Humble and Spiritual ‘Smiling Buddha’ Fr Santhosh Kamath Sj completes 60 Yrs as SJ Priest

Humble and Spiritual ‘Smiling Buddha’ Fr Santhosh Kamath Sj completes 60 Yrs as SJ Priest

A Priest Most Humble, Social and Spiritual ‘Smiling Buddha’ Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath SJ completes 60 years as Society of Jesus Priest, and on this occasion, a ‘Diamond Jubilee” celebration was hosted by the St Aloysius Institutions-Mangaluru Jesuit priests on Monday, 11 June 2018.

“Whatever you are doing, that which makes you feel the most alive….that is where God is” said St Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of Jesuits. Rev Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath SJ is a person who truly believes in these words and finds God in every work. Whatever he does, does it with full enthusiasm and his unique style. It is said every person comes to earth with a God given mission. We can undoubtedly say Rev Fr Santhosh Kamath SJ came to this earth with a special mission and that is ‘Spreading Joy Everywhere’. He can be aptly called as a ‘Smiling Buddha’, a very jovial and loving person. He is a very vibrant, dynamic and intellectual person. A true Jesuit and a blessing to everyone around him. As he is completing 60 years of fruitful life as a Jesuit, we at St Aloysius Industrial Training Institute feel proud to honour him for his efforts in bringing joy and love in the lives of others”- Fr Eric Mathias Sj- Director of St Aloysius ITI, while raising the Toast for Fr Kamath at the celebration.

Mangaluru: I bet there is no Catholic family in and around Mangaluru that wouldn’t know Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath SJ – who has made a difference in people’s lives as their mentor and preacher by interacting with them at the most special moments in their lives-the greatest joys and the deepest sorrows, and by also walking with them. Therefore they all respect and adore him as a religious leader, a devoted priest, a religious educator of children and adults and as a true role model. It’s my greatest joy to write a tribute on Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath SJ on his 60th Anniversary serving the Lord as a Society of Jesus priest- a priest and a friend whom I have met many a times at Fatima Retreat House and also at many happy celebrations and also during funeral ceremonies.

Fr Kamath is a person always smiling, so nicknamed as “Smiling Buddha”, social and a spiritual leader very much loved by all, for his kind and gentle nature whomever he meets, and he is always courteous and ready to assist anyone in need regardless of their religion or way of life. For Catholics Christians, priests are mentors, teachers and friends who celebrate both the ordinary and special events in their lives. Therefore, it is important to find the right priest to share these moments with you-and for that matter, Fr Kamath is the right example!

“The Son of Man comes not to be served, but to serve” Jesus said, and, after washing their feet, told the disciples to do what he did. Serving people is what Jesus did, and doing what Jesus did is a privilege- and that’s what Fr Kamath as a devoted Jesuit priest has been doing since his ordination in 1958. Today the Catholic faithful expect their priest to be a dynamic preacher, impressive celebrant, effective healer, sensitive listener, able administrator, friendly person, sounding board and even, sometimes a punching bag-and yes, Fr Santhosh Kamath has all these qualities and has kept his promises to serve as a good, God-fearing priest. His gentleness, humour, his smile, friendliness and all the wonderful things he does, has kept him very close to everyone he has met and made friends with.

Fr Santosh, today marking his Daimond Jubilee, has handled variety of functions including counseling youth and married couples, giving tuitions to youngsters in foreign languages, preaching retreats to give new and positive direction to one’s life and raising toast at marriages. He peppers his preaching with vintage Latin and smoothly switches from language to language to suit his audience. That is because he has spoken and written felicity in twelve languages, including French, Italian, Sanskrit, Spanish and German. Instead of funeral orations being a depressing chore, Fr. Santosh Kamath says that this part of his priestly ministry has helped him to earn numerous friends who enrich his life. Two facets of Fr. Santosh’s life are less known. He visits the elderly to cheer them in their homes and also offers them Holy Communion which is a boon for the aged with motor disabilities. He is also a regular blood donor.

Rev Fr Ravi Santosh Kamath, born on October 5, 1939 in Bajpe, in the outskirts of Mangaluru, marked his Diamond Jubilee serving as priest in the Society of Jesus congregation, with a thanksgiving Mass at the St Aloysius Chapel-Mangaluru, with his Jesuit colleagues, friends and admirers joining him in the celebration. This was an apt time to recall one of the many facets of his priestly ministry. The Eucharist was con-celebrated by Fr Santhosh Kamath Sj, along with Fr Dionysius Vas SJ- Rector of St Aloysius Institutions, Fr Ryan Rodrigues SJ {Grand-nephew of Fr Santhosh, who is doing philosophy studies in Pune}, along with other Jesuit priests namely- Fr Leo D’souza-Former Rector, Fr Eric Mathias- Director, SAITI, Fr Praveen Martis- Principal, St Aloysius College, Fr Gerald Furtado- Headmaster, St Aloysius High School, among many others.

In his homily, Fr Melwyn Pinto-Former Vice Principal of St Aloysius College said, ” In the Bible, Jesus Christ is depicted as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the (His) sheep. He was very compassionate to his sheep {disciple}, knew their characters and their name, and always ready to give His life for them. These are the ultimate characters of a Good Shepherd. Similarly Fr Santhosh Kamath has been a Good Shepherd all his 60 years of religious life- serving the people, helping those in needs and in distress, visiting the sick, and praying for people. As they say that Jubilee is a life well and long lived, and Fr Kamath is perfect example of it. His qualities and characters has made him a much-loved person in the society. We should all thank God for showering His blessings on Fr Santhosh Kamath to serve the society all these years”.

Following the Mass, a celebration was held at the St Aloysius High School hall, on the occasion of this joyous Diamond Jubilee of Fr Kamath completing his 60 years of Jesuit priest life. The programme began with a prayer song by the choir led by Fr Amit D’souza- Sj. Following the welcome address by Fr Gerald Furtado Sj, it was time to cut the cake to mark the joyous occasion, and Fr Kamath did the honor amidst his family members. The toast-master for the occasion was Fr Eric Mathias Sj, where he said, “Whatever you are doing, that which makes you feel the most alive….that is where God is” said St Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of Jesuits. Rev Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath SJ is a person who truly believes in these words and finds God in every work. Whatever he does, does it with full enthusiasm and his unique style. It is said every person comes to earth with a God-given mission.

He further said, “We can undoubtedly say Rev Fr Santhosh Kamath SJ came to this earth with a special mission and that is ‘Spreading Joy Everywhere’. He can be aptly called as a ‘Smiling Buddha’, a very jovial and loving person. He is a very vibrant, dynamic and intellectual person. A true Jesuit and a blessing to everyone around him. As he is completing 60 years of fruitful life as a Jesuit, we Jesuit priests feel proud to honour him for his efforts in bringing joy and love in the lives of others. Very true to his name he is a ‘Ravi’ or Sun who has brightened lives of people by his rays of love and wisdom. He is ‘Santhosh’ or happiness, who has filled thousands of lives with joy and happiness. In total, he has been a blessing to all around him. We salute you Father, for what you are and what you have been to the people. We wish you many more years of joyful living and strength from the Almighty to keep illuminating the lives of people. Congratulations to you dear Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath”.

Rector Dr Dionysius Vas Sj expressing his thoughts on Fr Santhosh said, “Fr Santhosh is a wonderful human being and a great priest. For 60 years he has walked with God, and preached the good word among people. He is a powerful magnet and brings joy among people. He has great love towards the poor, and also towards the nature and environment. Environment-friendly person: Pope Francis in his letter ‘Laudato Si’ has given a call to everyone to protect and preserve nature. Rev Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath has been doing this from several years. He is a lover of nature. He loves planting and nurturing the plants. There is an unspoken belief among his fellow Jesuits that if Fr Santhosh plants even a fully dried sapling, it will sprout to life. It is a matter of joy and privilege to have Fr Kamath in our Jesuit community, and we all feel blessed”

Fr Ryan Rodrigues Sj, the grand-nephew of Fr Kamath in his speech said “Fr Santhosh is a man with Vision, Mission and Connection- he is a role model for all of us young Jesuit priests. God has kept him so long, so that Fr Santhosh could complete few more pending things in his life. A French language genius, he has indeed patented the ‘French Connection’ in Mangaluru. A child among children, youth among youngsters and intellectual among adults, a guide, a friend, a motivator, a philosopher, a spiritual director –he has captured the hearts of people by his innumerable roles and capabilities.”

And finally, the moment of the day was to hear what Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath had to say- in his witty speech he said, ” I feel proud to one among the 12 children my mother gave birth to me- I was not born in a maternity ward, but at home and laid on a traditional leaf. I only wish the present young married couple plan on having more than one or two kids. Latin has infused in me and empowered me, but sadly Latin has been ignored presently. If anyone wants to learn Latin, I am happy to teach them. Since the other three speakers have spoken a lot on me, I will end my end speech in short by thanking everyone for your love and support all these years, and I seek your blessings and prayers in my future too”.

Fr Leo D’souza also spoke few good things about Fr Santhosh before he said the grace before meals. The entire programme was professionally compered by Scholastic Bro Vishal.

Know More about Rev Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath:

Fr Ravi Santhosh Kamath {Baptized as Ronald Pereira} was born on 5th October, 1939 in a place called Bajpe and joined the Jesuit order in 1958 and on Sunday 11 June 2018 he completed 60 years as a Jesuit. Throughout his service, he has touched thousands of lives and made a difference in their lives. He is an inspiration to everyone, young and old alike. At this proud moment of his life, it is apt to look at his life closely and draw inspiration from him.

Servant Priesthood:

He regards his vocation as a priest to be a call to serve others. He never waits for an invitation, if he feels there is a need for his service. He is always ready to give a helping hand. He does whatever he could do to add a little joy, a tiny sparkle in other’s life. As a true Jesuit, he is ever ready to wash others’ feet.

People’s Priest:

He is a favourite priest of Mangalorean people. He has won the hearts of people by his readiness to give a helping hand and easy accessibility. He is so active and full of life, even at this age, he gets up at 5 in the morning. He regularly visits the elderly to cheer them in their homes and also offers them Holy Communion which is a boon for the aged with motor disabilities. He particularly makes it a point to attend funerals where death is sudden-like cardiac arrest, accident or when it involves untimely death. He is also a well known funeral orator. For all these special qualities, people fondly call him ‘People’s Priest’.

Intellectual Person:

Rev Fr Santhosh is a multi-faceted personality. He is an institution in himself. He is a counsellor, he has counselled thousands of youth and married couples. He is a multi-lingual person, knows many Indian as well as foreign languages, Malayalam, Tamil, Sanskrit, French, German, Italian and Spanish, to name a few. He gives tuitions to people in foreign language, presently teaches French in a localCollege. He has taught in seminary for about 40 years.

Joy of living:

His mission in life is to give ‘joy of living’ to everyone and make their life joyful. He has helped people who were unable to find life partners, to find their soul mates and lead a happy life. He has also helped people in troubled marriages, to set their life right. He has also helped divorced people to get married and lead a fulfilling life. He preaches retreats to young and adults to give positive direction to their life. Because of his help, thousands of people have found ‘joy of living’ in their life.

Man of God:

Rev Fr Santhosh Kamath SJ is a man of God in true sense. His service revolves around the purpose of spreading God’s love. As a true Jesuit, he is closely united with Christ in spirit. He has brought a number of people to Christ and has given God experience to them.

Funeral Orator:

Funeral oration, also called panegyric, eulogy or deshi Shraddanjali, is one of the central parts of ceremonies in the church for the dead among Christians. One of the ace practitioners of this art is Fr. Kamath. From the very first year of his priesthood in 1971, he had started giving funeral orations – in Mumbai, Mangaluru, Bengaluru and several other places in India and abroad, including 37 in New York where he was doing doctoral research. Incidentally, while the funeral oration is made the dead body remains in an open coffin on a platform close to the altar and facing it.

For Fr. Santosh attending funerals need no invitation. Yet, he is much sought after for this role. He also monitors obituary columns of local newspapers which give a short family profile. He particularly makes it a point to attend funerals where death is sudden – like cardiac arrest or in an accident or when it involves untimely death – young people. If he has to deliver the eulogy, he starts with some research on the grieving family, phoning close neighbours and relatives. The result is very telling.

Fr. Ravi Santosh Kamath with his multi-faceted ministry, is an institution. May he continue his ministry for many more years to come! Team Mangalorean extends heartfelt wishes to Him on his Diamond Jubilee Celebrations, marking his completion of 60 years serving the Lord as a Jesuit Priest. May God bless you, Father!

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