A Priest in a Simple Non-Priestly Attire!

By Robancy A Helen –

There are some incidents in life remain so special to us. It can be meeting someone for the first time, or going to a new place and to be in a new situation. Though it happened many a time, but meeting a person on 27^th January 2015 for the first time helped me to change my perspective of a Catholic priest.

I am an introvert by nature. Meeting someone new is always a challenge. So, it was in 2015 that I stepped out of the convent and attended a meeting in Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka state.
My hometown did not allow me to move freely. I still can’t figure out if it was me or my surroundings that made me stay indoors.

In the early morning of January 27, 2015, I was walking alone at the National Biblical Catechetical Liturgical Centre (NBCLC) in Bangalore. Many might have discovered their commitment to society in that place. Since I belong to a secular institute, I never had a religious uniform. While I was going around the NBCLC Campus, I saw a person walking towards the reception with a grey Vetti and Kurta (a South Indian attire for men).

When I saw him, I understood that he came for the national seminar that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India and the Office for Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes organized. I was the national coordinator of the office, so I approached him to inquire if he would come for our meeting. He introduced himself as X.D. Selvaraj and I was surprised that it was Fr. X.D. Selvaraj, about whom I had heard so much before seeing him in a non-cassock.

For me, it was a consolation because whenever I went out of the convent, people asked me so many questions; they looked at me with doubts, and on many occasions, I was left aside. As a young religious, it always pains me when people, even the priests and the religious, give more importance to dress than our lives and character. The habit does not make a monk, indeed!
During that three-day seminar, I wanted to talk to him to find out why he was not wearing the cassock.

He shared his story with me. With the support of the fisherfolk, he was jailed, and the police filed an FIR (first information report) against him. He gave up his cassock when he received a negative comment from a fellow priest that Fr. X. D. Selvaraj was a curse to the priesthood. There, he decided not to wear the cassock anymore.

He is the pride of the priesthood. His simplicity and understanding of life, as well as his taking the side of the disadvantaged and marginalized, make him a great example of our time and can be imitated.

God’s call to the priesthood and religious life does not depend alone on our cassocks and habits but on our exemplary lives. I can’t compare myself with a noble person like Fr. XD Selva. He is a good spiritual guide who helps me see things from other people’s perspectives. Once, I had to honor Bishop Derek Fernandes of the Belgaum diocese with the shawl. I went and put the shawl on him and shook his hands. When the Mass was over, Fr. XD Selva asked him why I did not kiss his ring but instead shook his hands. I asked if it was wrong to shake hands. He smiled and said, “You did the right thing.”

Today, Fr. XD Selvaraj celebrates his birthday. I know very little of him, but for me, he is a person who can be imitated. His calls always explained his whereabouts and what he was doing at the time of the telephone conversation. I usually wonder why he needs to share with me where he is and what he does! It shows his humility.

To understand the Church, Canon Law, and other documents, I approached him. He takes the side of the people. That made me realize my focus was on the people of God.

He was the former Vicar General of the Tuticorin diocese, and once I sought his help to deal with a problem that occurred in my hometown. He guided me properly.

Fr. XD Selvaraj is a person who treats everyone equally, irrespective of age, experience, or caste. I came to know about him when I was working in the CBCI office for Scheduled Caste and Backward Class in Delhi. I thank people like him for teaching me about the prophetic Jesus.