12. Our story through the Diaspora prism Prof. Kanayathu C. Koshy

Prof. Dr. Kanayathu C. Koshy

Introduction

This essay is about our family’s Diaspora Experience since 1975 onwards, interposed by views on Ecumenism and Interfaith. During those years overseas, we were exposed to several Christian groups; Anglicans and Methodists being the most common. Although we are members of the Mar Thoma Church all through, a full worship was a rarity because of our locations. We worshiped with Jacobites, Orthodox, Baptist, Jewish, Catholics, and Presbyterian groups, just enough to know them a little better. We also lived among Hindus, Islam, and other groups of differing belief systems. What emerged out of these experiences was an open mind and willingness for introspection.

Background

My wife, Elizabeth, and I have two children, Liza (47) and Jacob (40). We have retired fully in 2016, after which my wife and I returned to settle in Kerala State, India, while Liza with her family (Richard, Alana and Rohan) are settled in Hamilton, New Zealand and Jacob with his family (Tina, Isabelle, Andrew and Micah) are established in New York, USA. During our stay overseas, we lived in many countries, Jamaica, USA, Fiji, and Malaysia with me as a University Teaching Faculty member and my wife as a High School Science Teacher. The teaching and research life has given critical insights for us as we moved through various countries as sabbatical staff, short-term attachment groups, long-term staff appointments and as tourists, so much so that we have been referred to as an international family, the depth and breadth of which is only beginning to emerge. This background, I thought, is useful for the Diaspora Christians who either congregate in one place, fall prey to persuasive individuals or groups, willingly migrate to other local groups etc. Most of the first-generation parents have kept their faith traditions, but the same cannot be said of their New-Gens. The problem is that the new generation is locally born, with little roots elsewhere, so they tend to be like their peers.

Ecumenism and Interfaith

Ecumenism Most of the Diaspora Christian migrants have problems with these terms, which to some would mean: • Nothing less than converting others into our faith in the end. • Accepting some parts of other’s faith and trying to append them to ours, often failing to convert many from our own fold into this new combination, and in that process becoming frustrated. • Either of the two above is far more difficult than converting untouchables or very poor people. All the groups above are opposed to the cultural side of their faith, rather than the hardcore beliefs.

Interfaith

This is even more cumbersome because of the political ramifications associated with it; thus, only very few will even give it a go. True that many others have also thought about these issues deeper before and have commented on them. For example, Mahatma Gandhi said once, “Everybody’s faith has two sides to it, (i) the Peripheral and (ii) the Core. The peripheral is concerned with matters relating to the way in which we treat socio-cultural issues and the Core is for the real God”. What colour and type of attire we wear; which side of the aisle we sit; what type of books or gadgets are acceptable for church (electronic, print); the church building’s modernity and many more matters go with the peripherals. Whereas, the nature of God – character of GOD such as loving, or strict--go with the Core. If we ask for the number of Gods there are, or about divine justice, it gets far more complex. Thus it looks like, we have as many churches as cultures or styles would allow and trying to covert one into another is nearly futile. But at the Core, it is a singularity, and no conversion is needed, this is the only GOD.

Soon we realized that values like love, kindness, compassion, and charity are all common to God-fearing people despite their differences. This is why during a natural calamity, flood, earthquake, cyclone, for example, we help the next victim to safety without asking and asserting their faith preferences. Interfaith works on all such areas. Where we find it difficult to cooperate, it is better to have a healthy dialogue going than arguments raised. Do all religions boil down to the same thing then? No. What we want is a space for tolerance to understand where others are coming from. We know very little about other religions and those who follow them. An interesting example here is a story of a person asking a Catholic priest if he was married and how many children he has. With a little more understanding such embarrassment could well be avoided.

Ecumenism and interfaith in practice

There is no need for any of these, therefore, to enter into conflict as long as we are looking for a way that increases harmony. While we may have found this space during disasters, this is what the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Global Sustainability followers have been advocating. We are also mindful that there are very real hard issues too which have to be dealt with on a one-on-one basis. Some examples are: addiction involving sub-

stances, ideologies, internet and electronic media; material affluence and apathy; more religiosity (improved conduct) than spirituality (improved character); increased work pressure; corruption; too much freedom, too little responsibility; lack of life skills but an entertainment freak alright; and slow migration of new-gens from traditional churches. These and similar areas need urgent remedy. As for us, since we were tail-enders of the generation change, and not right in the middle of it physically, our problems were quite manageable. With these caveats lets us take a look at what we did apart from formal work:

(i) Sunday school books:

While we were in the Pacific, it was a common practice to get imported teaching texts for Sunday Schools. Not only that these were expensive, they were also in short supply. This being a perennial problem, The Bishop of Polynesia, Jabez L Bryce commissioned a committee to address this issue. We divided the Sunday school age group into Junior, Middle and Senior, and in each level they had to spend two (2) years before graduation. We completed six books and distributed copies in Fiji, Tonga and Samoa, and ran training sessions too. Following this we were also asked to prepare a Youth Curriculum, which we have done, but it did not fly much for reasons beyond us. The writing group, although diminished in size by then, had plans to write a set of advanced level package for those anxious to serve in committees, and take up responsible positions in their churches. However, this too had to wait. I made a presentation of these activities in the Annual Anglican Synod for the Pacific.

(ii) Liza’s work:

Our daughter was part of the team which produced the Sunday school books. An active member of the church, she was given an Anglican Diocesan scholarship for a degree program at Auckland University, New Zealand. She completed her first degree and returned to Fiji to pursue a Master’s program in Marine Studies at the University of the South Pacific, Suva (where I was also working). This was followed by a PhD program in Waikato University in Hamilton. Her husband, Dr. Richard Storey worked in the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), New Zealand and Liza was working in the Ministry of Conservation, Govt. of New Zealand. At the moment they are in Pokhara, Nepal, and they are working on lake restoration, freshwater ecosystem programs and a number of activities at their children’s School, Palliative care Centre at their Hospital, NGOs etc.

(iii) ARUP Sustainability Project and COP-27:

Our son, Jacob, studied in Steven’s Institute of Technology for his degrees – Bachelors in Engineering and ICT Engineering (Masters). He secured a job with ARUP—a global collective of designers, engineering and sustainability consultants, advisors and experts dedicated to sustainable development (https://www.arup.com/)--during a Campus interview. At the same time, I was made the Foundation Director of the Pacific Center for Environment and Sustainable Development (PACE-SD, USM, Fiji). No wonder, as soon as Jacob heard the word ‘Sustainability’, he realized that as a ‘project firm’ ARUP too needs to embrace sustainability, which they eventually did. During this year’s COP-27 meetings in Egypt (https://cop27.eg/#/), ARUP has made a commitment to cut at least 40% of all their carbon emission from new and refurbished buildings by 2030 with a view to reducing it to zero emission, quickly. While I make no claim that Jacob was responsible for this outcome, let us all rejoice that ARUP as a private firm took it on itself to be responsible and remain sustainable. Tina, his wife, is equally passionate about sustainability and even won a US$10,000/ award for her work place, Sloan Kettering, Cancer Research Hospital, New York. In both Liza and Jacob’s families, they try hard to practice what they preach.

(v) The Fragrance and Abundance book:

I have been thinking of this book project for some time –one that connects sustainability to Biblical principles. How nice, my wife and I together published the book

“Fragrance and Abundance: God’s Earth in Human

Hands”, in 2021. The premise of the book was that ‘Abundant Fragrance’ emanates from those who care for Creation and live a Sustainable life style. This requires both knowledge and skills that we get from formal education but that is not all, our ethics, value systems, and attitude matter too. This comes from non-formal and informal education. For Christians, the latter comes mostly from their biblical faith.

Apart from the book, I write for the Mar Thoma Church monthly publication, “Tharaka”; the publication of the Mar Thoma Diocese of North America and Europe, “Messenger”; an ecumenical digital publication from London/USA, “FOCUS”; and a global monthly, Damanjodi United, an epublication of the interfaith order; Somaiyai Vidyavihar University, e- Newsletter, Bombay, which are sustainability-based publications.

Conclusion

At this stage, I wish to acknowledge that our family has been truly blessed all these years, for which we praise God. Even now I am working as an Emeritus Professor of Sustainability, my wife proof reads all my articles and was a coauthor of our latest book Fragrance and Abundance; our daughter Liza and husband Richard, are currently working in Nepal on Lake Restoration and fresh water ecology. Our son, Jacob and Tina have a passion for Sustainability, and we are all very happy with ARUP’s performance at COP-27. I’m not boasting at all here, but would simply say that those who work truly for Him, as Indian Diaspora Christians or otherwise, He will never forget us.