Kerala: with Mother Eliswa, an encounter with God and humanity

In the Archdiocese of Verapoly, the Catholic community is preparing for the beatification of the nun who founded the first Indian Carmelite congregation, combining contemplative life with service to her brothers and sisters. Cardinal Sebastian Francis, who will preside over the ceremony on 8 November: ‘Stronger than any challenge by putting Jesus at the centre: a testimony to be imitated even today’.

Kochi (AsiaNews) - At this time when Churches around the world are celebrating the solemnity of All Saints and the glorious horizon that awaits us all through the memory of our deceased, Catholics in the Indian state of Kerala are looking in a special way to the witness of Mother Eliswa Vakayil, a nun who will be proclaimed blessed on Saturday, 8 November. The ceremony will be held at the Basilica of Our Lady of Redemption in Vallarpadam, in the Archdiocese of Verapoly, and will be presided over on behalf of Pope Leo XIV by Cardinal Sebastian Francis, Archbishop of Penang in Malaysia, whose family is originally from Kerala.

Mother Eliswa (1831-1913) was a pioneer of religious life among the women of Kerala. In 1866, she founded the first female religious congregation in Kerala and the first of the Carmelite family in India, which later became the Congregation of the Teresian Carmelites. She lived in the spirit of Carmel, combining contemplative union with God with active service, especially through the education and advancement of women. In 1868, she founded the first school of the sisters with an adjoining hostel and orphanage for girls in Koonammavu, Kerala, opening new horizons for women in society and in the Church.

Below we publish a reflection written by Cardinal Sebastian Francis in view of this beatification.

“The only subject of our desire should be the three letters: “GOD". With this quote, Mother Eliswa sums up for us the entire purpose of our existence and mission. Her simplicity and authenticity that comes from a heart that desires to love and serve God and humanity in ordinary ways, is a testimony for us to emulate.

Humanity needs to return to the primacy of God - over and above creation and humanity and history. The motto that embodied her life was: “Passion for Christ and Compassion for Humanity".

Passion for Christ includes love for the Eucharist, love for Mary and the Rosary, and love for the poor (the powerless). Compassion for Humanity includes especially children, the sick, and the poor (the powerless), excluding no one and being concerned for the salvation of all souls, especially those in most need of God’s mercy.

Mother Eliswa of the Blessed Virgin Mary, imbued with the virtues of the Blessed Mother, is indeed a "woman of all seasons". Being a woman of great substance - rooted in faith, guided by conviction and generous in love, Mother Eliswa focused on the continuity of mission, surviving and transcending numerous challenges in life, some of which we can personally relate to.

I consider it a sacred privilege to be graced with this opportunity to represent His Holiness, Pope Leo XIV and preside at this joyous celebration of the Beatification of Mother Eliswa. I am delighted to conclude my personal pilgrimage for the Jubilee Year of Hope at her tomb, to simply contemplate and celebrate her life towards sainthood, in the land of my ancestors, Kerala, India. Heaven rejoices together with us, for another “woman of God” for the Universal Church and for all humanity.

With palms folded in prayer, we praise and thank God for the gift and blessing of Mother Eliswa of the Blessed Virgin Mary to all of us.

To God be all Glory & Praise!

* Cardinal Archbishop of Penang, Malaysia

(with the collaboration of Nirmala Carvalho)

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