Faith in the Christian Family

CHRISTIAN PARENTS AND FAITH IN THE FAMILY  By MELVYN BROWN

Young people sense the Divine Presence of God in the world. Parents and many adults have the opportunity to nurture the gift of faith in children; faith which will sustain them through life and as adults in the future.
Parents, in guiding their children in faith will not always have all the answers.  “It’s all right to say you don’t know,” said Cardinal Ronald Hart. There’s a lot of mystery about faith. Don’t give simple answers because some answers are not so simple. It will take a lifetime to under-stand them. Robin Bose, a catechist said, “ The most important thing that parents can teach their children is that they are not alone in the world. They are loved by a God who is the source of all love.”
God can be found in everyday moments which parents can share with their children. One Bengali-Catholic mother found that she and her six-year old daughter got their day off to a good start when she played ‘Christian music ‘.
A lady I know spends time at home and says, “It’s good for your children to see you at prayer. This teaches them more effectively than a lecture. “
“If a child sees the parent struggling to do the right thing, sometimes failing, the child will have compassion “, said Mary Mathew, a junior school teacher. She suggests that a parent who tries to live by the Gospel’s values, strives for a healthy spirituality, respects human dignity and is sensitive to the needs of others.
While many parents are eager to pass along the faith that has meant so much to them, some struggle with how to introduce religion to their children. One parent said; “What are they going to believe when we don’t know what we believe? “ The answer is found in prayer, self-performance, in helping the helpless, in attending services and asking God to guide and help.
When one parent enrolled her daughter in the local parish Sunday School, she discovered her own faith rekindle. She believed that she had to do more leading by example.
Youngsters have a spiritual sense that can be tapped. The large numbers who turned out to greet Pope John Paul II during his visit to Calcutta indicated this interest.
Faith is a great legacy. Yet, ultimately it is a gift of God – as individual, as unique as each of His beloved children.
Psalm 25: 4-5 says, “Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in Your truth, and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation. “
A Catholic priest once impressed me when he said : “ God speaks most powerfully in the wilderness experience, for instance, when the family faces divorce, unemployment, illness or other trouble, God is with us throughout life and ‘ can do things in you if you’re open to Him’. So, let us as a family open the door of Faith in our own family, each to his own.

Anglo-Indian Article in Ei Samay (This Moment)

An article in a local Bengali Newspaper on the Anglo-Indian community, has been published today the 6th of January. Today is the first day of the Ninth International Anglo-Indian Reunion being held in the city of Calcutta(Kolkata) in India.
The title of the article published in Ei Samay(This Moment) read, "Bread, Butter and Halwa Puri"..

Anglo-Indian Gallery for a Calcutta Spring by A Correspondent

Befitting a city known for its multicultural and multilingual extravaganzas , the opening of the Gallery for Anglo-Indian Heritage at Calcutta adds a new dimension to its perspective. The Gallery showcases some of the most important encounters with people of courage and compassion who had shaped the history, heritage and culture of the race.
The Anglo-Indian Spring has also arrived.
The Ninth International Anglo-Indian Reunion is being held (6th –12th. January 2013) at Calcutta. On Park Street , a week long street celebration had colourful food stalls dotted along the pavements, some with Anglo-Indian cuisine in between the food delights of other communities. On the 31st December 2012, Anglo-Indians poured into the dance halls across the metropolis : Dalhousie Institute, the Rangers Club and the Grail Club were packed to the hilt on New Year's Eve.
Add to the good of all this, comes the timely introduction of the Anglo-Indian Gallery ,founded and directed by Melvyn Brown at 3 Elliott Road, Calcutta 700016. Books on the history and heritage takes a stand among the popular films made on the race in English and Hindi. It is also a first to observe the display if tapes on “Anglo-Indian Oral History” – voices from the past recalling many a historic moment. Magazines and newspapers with articles on the community are displayed.
Today, Anglo-Indian men and women are playing a dramatic role in the Anglo-Indian Spring. They are contributing much to their peoples pride of place in a nation where their mother- tongue is English. Once again they can galvanize, as before, in the fields of sport, education, armed forces and the fine arts. Despite the odds they face the Anglo-Indian Spring is refresh-ing to come by. Today’s youth are in centre-stage to confront any distraction or economic challenge.
The B.B.C. in London has a special corner in their library with Anglo-Indian books and literature. In a recent series called, “Who do you think you are” one of the personalities who thought he was a Scotsman turned out to be Anglo-Indian : he was Alistair McGowan, a British actor and comedian. He now belongs in the Anglo-Indian tapestry.

Anglo-Indian Reunion Calcutta 2013: What Might Have Been by Melvyn Brown

The International Reunion of Anglo-Indians over the years has always been a warm, welcome and invigorating experience for all. It brings back memories ,opens the doors to meet and greet others of the community : to bond with the circles of those who try to dilute the pain and suffering of those others based in austere economical conditions ; who live in broken shelters of home and hearth. Every Reunion has a symposium, the theme always revolves around what can be done and should be done for the upliftment of the tragic few “left behind”.
Sorry, there are no destitutes among Anglo-Indians in Calcutta. Sorry, there are no cases of Anglo-Indians starving and dying of malnutrition in Calcutta. The word ‘destitute’ means , not having a single coin to their name. And ‘starving’ would mean not having anything to eat. Highlighting these aspects would be ridiculous. Yes, the poorest of the poor Anglo-Indians in Calcutta are struggling in our midst.  They are , you could say ‘below-the-poverty line’ : if you wish, the ‘lower-middle-class’.
Tentatively talks at Reunions agree and disagree on taking courses of action which often pleases both sides and leaves the poor poorer . A mother received one kilo of edible oil (in her rations) ;she sold the oil to buy her newborn child milk – and personally, had not much left for her food. The rice (in her rations was collected over the weeks and sold to pay the house rent). Speakers at Reunions elaborate on economic strife. The rupee value per family in the open market is seldom considered. There is a ‘pension’ allotment for the aged tied with a short fuse. How about calling it ‘personal help’ allotment ? All this is incredibly sad, if you see the other side of the picture.
Celebration plans for Reunions have never failed to amaze. Every one of the eight Reunions, so far, have been praised and justified for their prodigious sunshine and energy in plan layout and eventual success. Rightly so. All previous Reunions have had the’ poor Anglo-Indians’ at heart. The poor, especially in Calcutta.
Now, for the first time the Ninth Reunion is being held at Calcutta itself. The host is the Calcutta Anglo-Indian Social Service.  The decision to host the event in Calcutta was a welcome chord. The opportunity to directly be in touch with the poor was a dream come true for the community’s most-in-want. It was a significant first step.
After all the eight Reunions across the globe one might have welcomed a special Day in the program when poor Anglo-Indians could be made to feel welcome without having to buy an event-ticket : to enjoy a sumptuous lunch, have fun and games, and to leave with a special gift which would be engraved in each poor heart for generations to come.
Imagine, all those from abroad who subscribed to every Reunion stepping forward to shake the hand of poor Anglo-Indians. At a Calcutta Reunion there should be no time for a Symposium – only for the poor in the community. Also, the river cruise could have been kept aside. After all, being witness to the smiles and laughter of the poor no amount of money could ever buy.
It is now virtually certain that what might have been may yet be possible somewhere else, when Calcutta’s poor Anglo-Indians can be taken on a tourist flight to shake hands with their better off brethren. Love can work miracles.

Marathon Exhibition on the Pope in Kolkata

A Catholic in Kolkata organized an exhibition on Pope John Paul II on April 30, the eve of the late pontiff’s beatification, to deepen Catholics’ faith.

Melvyn Brown, founder director of Ambassadors for Jesus, a lay association, said he put up photographs and books on the pope for Catholics, who do not have “other ways of coming to know about the elements of our faith.”……..

http://www.cathnewsindia.com/2011/05/02/%e2%80%98marathon-pope%e2%80%99-exhibition-draws-fans/

Melvyn Brown and “The Ambassadors For Jesus”

All my life I have been like this, wiry, Melvyn Brown describes himself with a smile.

He has several hats to wear - lay leader in the Church and in the Anglo-Indian community, author, founder-director of lay movement Ambassadors for Jesus, editor-publisher of All-Parish Paper and Anglo-Indian Newsletter, and film enthusiast.

Brown’s ‘Home of the Divine Mercy’ is a cool place to walk down the memory lane of the man who has contributed much for the Church during the past three decades in Kolkata……

http://www.cathnewsindia.com/2011/06/14/ambassador-for-jesus-is-all-for-church/

MELVYN BROWN PRESENTS THE JOAN BROWN MEMORIAL AWARDS 2011 IN CALCUTTA



Melvyn Brown's Inaugural Speech



Melvyn Brown and Dr.Julian Sunil Martin Roy



Melvyn Brown and Vernon Thomas