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The lost sheep and its redeemer form a pet motif in
Christianity. Jesus portrayed himself as a good shepherd many times. He said
that the good shepherd will leave his 99 sheep in order to bring the lost sheep
back to the fold. When he finds the lost sheep, the shepherd is happier about
that one sheep than about the 99, Jesus claimed. He was speaking
metaphorically. The lost sheep is the sinner in Jesus’ parable. Sin is a
departure from the ‘right’ way. Angels raise a toast in heaven whenever a
sinner returns to the ‘right’ path [Luke 15:10].
A lot of Catholic priests I know
carry some sort of a Redeemer complex in their souls. They love the sinner so
much that they cannot rest until they make the angels of God run for their cups
of joy.
I have also been fortunate to have
one such priest-friend whom I shall call Levin in this post. He has befriended
me right from the year 1976 when I was a blundering adolescent and he was just
one year older than me. He possessed the maturity of a Messiah at the age of
17. As we grew older, his fascination with my erring ways snowballed. I must
have been some sort of a curio for him, I assume. Or, maybe, he is such a good
shepherd that lost sheep are his raison d'être.
I loved the attention he showered on
me all along. The birthday cards, the personalised messages on occasions like
Christmas, his self-sacrificing readiness to meet me at the railway station
when I was travelling through his place, the special food packets he brought
along on such occasions, the trips we made together… That’s a long list. Such
friends are rare.
Levin never hesitates to express his
view in very clear terms even if it may sound hurtful to the listener. He will
never resort to euphemism if he has to speak about a spade. Keenly perceptive
as he is, his opinions can be like deadly arrows that penetrate through all
shields of defence that one may put up in unpleasant situations. He hits the
bull’s eye most of the time. But he will be there with you after that, the good
shepherd with his magic wand and also with the redeemer’s abiding compassion. He
knows what he is doing. He knows that he is a shepherd with the mission of
bringing the lost sheep back to the fold.
He visited us – Maggie and me – when
I was navigating the perilous contours of the hell that Reverend Machiavelli
[more about him in next post] had hurled me into. He stayed with us for a few
days and carried out his research in North Eastern Hill University [NEHU]. Before
leaving us, he gifted me a few books on Foucault, Derrida and others who never
made any sense to me then or later. I liked Foucault’s metaphor of the
Panopticon, however. I was caught in a Panopticon when Levin was visiting us.
When I wrote a prelude to the A2Z series of
which this post is a part, Levin was quick to warn me of the pitfalls of
hindsight. What we call hindsight can be just a veil for hubris, he texted me.
I hope I have succeeded in steering clear of my intrinsic hubris in these
posts. I did my best anyway. One problem with priestly Redeemers is that they
are not as eager to appreciate the good you do as to point their finger at the
sins you commit. Levin is no exception.
Levin is a good friend, however. He
will point out the possible pitfalls on your way. He warns you well in time. In
spite of that, if you happen to walk into the pit, he will stretch out his arm
to pull you out.
We have little in common, Levin and
I. He is a Catholic priest and I am a nonbeliever who wears his atheism on his
sleeve. He is an intellectual who loves dialectics and hermeneutics while I
love the spirit that froths in a drink of whisky and the dance of fireflies in
the twilight. Yet he was there with me all along for reasons that I can only ‘conjecture’
(one of his favourite words). AI-generated image
Whenever I think of Levin, the image
that tends to rise in my mind, more than that of the good shepherd, is that of
the guardian angel as described by my mother when I was a young boy. I had to
cross a river in order to go to school. Those were days when even little
children walked their way on their own. Nobody would kidnap them and rape them
as it happens nowadays with alarming frequency in spite of the increasing
number of good shepherds of all possible hues and shades. The bridge across the
village river was made of wooden planks. Many planks were broken and a few were
just not there. “Walk carefully,” my mother would advise me before I left for
school, “and know that your guardian angel is there with you preventing your
fall.” I never fell into the river at any time from that bridge. Children have
more sense than adults.
People like me are destined to fall
in life many times, however. Levin knew that. Hubris is the cause. So he
decided to be my guardian angel and my good shepherd. Without the judgmental
self-righteousness that usually accompanies the Redeemers. I know he was not
judgmental. And it is quite impossible to be a Catholic priest without a good
measure of self-righteousness.
Some people are condemned to learn certain basic lessons of life the hard way. If you are one of them, you will have it tough all along the way. On the way, you will meet people who will look down upon you from their high perches where they reached because of their cleverness and ability to get away with things. Having never found their own lights, they will only want to put out your own little light which is not to their liking. Levin is different. He carries his own light and he lets you find your own. I know he is a genuine friend. Never mind the good shepherd and the guardian angel.
PS. I'm participating in #BlogchatterA2Z
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Posts: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K
There are persons who influence our life in a positive or negative way. Persons like him increases the hope on the society and life.
ReplyDelete//Angels raise a toast in heaven whenever a sinner returns to the ‘right’ path [Luke 15:10].// I'm writing a museum tour script. One of the artifacts is the angels from an Indian church. I'll include this versus in my script! Hope the angels be happy :-)
The toast is my translation! In the original, it is "angels rejoice". Go to the original when you quote for serious media 😊
DeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteA character of depth and integrity, to be cherished all the more for the clarity provided by keeping company with... Your series continues to deliver, T, and while the warning may have been fair, it's also true that to provide the consistent voice that you have, a small amount of the ego must shine through! I am at last parked for a few days in one place, so hope to be more consistent in my comments too 🤗 YAM xx
Thank you, Yam. I'm glad you'll be able to comment more regularly now. You make much difference here.
DeleteIt's good to have such a good friend. Although, he sounds a bit judgmental. But you if you get along, that's all that matters, really.
ReplyDeleteNot exactly judgmental. As I implied, it's difficult to be a Catholic priest without being also self-righteous to some extent. It's part of the training, I guess.
DeleteThat last paragraph. Tough world out there. I won't put it out there in the Universe, though, i've already had certain experiences but...nope. i guess, i'll wait for my Levin. Definetly need one of my own! Good friends are a luxury.
ReplyDeleteTough, no doubt. At the age of 64 (turning at the end of this week), I still hesitate to confront many people...
DeleteMay you discover your Levin soon.