User:Bijee/Sebastian Mankuzhikary
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The shapes and the lives of mankind through it have always been influenced and molded by men of vision and destiny.
Bishop Sebastian Mankuzhikary was such a man, a priest, a shepherd, a leader of his people, a poet, an orator, a philosopher, a humanist, a champion of the poor and down trodden. He was a man of the masses, humble, yet strong- willed and unafraid, simple yet eloquent, embracing his world and his people, a true humanist in the tradition of his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Bishop Sebastian Mankuzhikary was born on March 2, 1929 at Thannirmukkom, Kerala, India. He was the third child in a family of seven children, two boys, five girls, of Rosamma and Joseph. He had a very happy childhood on the banks of the Vembanadan Lake, fishing, swimming and boating, along with his siblings and fishermen's children, who were his neighbors. He was very fond of his maternal grandmother, whom he called 'Ammachiamma'. It was she who influenced him most in his moral upbringing. Early morning she woke up and lead the grandchildren in prayers, especially the rosary of our Lady of Sorrows. This great devotion, later on helped Sebastian to take on the pen name of 'Sokambikadasan' (devotee of our Lady of Sorrows) for his literary writings.
His paternal uncle Msgr. Mathew Mankuzhikary who led a simple and spiritual life had also great influence on this desire to become a priest after his high school studies.
Studying for ten years in the seminaries, he was ordained, in 1955, a priest of the Syrian-Catholic Archdiocese of Ernakulam, Central Kerala. Soon after he was sent to Rome, Italy, to study philosophy at Gregorian University. He obtained, with scholarly distinction, the degrees of 'Licence' (Masters) and Ph.D. With his independent intellectual approach, he wrote his doctoral dissertation on the 'Metaphysical Vision of Tagore'. This thesis, recently published, is a seminal contribution in literature and philosophy, since Rabindranath Tagore, the Nobel Laurate of 1911 was a great poet, novelist, essayist and philosopher.
Returning to Kerala in 1959, he was professor of Philosophy at the St. Joseph's Pontifical Seminary, Aluva, Kochi, which was the central principal institution for the education and formation of Catholic priests in Kerala. Generations of priests testify to the excellence and sympathetic approach of Bishop Mankuzhikary, both as a teacher and as a friend. In addition to his educational and scholarly activities, Father Mankuzhikary devoted all his vacations to do parish, pastoral work in various churches. This developed in him the desire to communicate with and participate in the religious and social life of ordinary people, of all religious persuasions. He believed that an open friendly interaction with laymen is essential for the full and wholesome growth of priestly vocation.
In 1969, he became the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Ernakulam. Here, in addition to the normal Episcopal responsibilities, he devoted much of his time and energy visiting the widely spread parishes, comforting the old and the sick and building bridges of understanding with members of other Christian denominations and other religious persuasions. Leading a simple life, he refused to wear the formal Episcopal vestments in regular life, which was a radical departure form the ceremonial traditions of the Hierarchy. This was an example followed by a large segment of the clergy including bishops and has now become the norm in the Kerala Church. These attitudinal changes, criticized by the conservative segments, opened the path for a greater understanding and a more humanitarian relationship between the clergy and the laity.
After serving for 16 years as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Ernakulam, he was sent to Thamarasserry as the first bishop of the newly created diocese in Malabar. The number of Syrian Catholics in this diocese is small, the majority being Muslims and a substantial Hindu population. In seven years he built up the diocese from scratch, establishing new parishes, religious and other educational institutions, poor homes, centers for meditation and prayers. True to his principles, he became a friend of other religious communities, promoting communal harmony and understanding. He was called by the Heavenly Father at the early age of 65, having suffered a sudden heart attack.
He was a scholar, writer, an eloquent speaker, able administrator and above all a good Christian, beloved of all those who came in contact with him. He held firmly to his Christian faith and principles and spoke his mind with neither fear nor favor, especially in his efforts to reform the Catholic Church and society. Even those who differed with his views, acknowledged, along with a vast multitude who loved and respected him, the great contributions he had made to he Catholic church, the wider Christian community and to the moral, ethical and cultural life of the people of Kerala.
