Salesian Bulletin Magazine

Fr. Maria Arokiam Kanaga (52) delegate of Chennai Province makes it to the South Asia Region. From an ordinary Salesian who went to the 26th General Chapter held at Rome, he emerged as the third Indian Regional of the South Asia Region by passing provincials and vice-provincials.

He succeeds eminent predecessors like Fr.Thomas Panakezham of Chennai province who was the first Indian Regional for the entire Asia-Australia region for 18 years and his successor Fr Joaquim D’Souza of Mumbai province, who serviced as Regional of South Asia for 12 years.

Fr Maria Arokiam is the Regional for South Asia comprising 10 provinces in India and one vice province in Sri Lanka for the first sessennium (2008-2014).

Many pin their hopes and view him as the ideal person who could bring a lot of positive changes in the congregation and help solve many problems with his ingenuity, while some look down with skepticism. With lot of expectations and criticism, he enters to face a much wider game, with his own dreams and vision towards giving his best as the South Asian Regional. Fr. Maria opened his heart in an interview with C.M. Paul, sharing his plans and dreams as he his all set to take up the new responsibility.

Your overwhelming sentiments on being elected as the South Asia Regional.

In the first place, it is a sentiment of gratitude to God and to the confreres for having placed their confidence in me. Apprehension is another sentiment. From the little world in which I lived and worked so far, I have been thrown to a larger world. Initially this created a little nervousness. But that was soon replaced with hope. The Lord who has called me will also give the grace needed for this! Besides I am not going to work alone. The Rector Major, the General Council and all the confreres of India will help me to do my job. It looks like a heavy work, but I realize that I need to take only one step at a time, and not carry all of it together. With that realization is born certain serenity.

If you were asked to list some of your fears, what would they be?
If we are not careful, it is easy for us to move slowly away from the poorest young people. More than a fear, a true concern is how to reawaken in the hearts of the confreres and the members of the Salesian family the real fire of love for Christ and the young! Everything depends on this.

Could you name ONE thing you inherited from your predecessor, which makes you feel proud of this region?
Fr. Joaquim D’Souza had done a marvelous job for the past 12 years. If I have to mention one inheritance that makes me proud, it is that he had created sufficient structures at the Regional level in order to bring together the best Salesian talents in the area to give better and wider service.

In the coming six years, what is your dream for South Asia (as trend setter in the salesian world) in the following areas of vocations, missions, youth ministry, evangelization and communication.

Vocations: Ours is one of the fastest growing regions in the congregation. But we have to discern properly whom God calls and make sure that they persevere as happy and zealous Salesians.

Missions: We have to be very generous towards missions both inside India and outside. Salesians going out of India to work elsewhere is good both for India and for the congregation.

Youth Ministry: We are doing an untold amount of work for the young, particularly the poor. We have to reach to the poorest. Then we have to document and systematize our youth ministry in order to make it more effective and far reaching. I would like that the Salesians become acknowledged youth workers in India.

Evangelization: GC 26 has a rather integral idea on Evangelization. All our works, I mean all, must become evangelizing. To bring the Good News to the poor is the purpose of our existence.

Communication: Media education seems to me to be highly important to save our film-crazy youth. We have to also contribute intellectually to purify and educate the film and TV world in India. All our educational efforts will be useless, if we do not tackle this situation. We have to “save” our youth from being unthinking consumers and slaves of the media, as it exists in South Asia today.

What are your “animation” priorities for Salesians (Salesian Family) of South Asia Region?
Well, animation itself is my main job and hence it is also the first priority. Priorities of the congregation is my priorities, which are being defined rather well by the General Chapter these days. “Da mihi animas, cetera tolle” in all its specifications defines these priorities well. In the meeting of the confreres of our Region in the Chapter we picked out three main areas of animation: 1. Ensuring the Salesian identity of the confreres by greater knowledge of Don Bosco and the practice of the preventive system spirituality; 2. The need to take up evangelization in all our presences in a holistic sense; 3. Increasing strength of the Region by better care for vocations and tackling vocational fragility; 4. Working to create able leadership at the provincial and community levels; 5. Strengthening the individual groups of the Salesian Family and the level of cooperation among them.

How do you plan to help implement Rector Major’s Project Europe?
The concept of “Project Europe” itself is still not very clear. The General Chapter clarified that it does not primarily consist in others going to Europe to sustain the Salesian structures there. It consists mainly in the re-evangelization of this old continent, which is fast renouncing its Christian roots. If the faith decays in Europe, it will slowly happen also in the rest of the world, since Europe is a trend-setter. It is the duty primarily of the European Salesians themselves. But the rest of the congregation has a duty to strongly support them, particularly by giving personnel. The problem of Europe is also our problem. It cannot be treated only as “their” problem.

Do you see Project Arabia floated as one of the new frontiers before GC26 as an opportunity to reach out to millions of expatriate Christians living in Islamic countries?
Dialogue with the world of Islam has become a new frontier for the congregation. According to the latest statistics Muslims have numerically overtaken Catholics in the world! But it has not become a “project Arabia,” as once the congregation took up
“project Africa”.

What could be priority areas for Mission “ad gentes” in the multireligious context of the Region.
Besides proclaiming the word of God directly and indirectly, bringing Gospel values into public life, education, culture and society are important priority areas in our missio ad gentes.

What is your dream for Bosco Information Service the pioneering internet site for Region’s salesian news, views and resource site?
That every Salesian should use the services of BIS, not only for getting and sharing news, but also for his personal and community formation!

C.M. Paul sdb
cmpaul@vsnl.com