By Purushottam Nayak
Sambalpur, July 3, 2020: Divine Word Father Lancy Rodrigues has become the rector of a major seminary in Odisha, eastern India, when the Church in India reels under a series of suicide cases involving Catholic priests.
Father Rodrigues, who will turn 65 on July 5, took over as the fifth rector of Khristo Jyoti Mohavidyaloy (KJM, the light of Christ), a interdiocesan regional theologate at Sason in Sambalpur town. The seminary was set up in 1987 as answer to the emerging trends in inculturation and contextualization.
The new rector, who was installed on June 16 by Bishop Niranjan Sualsingh of Sambalpur, shared with Purushottam Nayak of Matters India his views on priestly formation and priesthood and the Church’s mission in India today. Excerpts:
Matters India: Congratulations on being appointed the rector of the major seminary in Odisha, the state with the most persecuted Church in India. What were your thoughts when your name was announced?
Father Lancy Rodrigues: My sincere thanks for your wishes and prayers at my appointment as the new Rector of KJM. It was a bit of a surprise for me as I was not expecting to be considered for the position. I am happy to be part of seminarians’ training which emphasizes contextual priestly formation in Odisha.
What are the challenges you foresee in this new post? What preparations have you made to assume this great responsibility?
Accompanying the youth of today is a challenge, as they are intelligent yet emotionally sensitive and are quite influenced by the media and the digital world. The present situation is very fluid due to the life-threatening health hazard brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. It is a unique and delicate situation where our seminarians need accompaniment with compassion and understanding to help to cope with the uncertain future. The challenge for me in this new post is to be a model of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, for them. Being aware of such a great responsibility, I only pray to God for wisdom like Solomon to show me His ways to form my seminarians on the right path.
The unique feature of this seminary is that we focus here on contextual theology that is reflection-action-reflection. Through this methodology, the seminarians are well acquainted with the context and thus they are prepared to work in any situation. Thus we emphasize applying experiential knowledge to various situations in life.
What are the challenges for the Church in India? What lessons has the Odisha Church learned from the persecutions of 2007 and 2008?
The Church in India needs to experience the presence of the living Christ in our concrete reality especially with the poor migrant workers and those in the margins of society.
Secondly, the Church has to be inclusive in her approach to life and mission. Through the ministry of Ecumenism and Dialogue, the Church has to realize its mission of establishing the kingdom of God.
The persecutions of 2007 and 2008 have made Odisha Church to be rooted and strengthened in our faith to give courageous witness to faith as authentic disciples of Jesus.
To meet the modern challenges, we have to create a friendly atmosphere in the seminary in which a seminarian can express his growth. Fear and force by all means should be avoided.
What can the Church in other parts of India learn from Odisha?
The Church in Odisha can inspire others to be rooted in the faith and to give courageous witness no matter how powerful you are, one has the moral courage and inner freedom to seek the truth. KJM has been playing an important role in the formation of future priests and Religious who would be rendering their services leading to theologies in the context of Odisha. This would certainly make them confident to nurture into the lives and struggles of the people.
What are the differences in the seminary formation of your time and now?
Today’s seminary training, our emphasis has to be on personal accompaniment, knowing their stories of struggles and accomplishments or areas of strength.
Why do so many scandals involving priests emerge?
Today the scandals of priests emerge because quite a few are not motivated in life.
Moreover, due to the influence of social media and misconception of freedom, a person becomes self-centered. Above all, a lack of faith in Jesus can lead one to go astray from the right path.
What are the drawbacks of the current seminary formation?
One of the drawbacks in the current seminary training is the emphasis of intellectual knowledge (bookish) which leads to indifference and non-involvement in critical social issues.
Why does the present generation of priests fall to temptations too easily?
Our approach must be inclusive in our Mission and to emphasize inter-cultural living. About the leaving of the priesthood, there are multiple reasons but I feel a lack of prayer and spirituality, lack of joy in the ministry and the influence of social media.
Are there any attempts to reform seminary formation to meet modern challenges?
The reform is to read the signs of the time (such as Covid-19 pandemic). We have to orient our seminarians to be rooted in Jesus.
Please describe briefly about yourself?
I was born on July 5, 1955, at Mangalore, Karnataka. My parents Albert and Florine Rodrigues are no more. I have three brothers and five sisters. I joined seminary in 1970, took the final vows in 1978. My ordination was on May 10, 1984.
I have a doctorate in Moral Theology from Alfonsianum, Rome, 2005. My specialization is social justice versus globalization.
The following principles inspire and guide my priestly ministry. First, the principle of life which calls for dynamism, positive thinking and doing with zeal. This also enables me to discover the source of life that is Jesus himself.
Second, the principle of the synergy calls for teamwork. I believe the effect is far greater when we work together rather than the same activity doing by experts independently.
Finally, the principle of justice is the dimension of fairness—to be fair to all as much as possible. I hope to continue my responsibility with this inspiration.