I’m less critical than I used to be: Cardinal Gracias

Oswald Cardinal Gracias during a Christmas event. File pic

It was 24 years ago that the now Archbishop of Bombay Oswald Cardinal Gracias was ordained from priest to bishop. Looking back, the 84-year-old senior clergy says he has come a long way since his younger days as a priest. "It has been an exciting journey, I cannot believe it's been 24 years," he told mid-day. "There have always been challenges but it has been a pleasant journey due to the cooperation of everybody around me. We have been able to walk together."

Recalling his earlier years, the cardinal said the structures and mechanisms in the diocese were not all that flexible. "There is much greater participation now as compared to that time," he said. As for himself, Gracias says that he too has undergone his own brand of transformation in these years.

He said, "One thing that I feel is that I am much more understanding of people today. I feel I am less critical than I used to be at that time. I used to be more demanding…but the change has come about with age. The transition from priest to bishop was smooth since I had the cooperation of everybody around me…it has always felt like we are one big family. I never felt like I was in a special position - even though the position was one of authority and responsibility. It didn't make much of a personal difference to me."

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Gracias said the one truly life-changing moment that he can recall as a bishop was when he had a major illness during his early days. "I began to realise that it is God in charge - not us. I was able to bounce back to work after undergoing surgery and was soon back to normal." He also points out that the Archdiocese itself has undergone a transformation of its own over the past two decades. "I feel that the laity are much informed now and that it is much easier to communicate with them openly. It is Pope Francis that has brought about this change. Principles such as helping out the poor, etc. have always been there - but it has really come out in the forefront now. The hierarchal structure is not so rigid as it was at that time."