VIRIDITAS: SOUL GREENING
Interviewed by Sister Malia Dominica Wong, OP
Hawaii Catholic Herald
God has blessed me. My health is pretty good. I have been to three countries in Africa, various parts of India, Western Samoa and American Samoa, and Hawaii. After my retirement at the age of 68, I went to New Zealand and Australia helping in parishes. For a short while, I also helped the Army as a chaplain. I don’t see the reason to retire completely. I feel I still have energy and still have things to contribute.
I have always been curious. I was born in India a few months after India gained independence. There was a time of resurgence. At the age of 12, I entered a minor seminary in Calcutta following my desire to be a priest. There, I was able to meet seminarians from different parts of India.
When I heard something being said about something I did not know, I looked it up. For example, how much do you know about Croatia? I looked it up and read about its history. It is majorly a Roman Catholic country surrounded by Orthodox Christians and Muslims. So, when someone said something about Mongolia, I read about it. Having a global outlook for me as a preacher, helps me to be a little more realistic. By knowing more, we are less likely to judge others.
Everyone has their culture; everyone has their pride. It is not just one country or culture that is good, every country and culture is good. I try to bring that into my sermons, my way of thinking and conversations with people. Parochialism can lead to racism. With a global view, even if I might have some prejudices, knowing about others and their cultures helps me see beyond. It makes me admire the troubles and pains their ancestors endured, and to see who these people have now become.
I try to interpret the Word of God from the Old Testament and the New Testament through this global lens and the many experiences I have had. Having studied Scripture and been a preacher for 45 years in various languages, I realize how the world has its own ideas. I try not to preach anything not in the Bible.
Most of us, for example, are drawn by the world news that comes out. However, people cannot show you on the map where these certain places are. They will insist that they know of the place because of the news that they heard. They could do a convenient internet search to read the history, but how many do? In India, for example, where I come from, there are many languages. People think they are dialects. However, they are languages that have existed for a minimum of 2,000 years. Each with its own script.
Before I retired five years ago, Bishop Larry Silva had asked me to buy the land at Holy Family Parish and to pay off the debt we had. By the grace of God and people’s generosity, we did both. Being my own secretary and cook helped accrue savings. With school savings, we were able to buy the Episcopalian Church. It is now used by the Korean Catholic community. However, when it came to the master plan of the property, I felt another priest would be best to stay longer and move that forward.
Father Sebastian Chacko is 45 years ordained. He plans to go to Salt Lake City to serve the Samoan community there. He is currently helping at Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Honolulu until the end of June.
