Journey For Life into the Heart of Asia-Kerala, India - Fr. Jerry Novotny, October 23-27, 2007

Kerala is a very easy place to simply sit back and enjoy.  The name means "land of coconuts," and the palms shade nearly the entire state from the tropical sun.  Many call the beach at Kovalam the best in India; visitors can spend a day riding small ferries through the backwater lagoons or watching elephants cavort in the wildlife sanctuaries.  The spicy food may be the best vegetarian cuisine on the planet.

FORMING PRO-LIFE PRIESTS FOR INDIA

But for me, the real reason to visit Kerala, which lies at the southwestern tip of the subcontinent, was to give a series of pro-life lectures, especially for seminarians, with the theme of The Family at Crossroads: Trends and Challenges.  Fr. Stephen Chirapanath, procurator of St. Thomas Apostolic Seminary, met me at Cochin Airport.  The Singaporean flight landed in a heavy rain, and the two-hour drive to the seminary was slow and bumpy.  It was nearing the end of the southwest monsoon season in India, and the roads had not yet been repaired.

The following morning, I met Fr. Scaria Kanniyakonil, who teaches bioethics and is in charge of the seminary's pro-life program.  There are 350 seminarians here, with 20 permanent teachers and 40 visiting teachers.  The number of students includes 49 fourth-year theologians, who will soon be ordained.  What amazed me most during my lectures was their mastery of the pro-life issues.  Without a doubt, India will soon be blessed with 49 well-informed pro-life priests.

I spent another morning with the seminarian pro-life committee, trying to understand some of their background, and here is what I learned:  Under the guidance of Fr. Scaria, the Santhome Pro-life Movement began in July 2004.   Since the first step was to acquire an awareness of life issues, various classes, discussions, and programs were set up to serve this purpose.  As the students began to realize the need to fight for life and for life-related issues, they decided to create an unofficial one-year, pro-life group entitled "Spandanam," which means "Heartbeat."  They collected materials related to pro-life, such as wall posters, brochures, leaflets, books, videos, etc.  Then they conducted their first public project-a pro-life exhibition in Kottayam City, Kerala.  As part of the program, the seminarians wrote and put on a silent animation street play.  Thousands of people visited the exhibition and watched the play outside in front of the train station.  During this time, a group of their friends spent the whole day in prayer "to get spiritual strength," as one student described it.  This was the first time Kottayam City witnessed such an event.  (I saw the play on Pro-life Day, held at the seminary.  The actors were excellent and the message on abortion was very clear.)

I had the privilege of attending the official inauguration of the Santhome Pro-life Movement and to present a one-hour lecture on abortion to 350 seminarians and teaching staff.  The inauguration was for an officially designated 4-year period: 2007-2010.  Rev. Fr. Mathew Manakkatt, a representative of the Pontifical Oriental Institute of Religious Studies, officiated at the ceremony.  The leadership was given to the first-year theologians.  It was a milestone in the seminary, as this is the first group ever to be given such a responsibility.  The group representative concluded his talk with, "We are proud to be pro-life workers.  It will become a part of our own life and priestly ministry."

After this, with the seminary as my "home base" for the next week, I gave additional lectures and half-day seminars at John Paul II Institute for Studies in Marriage and Family, the Missionary Orientation Center, and a number of pro-life and family groups.

A GROWING NUMBER OF VOCATIONS IN INDIA

Nearing the last two days of my stay, a nine-hour train ride took me to the northern part of Kerala, the Kunnoth District, where a new seminary with 150 major seminarians is situated on a hill.  Good Shepherd Major Seminary was built in 2000 and opened its doors in 2001.  The increase of vocations in the ecclesiastical divisions of Malabar was a main reason for this seminary.

While a program for pro-life education is not yet part of their curriculum, it is currently under discussion.  My day-long seminar was attended by a "full house," which included the rector, staff, and seminarians.  I have great hopes that it might facilitate a pro-life dimension to this seminary in the future!  Before concluding my visit here, I was presented with an Icon of the St. Thomas Cross, which was a very meaningful conclusion to a week full of learning experiences and sharing in Kerala.

In the early hours of the morning as I headed back for the two-hour trip to the airport to catch my morning flight to Goa, I could hear loud music from the Hindu temples, wailing muezzins at the mosques, and even church bells ringing at a parish.  They say that religious tolerance is just one reason for Kerala's success.  The people are extremely proud that almost half of Kerala's budget is spent on health and education.  A heritage of female-headed households also means women have always been equal participants here.  Unlike elsewhere in Asia, women outnumber men in Kerala, suggesting that there are no selective abortions.  The Catholics number 18% of the Kerala population, and over 90% of Catholics attend Sunday Mass.

At 3:15 p.m., the Jets Airways plane touched down in Goa, which would be the final leg of my journey.  At the terminal, I was met by Milagres Pereira and his family.  Milagres is an oil-painter like myself.  We met four years ago at the HLI conference held in Singapore and have become very good friends.  He founded the Goa Pro-life Institute and is involved in many diocesan activities.

While in Goa, I was able to give two lectures to the area's future pro-life leaders each day from 10:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.  The group of 15-20 people was strongly motivated, and many questions always followed.  The afternoons and evenings were spent speaking to various pro-life groups and church groups.  Since the number of young people in attendance was very high, I would judge from Kerala and Goa that this area of India has a promising future.

Next year, Human Life International will hold its "15th HLI Asia Pacific Congress on Love, Life, and Family" in Goa.  Known as the "Pearl of the Orient," the state of Goa is abundant and rich in people, culture, and beauty.  From my experience, I can say that the people are very friendly, hospitable, and love to laugh.  It promises to be an interesting and informative HLI Congress.