Catholic Commission for Social Justice
Tomorrow my father, Balgobin Ramdeen, will be 88 years old. Happy Birthday, Pa! In preparation for CCSJ’s next Ask Why TV programme (see TCN Channel 10 on July 23), Pa and I have been discussing the theme: Youth and Social Justice. He told me a story about how, even as a young boy, he took action against injustice.
“The biggest disease today is not leprosy, or cancer. It’s the feeling of being uncared for or unwanted, of being deserted and alone. The greatest evil is the lack of love and charity, and an indifference toward one’s neighbour who may be the victim of poverty or disease or exploited and, at the end of his life, left at a roadside” (Mother Teresa).
As we read today’s Gospel, the parable of The Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), let us reflect on what it means to be a Christian. Being made in God’s image and likeness must lead us to say, as Paul said: “I live now no longer I, but Christ lives in me” (Gal 2:20). If Christ truly lives in us we would not pass on the other side and leave the poor, the vulnerable, and the socially excluded to fend for themselves.
When I was in Madrid recently, attending the 5th World Congress against the Death Penalty, I arranged to meet a friend who supported me years ago in my work as Vice-Chair of the late Cardinal Hume’s Committee for the Caribbean Community. The Cardinal was the Chair. As my friend and I chatted, she informed me that she has drifted away from her faith.
Our Caribbean bishops said in their pastoral letter on Capital Punishment (2000): “The prophetic voice of the Church must be heard especially in times of moral and social crisis…regardless of the potential unpopularity of our Gospel message…Capital punishment symbolises a form of despair for the effective reform of persons.”
And in their Pastoral Letter The Gift of Life, the AEC Bishops expressed their “firm desire that the leaders and people of Caribbean society move toward the total abolition of the Death Penalty. Therefore, we should place emphasis on the rehabilitation of the offender rather than on his/her elimination”.
“Somewhere, a child is being told he cannot play because he cannot walk, or another that she cannot learn because she cannot see. That boy deserves a chance to play. And we all benefit when that girl, and all children, can read, learn and contribute. The path forward will be challenging. But children do not accept unnecessary limits. Neither should we.” Anthony Lake, Executive Director, UNICEF.
A few weeks ago I attended a concert at NAPA organised by the T&T Blind Welfare Association and entitled Jewels of the Evening – featuring the talents of persons who are visually impaired. This is one of a series of events to mark the Association’s 100th anniversary. Those who missed this concert missed a treat. It really brought home to me how society can ignore the tremendous talents of persons with disabilities.