Bishop Thomas Dabre, who took over the reigns of the 125-year-old Pune Diocese two-and-a-half
years ago, is an exponent of inter-religious dialogue. He completed his
doctorate on ‘The God experience of Tukaram' and taught at the city-based Jnana
Deep Vidyapeeth for many years, till he was appointed as an auxiliary Bishop of
Mumbai in 1990. As the head of the Pune Diocese, he symbolically leads various
social service centres run by the Catholic Church in Pune, Satara, Solapur and
Sangli districts, and Kolhapur city. He
spoke to Camil Parkhe about the need for communal harmony in the backdrop of
Christmas.
What
have been your priorities after taking over as Pune Bishop?
We feel that faith must flow into service and therefore, we have tried to
increase our network of schools and colleges. Our diocese will soon open a new
English school in Miraj and some new school buildings have also been planned.
There are a sizeable number of educational institutions run by the Church in the
city and district. The Church's schools educate children belonging to all
faiths; in fact, a majority of the students in our schools are non-Christians.
We try to provide quality education and also imbibe moral and spiritual values
among children. These schools also ensure that there is no discrimination among
students. Society has indeed appreciated the role of the Church's educational
institutions.
How were you drawn to the issue of inter-faith dialogue and
harmony?
My mother-tongue is Marathi and I was brought up in Vasai, in a locality
that had a majority of non-Christian families. I was influenced by their
lifestyle, social and religious traditions. I feel we should work towards
communal harmony and peace, and it should be our top priority. Recently, the
Diocese had invited a high-powered Vatican delegate to the city for a three-day
inter-faith meet, attended by well-known representatives of Hinduism and other
religions. Harmony among the people of various religions is required to ensure
prevalence of equality, justice and peace in society. We believe that the unity
and integrity of our nation depends on inter-religious and communal harmony. All
our achievements and fruits of prosperity will be reduced to ashes if there is no communal
peace.
As a priest, I feel that Jesus Christ is not for Christians alone; he
wants to work for the benefit of all religious communities. That is why all our
educational, social, medical and charitable activities are open to members of
all religions. A true religion cannot be sectarian and divisive; it is universal
and that is why we have to be very serious about inter-religious harmony.
What is the role of the Indian Catholic Church in the world
church?
The Indian Catholic Church is playing a significant role in the universal
Catholic Church. Many Indian clergymen and nuns occupy vital positions in the
church hierarchy and some of them even hold the highest posts, like the superior
general or mother general of their respective religious congregations. For
example, Fr Sebastian Vazhakala, the father general and co-founder along with
Mother Teresa, of the Missionaries of Charity Contemplative Brothers, is based
at the organisation’s headquarters in Rome. There are many Indian priests and
nuns working in the USA, Europe and other parts of the world. In the past, India
used to receive a large number of missionaries from European countries and now
there is a reverse trend as Indian priests and nuns belonging to various
congregations are called to serve in different parts of the world.
Tell us something about your recent meeting with Pope Benedict
XVI?
It is mandatory for all Catholic
Bishops to meet the Pope individually and in groups once in five years. It is
called an ad limina visit. There are 175 Bishops in India and the group-wise
visits to the Vatican were arranged this year. I was among a group of 35 Bishops
who met Pope Benedict XVI in September. The pontiff addressed us in a group and
later also met us individually. During the individual meeting, we present a report on various
activities of our respective Diocese to the Pope, who is the the leader of the
worldwide Catholic Church. Thus, the ad limina visit helps the Pope to meet each
and every head of the Diocese in any corner of the world and know their issues
and problems. Our meeting with the Pope - group and individual sessions - lasted
nearly two hours. The Pope has appreciated the Indian Church's work, especially
in the field of education. This was my first interaction with Pope Benedict
since he took over the reigns in April 2005, although I had two ad limina
sessions with Pope John II .
What are your impressions of the two pontiffs?
I found Pope John Paul II a very contemplative person. In his later
years, he liked to listen to the views of those he was meeting and spoke little.
Pope Benedict is scholarly and very articulate in expressing his views. With a
long administrative experience as a Vatican official, he knows the issues of the
churches all over the world.
Pune: The official confirmation by the Catholic Church that Pope Francis will not visit Goa and other parts of India, during the forthcoming exposition of relics of St Francis Xavier in Goa, has disappointed Christians here.
Pune: Established by a devout couple as a private place of worship, St Anthony's Shrine in Pune Camp has completed 75 years.
