Webinar on Stan, a Man of Faith and Justice
Indian Social Institute, Bangalore conducted a webinar on behalf of the scholastics of Jesuit Karnataka province on “Stan, a Man of Faith and Justice”. On July 21, 2023 to mark the 2nd death anniversary of Fr. Stan. Fr. Francis Balraj, Head, Social Inclusion and Democracy coordinated the webinar; Fr. David Solomon, a Jesuit from Dumka Raiganj Province who lived with Fr. Stan in his last years was the resource person. He highlighted the following aspects of the life of Fr. Stan.
CONTEMPLATIVE IN ACTION
Stan was a people’s centered person. Every day he was busy going to villages meeting organisations and people to listen to their pain and struggles and share his knowledge with them. Many times, he faced uncertainties, ego clashes, withering people’s movements and conflicts in his engagements with people. But he drew strength by surrendering what he experienced in meeting people on the altar of sacrifice. He believed in a ‘Labouring God’ who is actively present amidst His people. Stan was fond of ‘Take and Receive’, hymn. The beautiful hymn with a beautiful rendition gave him solace and comfort in the abiding presence of God. He grew in his commitment to the mission of adivasis with his regular reflective walk and meditation in front of ‘Pathalgari’ the living spirit of Martyrs. With this, he was feeling alive to the hope and struggles of tribals and people at the margins.
BEING ALIVE TO HUMAN PERSONS
Fr Stan as a man of faith and justice believed that people’s organisations and movements as God’s manifestations. He knew sacrifices of ordinary people and traditional organisations particularly decision making process as a sign of spirit working. He was deeply alive to every individual and had a tremendous capacity to listen. He overlook people’s weaknesses and rose above the petty differences. He was a reconciling presence between the organsiations when there were differences of opinion. He respected every culture…Participation in the movements is the culmination of our decision to stand for faith and justice emerging from the deep commitment of Jesus movement and his sacrifice. The person of Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross becomes the model for Stan to live the life of the struggle for the people. It is a Trinitarian Dialogue: the power of the sacrifice of Jesus actualized in his personal life; movements and God the Father’s privileged poor ever gaining life in its fullness.
JUSTICE
Injustices are concrete and visible. Fr Stan was responding in concrete actions. He was consistent, multi-pronged and had a long drawn actions. Participation, even when you will not be in front of the line, is the mission. Fr Stan had intellectual capacity. He used his intellectual resources to find the root causes; to explore the avenues of actions and thus to be credible through evidence-based research. He was consistent a social activist who took every issue to its logical end. He studied, researched, wrote articles, met intellectuals, movements, CSOs conversing on real issues and doing Fact-finding study. Stan actualized person of Christ in all his struggles with the spirit of ‘Sacrifice’. Mercy and Justice have met with Stan. He fought for Jal, Jungle, Jamin for the adivasis. He raised his voice against displacement and Human Rights Viloations.
DEMOCRATIC MOVEMENTS
Fr Stan was a catalyst for human rights. He played a key role in liberating a hospital from a corporate. As a PUCL member he was promoting human rights. actively lead peoples movements for Netrahat and Koel Karo. DanKato, Ped kato. He fought against false arrests of youth. He questioned the state on Green Hunt. He fought for Right to Food. Stan believed in the Constitution. He took PESA, Rajmahal Pahar Bachao Andolan, Undertrials, and custodial deaths before Judiciary for Justice. A simple Jesuit living the ‘sacrifice of Christ’ in Democratic movements. He was harmonising his identity and his mission in People’s Movements.
LEARNINGS FROM STAN’S LIFE:
Immersion is a continuous process
Deep commitment to Jesus
Take a Secular approach.
Consistency well-articulated approach
Be a Proactive activist
Have the Gift of Listening
Fr. Selvaraj Arulnathan, the director of Indian Social Institute, in his concluding remarks asserted that the true way of taking forward his legacy would to file as number of cases as possible to exonerate from all the false charges; the second and most important way of taking forward his dreams and legacies is to commit and recommit ourselves for the emancipation of the socially and economically marginalized people especially the Adivasis in the north and Dalits in the south.
Francis Balaraj SJ
Head
Social Inclusion and Democracy Unit