Maranatha: Prayer of the Universe to it's creator

THE BLUEPRINT OF LOVE

Introduction

Family is a basic and critical component that which God designed for the world for its social good. In its constituting process, God’s inalienable character of the Trinitarian communion has become an essential ingredient of the family. Although a restrict form of family comes into existence through the marriage between man and woman, united together in a covenantal relationship within the church. It is flourishing with the procreation and education of the children and the transformation of man and woman into father and mother, by elevating them as parents. Parents are the bedrock of families. A new generation that would be the foundation of a nation is nurtured and cherished in the families under the watchful and loving guidance of the parents. To create a friendly society with individuals who resemble Christ, the family and parents must be guided by the blueprint of love. Two great works help parents to attain this art of love. One is from the Bible ‘the book of Proverb’ and the second is ‘the Testament of a Loving Father’ (Oru Nalla Appante Chavarul) which was written by Saint Kuriakose  Elias Chavara. Here we try to make an analysis on ‘the book of Proverb’ and ‘the Testament of a loving father’ shortly known as ‘Chavarul’.

Parenting in Proverbs

Since at the beginning God created the family unit, it ought to follow the instructions given by Him to attain a better future. He instructs mothers and fathers about the manner in which to raise their own families. “My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways” (Proverbs 23:26). God has given parents an entire book of concise, powerful statements to correct their children moment-by-moment in each and every situation of life. Parenting with Proverbs offers parents a simple method to use biblical proverbs to teach and correct their children. Rather than correcting them by means of “don’ts and shouldn’t” we would be enabled to assist our kids by using “movements of justice and mercy, forgiveness and love, energy and braveness, generosity and humility and faithfulness.”

            In the Bible, we can see the instructions on parenting in the book of Proverbs. One among the foremost famous is Proverbs 22:6, “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” Does this verse promise that raising children in a godly manner will always result in children who follow God as adults? What about all the godly parents whose children rebel? This talks about one’s duty as a parent to steer his infant in the right path. In this context, the parents’ role is to educate or devote the kid to the methods of godly wisdom. The intention is to raise a child as a mature, accountable grownup individual who loves God and others. Children are like sponges. And, they seem to soak up everything – good and bad. They often mimic the mannerisms of their super Dad and Mom. They’ll do and say the same things their parents do from time to time. Greear, a theologian, describes this relationship like training wheels. “When you’re learning to ride a bike, training wheels are critical. But the training wheels were never the point. Riding the bike was. In our relationship to our parents, the goal isn’t mere obedience. It’s a healthy and honoring family relationship—and, more importantly, a trajectory toward God.”

In the modern generation, the style of parenting also changed drastically along with other realms of life. The present situation is not similar to the days when Solomon wrote Proverbs, however, the godly standards presented in it are eternal and timeless. This book of the Bible includes several notable ethical lessons for children, as well as for their guardians. Parents can build up in the foundation laid by God while coaching those ideas to the youngsters to fulfil God’s dreams in their lives. The result is a baby who grows as a person who knows the manner he wants and who is appreciated by God and the people.

‘The Testament of a Loving Father’

The prophetic utterance of Saint Kuriakose Elias for the family came in history through his magnificent work ‘Oru Nalla Appante Chavarul (Testament of a Loving Father, 1868), a letter addressed to his kith and kin in his native village Kaniakary in Kerala.  Although it was written for a particular group its value cannot be localized or restricted. Chavara as a theologian, a religious priest and as a pastor recognized the importance and dignity of families. We can see in the Chavarul   that a family offers the best schooling in forming the character as a community of love, where it would be seen self-giving and self-sacrificing nature between the members.

            The affirmation of the Chavarul that “Children are sacred treasures entrusted to parents by God Almighty” clearly focuses on the fact that children are gratuitous endowment of God to the family. Chavara always focuses on the fact that children are gratuitous endowment of God to family. He always emphases on the sanctity and holiness of every human life. He had a clear idea that god created human being in his image and likeness. In Chavara’s writing’s, we can find a attentiveness on God fearing. God fearing connected with holiness. It means that you keep in line with His holiness and are kept away from grave sins. In his literary works and deeds, we can witness this concept “God fearing leads to sanctity and holiness, and these lead to respect and dignity to others. Due to that reason Chavara writes: “Do not contract relationships with the disorderly and who have no fear of God.” He understood and knew that greatest wealth on earth is God fearing which alone could make people happy and content in life. These views of St. Chavara leads him to write about all the matters which make serious dangers in our Christian life.

So Kuriakose warned parents about taking care of the children. He was well aware of the influence of friends and media. So he instructed   parents to be careful about friends of their children. According to him bad books are like fire in the dries straw. He also spoke ‘to avoid disorderly, uncharitable and unchristian talks, or false bearing and speaking ill of others.’ In his idea parents must be vigilant about children’s dresses, places where they are travelling and with whom children go and play. ‘Even servants cannot be trusted.’  In this matter he makes final statement that sending children to the relative houses to stay with them, will cause their holiness and sanctity. So he concludes that rearing of the children is a delicate matter that requires special care and attention from their parents. So we can understand parents are care takers and stewards of theirs children, this responsibility is given God the creator himself.  Chavara also believed that family is the sanctum sanctorum of a society. 

Conclusion

The family is not only a basic ground that provides emotional and material support to its members but also it serves as a fundamental source of strength, personal fulfillment, socialization and social control. It is the place where a person born, grown and die. But nowadays, the culture of competition, struggle for individual excellence and wrong idea of exercising freedom have relegated the ideas of family unity and mutual harmony. It increases the conflicts between the parents and adversely affects the emotional, mental and spiritual growth of the children. Families built upon endless love, mutual sharing and constant fidelity only can be medicine for the present egoistic culture. In this regard the Book of Proverbs and the Testament of a Loving Father serve as guidelines for the families towards a better future.