Dear Jose,
It’s not that I am appointed by the Church to reply to your open letter, I do so as a fellow human being, an Indian and a Christian.
To begin with, yes it is not pertinent to know if the apology was asked for or given voluntarily, that it was accepted, reveals that our faith is about love, tolerance, and forgiveness. Let’s put it this way whether with intent or without one, if we were to hurt someone like our parents, spouse or friends, we would tender an apology, right? Or should we just leave it at that, as if it were a trivial matter and move on. Maturity does not come from saying big things; it comes when we understand small things, and it is in that maturity that the two parties came and sat across a table, voiced and discussed their concerns’ and have moved on with life.
Yes, it is rightly said that laughter is the best medicine, but then to what extent can one go to make fun of or ridicule someone is what needs to be looked at. The stereotype that is really building is that, it’s absolutely okay to make fun of people, and not just that, if it is not funny you can go below the belt even to the extent of hurting someone mentally and/or maybe physically. My concern is, that when things happen too often they seem normal, thus setting a pattern, till a couple of decades back no kids abused in front of their parents, but today profanity seems relatively easy to use and to some, they even sound cool. Are we then waiting for more serious crimes to become normal?
The analogy of turning the other cheek refers to being non-violent, no matter how grave the situation is, and in this matter, the Church has always shown Grace even when she is being torn apart. So it is only reassuring that even in trivial matters such as these, the grace of God works, thus giving us the humility to ask forgiveness and the humility to forgive knowing that we need it too. To put this in perspective take a look at how the world deals with relationships today and we’ll realize the importance of humility. Yes, a couple of jokes cannot diminish our faith, but the humility that followed, will and can only strengthen our faith.
So yes, that is what the Church did; granted her forgiveness and will continue to do so, because that is what Love is all about. Acceptance. So tomorrow even if those that have vandalized the Churches in Delhi and other places realize their mistake and apologize, I am sure the Church will forgive. And let us not forget that, it is we as fellow Christians’ who make up the church and what we do reflects on society as who Christians truly are. Can we then say, they will know we are Christians by what we do?
As a celebrity, everything you express is lapped up by those who follow you; you have the power to form opinions and hence the adage “With great power, comes great responsibility” will always hold true for celebrities as well as the Church. Let’s not forget that, as little as seeds are, they can manifest themselves a hundred times over. What I have expressed is what I felt after reading your letter; I do hope you consider these thoughts, as they too come from a place of immense love and respect for our country its people and their beliefs.
Sincerely,
Ashford Menezes
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