by Vikram Martin
When I stepped into the hall of Villa Dominic on a cool Friday evening, eyeing all the arranged chairs, and having seated somewhere in the middle of the hall, the theme ‘Serve with Passion’ began to invade my thoughts. The two (2) questions that kept churning in my mind was, “What does it mean to serve with passion?” and “How to serve with passion in a sustainable manner?” At this point, it is important for me to disclose the reason I was there. By doing this, perhaps one might understand the motivation for me to hear the gentle voice of God and be led by the Spirit, in a three-day journey towards, what I would personally call, ‘Reigniting a lost passion for teaching’.
As a teacher, I have had my darkest moments. The thought of quitting and seeking ‘greener pastures’ in other industries had crossed my mind more than once before. Such is the curse of a doubting mind. I began to recall my years serving in various industries, at different capacities. Currently, as a history teacher in school as well as a catechist in church, I have become more aware of my intense desire to teach. I find fulfilment in shaping the hearts and minds of children. But I am also keenly aware that desires are as fleeting as my emotions. I need something to sustain my desire in teaching. That something is called ‘Passion’. There were burning questions that needed to be satisfied:
• “Where does this passion come from?”
• “Why is this passion important?”, and
• “How can I ensure I do not lose this passion?”
It dawned upon me that, despite my initial reluctance to attend this retreat, God had made it possible for me to be planted in Villa Dominic in order to answer these three fundamental questions. The next two days, I attentively listened to Fr Michael Raymond expound on the topic of ‘Serving with Passion’. Through the entire session, my mind constantly reverted to the above-mentioned three questions. In a way, I had personalised the experience of the retreat to suit my objective: ‘Reigniting a lost passion for teaching’.
Where does this passion come from?
During the three-day retreat, I became aware of the origin of my passion for teaching. It stems from a ‘Purpose’. As I pondered on the word, I soon came to realise that the purpose of me having a vocation for teaching, is to ‘guide children to be responsible citizens, thereby building the Kingdom of God’. It was in this retreat that it became crystal clear to me: By focusing on ‘wanting to build a loving and sustainable community’, and not, ‘wanting to get a good job in the future’, the vision for teaching (and learning) shifted from ‘Scoring As’ to ‘Touching Lives’. In a nutshell, the passion within me originates, not in selfishness, but in selflessness. I just have to look at the crucifix for affirmation.
Why is this passion important?
We cannot give what we do not have. Children of the 21st century are very sensitive to their environment. They can ‘sense’ if a teacher has passion. Passion not just for the subject matter, but more importantly, passion for them. Preparing lessons and delivering them can be done, but without passion... the lesson is just a lesson with zero impact on the children. Throughout the retreat, during those quiet ‘reflection walks’, I reflected on this question. I became aware that I needed to infuse passion into my lessons, as often as possible. The reason was clear. Passion transforms a topic into life lessons. Passion animates what is printed on paper into “life”, through a child’s imagination. Passion directs a teacher and catechist into bringing the ‘culture of life’ into a world that promotes the ‘culture of death’.
How can I ensure I do not lose this passion?
During the retreat, I realised that I will need to have a sustainable source of passion in order to travel on this long journey as a teacher and catechist. This was where the sessions given by Fr Michael became relevant to me. To ensure I do not lose this passion within me, I have to be aware of my strengths and limitations, and how to manage them.
Strengths
I have my unique set of skills, which over time, have become my strength. This is good, and yet dangerous at the same time, because I can easily succumb to ‘Pride’. With such realisation, the retreat had taught me to be constantly aware that I am able to do all things through Christ who strengthens me. This requires me to pray often, especially before beginning my lectures. By ‘tuning into God’s frequency’, I would be able to deliver my lessons with zeal and communicate and build a relationship with the children through the ‘eyes of Jesus’, filled with compassion and mercy.
Weaknesses
Saying that, I do have my fears and doubts as a teacher and catechist. Those pesky inner voices of doubt, which surface from time to time, questioning my ability to be a “soldier of Christ”. Knowing that I am weak reminds me that I have a God who strengthens me. I am made aware to work on my weaknesses by trusting in God. This is where humility comes in. It makes me more human, thereby allowing myself to be more accessible to the children.
What have I gained?
What I have gained from the retreat cannot be fully expressed in words. It is an experience. I have experienced the ‘goodness of the Lord’, and the ‘goodness of the Lord’ is something, for each of us to feel, touch, and taste. I am now aware of the importance of having passion in my teaching. Despite obstacles that I face in my teaching vocation, and though the journey is long and tiresome, I know that, when I focus on the child rather than on the child’s grades, or even on how well I perform as a teacher, I bring Christ to that child. Humility teaches me that God is in control and that I need to remind myself of “Who I am and where I am” – I am a teacher and I am in a school or in Sunday school. This realisation often allows me to focus on the well-being of the children and conduct myself appropriately in class, thus giving birth to the passion within my soul, sparked by the Holy Spirit. In a nutshell, by being Christ-centred, passion emergence when I become aware of my vision, namely to lead the children to be builders of the Kingdom of God.
I would highly recommend that catechists go for this retreat which held on an annual basis. The experience would help you ‘Serve with Passion’.
