Bishop Frances Mechallef.Monsg Frances Mechallef a Maltese citizen was ex Bishop of Kuwait who served Kuwait Vicaerate for about a quarter of a century. When he joined Kuwait Church I penned down a nice article on his pastoral activities he did before becoming Bishop of Kuwait. This article I wrote in the prestigious Goa’s monthly magazine “Goa Today”. Holding this magazine in his hand in the Church compound he told the people around him “there is a gift in this magazine for me from Goan community”. He was as a servant of God a very humble person readily stooped to any level to serve mankind and God and never acted like a feudal lord. Many times I saw him even brooming the Church compound floor and other areas of public and Church utilities. He had missionary zeal in him to serve the people. Humility was his hallmark and not feudality. He made himself accessible to every faithful even in the Church compound where he would give keen hearing to the advices and grievances of the faithful.
Front view of the Church with beautiful trees which are no more now.
He studied the situation of the faithful very well especially that of their financial plight. Knowing their genuine financial grievances he did not put extra burden on their already depleted financial kitty. He showed his total sympathy towards poor financial status of the faithful coming from Asian countries. Taking this view into consideration he never allowed visiting priests especially coming from Goa, Mangalore and Bombay to collect funds thru donations from the faithful here in Kuwait.
One day one visiting priest from Mangalore after his talk to the Konkani congregation in the Church Hall (Big), requested everyone to contribute One KD each for his missionary work in Mangalore. At that particular moment Bishop Mechallef was strolling outside the hall and Fr John Pinto and me we were talking also outside the hall. Suddenly when Bishop heard the word from the visiting priest saying “Only One KD”, Bishop Mechallef immediately got alerted and called Fr. Pinto and forcefully told Fr. Pinto to instruct the visiting Mangalorean priest to stop this Dinar business saying people here in Kuwait have enough of financial problem and this Dinar business should not put extra burden on their financial resources.
One day one visiting priest from Mangalore after his talk to the Konkani congregation in the Church Hall (Big), requested everyone to contribute One KD each for his missionary work in Mangalore. At that particular moment Bishop Mechallef was strolling outside the hall and Fr John Pinto and me we were talking also outside the hall. Suddenly when Bishop heard the word from the visiting priest saying “Only One KD”, Bishop Mechallef immediately got alerted and called Fr. Pinto and forcefully told Fr. Pinto to instruct the visiting Mangalorean priest to stop this Dinar business saying people here in Kuwait have enough of financial problem and this Dinar business should not put extra burden on their financial resources.
Bishop Mechallef seen with Church Helpers.
Bishop Mechallef view was that Kuwait should not be Dinar milking cow for the visiting priests especially in the Church premises. His contention was that visiting priests as Priests should be smart enough and graceful enough to raise funds for their missionary work without pinching the already pinched pockets of the local faithful. He very well knew the poor financial plight of the faithful here in Kuwait. For this reason without demanding any contribution in any form from the faithful he constructed such a big edifice in the Church compound costing millions of Dinars. Bishop Mechallef wanted every faithful in Kuwait to make maximum use of his hard earned Dinar for his own personal benefit and security. He knew how faithful are suffering in Kuwait to earn that One Dinar. He knew the hardship the faithful faced during the invasion of Kuwait for having no Dinar while the very priests who collected Dinars from the faithful in Kuwait happily enjoyed their life as usual.
Bishop Mechallef disliked taxing faithful either directly or indirectly. More so he hated collecting fund by the priest and Church authorities thru organising of commercial ventures like Dramas and Ballroom Dances. He said like Mahatma Gandhi “If means are bad then ends must also be bad”. He felt to raise funds for Church activities by organising functions that lead to sins is an antichristian act. According to one Theologist faithful should not be a party to the fund raising campaign by the Church and priests thru organising of commercial ventures in the name of God and Church. He further said that commercial ventures are creating occasions for sins, for this reasons good faithful should refrain from joining in such ventures even though the Church leaders may think what they do is correct. Time is not very far for the Church leaders to commercialise the females involved in the Church affairs, and that too to raise funds for the Church activities.
Bishop Mechallef disliked taxing faithful either directly or indirectly. More so he hated collecting fund by the priest and Church authorities thru organising of commercial ventures like Dramas and Ballroom Dances. He said like Mahatma Gandhi “If means are bad then ends must also be bad”. He felt to raise funds for Church activities by organising functions that lead to sins is an antichristian act. According to one Theologist faithful should not be a party to the fund raising campaign by the Church and priests thru organising of commercial ventures in the name of God and Church. He further said that commercial ventures are creating occasions for sins, for this reasons good faithful should refrain from joining in such ventures even though the Church leaders may think what they do is correct. Time is not very far for the Church leaders to commercialise the females involved in the Church affairs, and that too to raise funds for the Church activities.
Old Grotto of Mother Mary in the Church compound.
Many times Church leaders and Bishops in the name of Christian religion gave opposite views on the same subjects thereby distorting the true Christian doctrine. During the Second World War, German Bishop expressed his views on this war in support of Hitler and his party Nazi while the Bishop of England opposed Hitlerism and Nazism. German Bishop supported the War while England’s Bishop opposed this war. During the invasion of Kuwait, coming on to Iraqi TV in the month of September 1990, the Chaldean Bishop of Iraq supported Saddam and the invasion of Kuwait while all the Bishops in the world opposed the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. In view of this, who is expressing the correct view of our religion? For one Bishop Fund collection drive thru commercial and sinful activities is acceptable while for other not. Who is correct? God alone will know but many Bishops and priest are fooling the faithful in the name of the religion to suit their needs. They will even embrace Lucifer to get their work done.
The late Fr. Freddy J. D’Costa in early eighties came to Kuwait with the letter from the Patriarch of Goa to organise a Tiatro in the Church Hall to raise funds for the missionary work of Fr. Freddy in Goa. Immediately after reading this letter, Bishop Mechallef fired his reply to Goa Patriarch asking him “What Pastoral Significance Fr. Freddy’s visit is having in Kuwait? Is it the job of a priest to organise such commercial ventures where there is no spiritual benefit?”
Priests’ job according to Bishop Mechallef is to take care of the spiritual needs of the faithful thereby strengthening the moral fabrics of the faithful especially in places like Kuwait where opportunities for sinful acts are plenty. Today Priests and Bishops in many places are become hungry for money and wordly honour, they have lost their sanity to act spiritually upright. God may give them spiritual wisdom to act right. But as lay persons it is our duty to correct them when they are going wrong if we love our religion.
The late Fr. Freddy J. D’Costa in early eighties came to Kuwait with the letter from the Patriarch of Goa to organise a Tiatro in the Church Hall to raise funds for the missionary work of Fr. Freddy in Goa. Immediately after reading this letter, Bishop Mechallef fired his reply to Goa Patriarch asking him “What Pastoral Significance Fr. Freddy’s visit is having in Kuwait? Is it the job of a priest to organise such commercial ventures where there is no spiritual benefit?”
Priests’ job according to Bishop Mechallef is to take care of the spiritual needs of the faithful thereby strengthening the moral fabrics of the faithful especially in places like Kuwait where opportunities for sinful acts are plenty. Today Priests and Bishops in many places are become hungry for money and wordly honour, they have lost their sanity to act spiritually upright. God may give them spiritual wisdom to act right. But as lay persons it is our duty to correct them when they are going wrong if we love our religion.
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Kuwait.
