Fr. Ravi Santosh Kamath SJ turns 75

October is a month which has seen its share of births of great and noble people. Among its list of luminaries, surely, our dear Father Santosh must find some mention. He was born on the 5^th of October 1939 to Elias and Agnes Pereira, in Bajpe Mangalore. Joining the Jesuit order on the 10^th of June 1958 in Calicut, Kerala, he was ordained a Priest 44 years ago on the 27^th of March 1971 by the first Cardinal of India the late Valerian Cardinal Gracias at St. Mary’s Church Mazagon, Mumbai.  An erudite man, Fr.Santosh counts among his degrees a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from the Gregorian University in Rome.He has held several positions with distinction including Professor of Theology, St. Joseph’s seminary; Pastor, St. Joseph’s Church Jeppu; Director, Fatima Retreat House; Director, Asha Kiran; and, Marriage and Youth Counsellor.

The older ones among us will recall that 24 years ago when Fr. Santosh was posted to the Fatima Campus as Director, it was indeed a Retreat House, true to its name - silent and passive. Many in Mangalore would have been hard pressed to locate the place. Father Santosh brought, in his own inimitable style, a verve and dash to the place that saw people flocking to the Retreat House. Services were suddenly participative and meaningful. He reached out to all those who needed prayer, succour and communion. At that time, when crowds were just beginning to attend services at the House, Fr. Santosh gave a call from the pulpit, “Let us together, make this campus into a POWERHOUSE of prayer.” Less than a quarter of a century later, it is just that! The foundations that he laid were strong enough for others to build on. 

From there he single-handedly began renovations at a home, Asha Kiran, which was leased out to the Jesuits to start a Jesuit House. Later, he organised Jesuit Nivas at Pumpwell, a house for young Jesuits in formation.  He was then transferred back to The Retreat House and was ready for another challenging assignment. Over the years Fr. Santosh has initiated many projects that coupled with his green fingers have turned Fatima retreat House into the place we see today.

On the Hollywood Walk of Fame, celebrities have left an imprint of their hands with their name and date of birth. When the mortar dries, the impression is left for posterity to see. Fr. Santosh may have left no prints of his hands on any sidewalk. He has rather, tried to walk in the footsteps of his maker and in doing so left invisible prints of his hands and his heart in most of the things that you see around you.

Starting from the Prarthanalaya, a place of Perpetual Adoration at the main gate, to the beautiful house of prayer at the rear gate, most of you have watched the Fatima campus grow from strength to strength. Today when we see there is so much inter-faith misunderstanding, Fr. Santosh has been blessed with the ability to subtly portray our vibrant faith among our brothers and sisters who follow different faiths. He is the one they call to bless their enterprises and preside over interfaith meetings. Father Santosh is a linguist among his many skills and he has been teaching young people for years to navigate the treacherous shoals of the French exam.

Modern life is full of stress and worry. Father Santosh’s name is the one that first springs to mind when people need help. Like his Master, he has a special place in his heart for the sick, disabled and the poor, and you will see his brisk figure dashing from place to place, visiting the sick, bringing a word of cheer to someone in a hospital bed and always smiling. When he sees an old, infirm or disabled person among the flock, he will make it a point to rush up, be they in their cars, their homes, a hospital or in the church with communion, sparing them the agony of walking up. He is available at any time to help others in their time of need. Father is one of those rare people who makes it a point to visit the sick and the families of those bereaved in tragedies regardless of their religion or whether he knows them. He is the one who young couples come to, to help them get married, to organise a job, an admission to school, college…the list is endless!

No wonder then, when he made an appeal to the people, they rallied round and donated generously to help build the beautiful church we now know as Divine Mercy Church- the first Jesuit church in Mangalore. Without his call, there is little doubt that the church would not have come up in record time and in such splendour. He is the “event manager” par excellence! His booming voice and stentorian singing can rouse the most lackadaisical catholic to greater effort!

As we felicitate Father, on completing his 75^th year, we are not going to praise him for his good works. Only God lives in the praises of his people. But our expression of gratitude is meant to serve as an elixir to encourage him to carry on the good work he has been entrusted with by his fellow Jesuits and the Lord we all serve. We pray that God grant him many years of good health to continue being a channel of blessing to people in Mangalore.