Faith: if I dare to say! (Part-4)

(Time and again, I was asked to share about my faith experiences. Frankly speaking, it is not easy for me to share about faith experiences. I often hesitate to share, thinking my experiences might sound silly and stupid to others. But there are certain experiences, persons and moments that gave me ‘DEEP’ experiences along the way. While thinking about ‘the year of Faith’, I tried to articulate these experiences here. Perhaps these are too stupid, too silly, too childish…but they are priceless to me! They keep me going…)

Faith: To be lived!

Today, rather strangely, at the lunch, we got into a conversation on the symptoms of different disease. I was sharing some funny examples and jokes. My companion sitting next to me, in order to pull my leg, whispered, “You should have been a doctor.”
“Of course I am a doctor. I am a doctor of the soul! Don’t you remember St Ignatius asked us to help the souls?” I reply with a witty smile.
He smiled at me and said jokingly, “you are great.”

During my formation, I was/am fortunate enough to ‘meet and encounter’ different people on different occasions for my pastoral works. It would be an exaggeration if I claim that I always ‘help the souls.’ Often the people, whom I intend to help spiritually, have helped me to grow in my journey of faith. I value every single encounter. I still vividly remember some of them.

Again I fall back to my sweet days of Calcutta! During my college studies in Calcutta, every Sunday I would visit sick and elderly people and give them Holy Communion. I would often conclude my pastoral work, by visiting an elderly woman, who was partially blind and was living alone. People would often come and leave food for her. Each time I would visit her, she would narrate to me the generosity of people. She would always end her ‘sharing’ by saying, “God provides everything for me in and through these people.

Those of us have little knowledge of North India (Calcutta); we know how difficult life could be during rainy season. It literally rains, ‘cats and dogs.’ Sometimes rain would last for a few days. The roads will be flooded; even water would enter in to houses and life would come to a complete standstill. Once it was raining…not stop raining. At the lunch table, I remembered that elderly lady, whom I visit every Sunday. I felt an urge to visit her immediately after lunch with some food.

The door was partly opened. The room was rather dark. When I called her name, she asked me enter into her room. She was lying on the bed. Her face was very pale. It was visible that she that since morning she did not take anything. She was overwhelmed with joy when I told her that I got some food for her. I put the food on a plate and gave to her to eat.

When she finished eating, I asked her, “what you would have eaten, if I would not have brought some food for you?”
She laughed and said, “I was convinced that God would send someone with some food. God takes care of his people.”
I was stunned to see her faith! Can I say God will take care of all my needs? I kept on asking this question for many days…