Rt Rev Valerian D'Souza resigned as the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Poona on Saturday after having held the office for over 32 years. Rev Thomas Dabre, who is currently the Bishop of the Vasai Diocese, has been appointed in his place by Pope Benedict XVI.The date on which D'Souza will hand over charge to Dabre will be announced soon.
"Office and authority are for the service of others. Jesus Christ expects us to serve not only the Christians but also people from other communities and religions. We believe every human being is a child of God and deserves respect and love. We need to serve the poor, the marginalised, the exploited," said D'Souza (75), who was appointed the Bishop of Poona on July 9, 1977 by Pope Paul VI, and took over the diocese on September 25, 1977.
Given the forthcoming general elections, D'Souza had a message for those holding public office. "I would like to appeal to such people, including the politicians, to think of others first, especially those who are weak," he said.
During his tenure, 13 new parish churches and eight new school buildings were built. D'Souza also established social work centres for children, women and the marginalised. In September 2000, Pope John Paul II nominated D'Souza to the Pontifical Council Cor Unum which promotes and coordinates Christian charity and development efforts across the world.
Asked whether he has seen people's perception of religion change over the years, he said, "I cannot generalise. But there are people who serve others and there are those who serve themselves. The latter category of people has expanded over the years because the human desire to gain more and more materialistically has grown."
When asked about the communal violence that has broken out in the country in recent years, D'Souza said, "A vast majority of people are peace-loving and want to move ahead together. It is just the 10 to 15 per cent of this population that is causing trouble with its rigid, narrow-minded ideologies."
Suggesting ways to avoid fragmenting ourselves on the lines of religious, caste and community, D'Souza said, "Our neighbourhood groups should be strong. People should come together and communicate regularly. Here, religion doesn't matter, being truly human does."
This forms part of Dabre's agenda as well. "I would like to seek dialogue between people from different religions as Pune has a muti-religious society wherein people are living in peace and harmony," he said.
Dabre would also like to speak to people about the downsides of globalisation. "Globalisation has its plus points. But we humans also have a mind and soul, which need to be nourished through spirituality," said Dabre, who was a professor of Christian philosophy at the Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth in the city till 1990.
"Being truly religious means being a person of faith. People lose faith when something bad happens to them. But to have faith means to believe that God will help you even in the toughest of times. Hence, words of encouragement to people, a sense of gratitude and a smile on our face are simple ways to make ourselves connect with God better," D'Souza said.
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(Source: TOI)