and you take what you need or like from CCV or publish what I sent.
Does such a collaboration exist between official church sponsored publications called "caged Parrots" or "His Master's Voice"? — between publications like Examinor, Herald, New Leader, Sathyadeepam English edition? Do they collaborate or compete like their masters?
Gone are the days, but there used to be a time some fourty years ago when I happened to be editor of New Leader and when we had towering national personalities like Great Cardinal Valarian Gracias, Cardinal Piccachi and Cardinal Joseph Parecattil. all of whom used to be my great sponsors and promoters (not for my asking for it), and that in spite of their having their own own publications to promote.
They were not just Maharajas in their own little fiefdoms but looked upon India as one whole indivisible unit politically and religiously. When they spoke for the Catholic Church, they spoke for the whole Church in India, not for Bombay, Kolkotta or Kochi, not for Latin, Syromalabar, or Malankara.
I have an awful lot to speak about them, all good things and exemplary ones, nothing bad. I was just a leprous Lazar then (I am still that) but they all treated me like their son and used to get return post communications from all of them especially from Cardinal Gracious. Now I can't even get a reply to letters sent to their publications, not even from NL of which I was editor once. So I stopped writing to these weeklies or individual Bishops except one or two like Alex Dias of Portblaire (whom I never met), Retired Archbishop Henry DeSouza of Kolkotta etc.
Time permitting I shall write more about them if Bombay Laity are interested, because I too am in the fag end of my life, just a few days you will see me and just a few days you will see me longer, because I am in my 80ies.
Just one more thought to conclude. Days of censored church controlled publications are already dead and gone. Today it is time for instant, open and transparent communication lead by Neitzens who are not working for any profit, name or fame. The more the Church controlled publications try to cover up, the more their dirty linen will be washed in public.
We don't have to go searching for anyone's dirty linen. But those causing hazard to public health should be washed clean, possibly in private, if not in public by totally independent portals like yours and mine
So let the workers of the world unite, for they have nothing to lose except their chains. Even so let the Neitzens, the Church Citizens of the world unite, for they too have nothing to lose except their chains.He has come to make us all free.
Divided Churches — whether on the basis of Rite, name, country, community — have no reason for existence because Jesus never founded any such monsters (Read Jn.17). They have all lost their shell life. They all have to shape up to become just followers of Jesus, Jesus-like or ship out as irrelevant for the times we live in.
But just as the sleeping hierarchical church of Peter had to be shaken out of his sleep by a lady citizen, Mary (think of her response Raboni) we the Church Citizens have to be extra generous to coax our present Hierarchy to wake up from their sweet slumber failing which pour cold water on them because that they "wake up" is a must. Let us hope they respond to our Coaxing. Affectionately, james kottoor, editor, CCV
PS: For those interested to know more about "Church Citizens' Voice"(CCV) may visit:www.almayasabdam.com, and read the attachment, CCV Editors.
