Why catholic priests and religious are so sickly?

stephengoswami

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Though I no longer profess Catholicism, I still feel concern for the physical and spiritual carnage there. Often I pray that Christ may use me to save some.
The numerous young age virtual and actual suicide, death and debility in Catholic Church has stirred me very much. It is due to lack of Christian spirit which leads to frustration, compulsive gluttony of high calorie food and lack of exercise in the church. It kills numerous church people too. Too much money, which they accumulate instead of Christian giving away, is poisoning them
It was late Fr. Premananda Singha, a diocesan priest of Calcutta diocese, whose holy and Christ like life won me a Hindu Brahmin, for Christ. He withheld himself from the spiritless drinking and feasting church people. So he was ostracized and banished to a jungle full of elephants and animals. He lived in a mud hut and subsisted on rice and lentil, bought with his only income, mass stipends. I remember it, since I lived with him for a week 34 years ago. He did not have even a cycle. He walked tirelessly to the scattered villages, through the risky jungle and won thousands for Christ. So many converts owe their vocations to him.
I was baptized when I was 20 years old. These are some of my experiences during the 52 years of my life as a convert. I was the lone Christian in my family and in my community. The local Christian community repelled me by drunkenness and immorality. When Fr. Premananda urged me to join priesthood, I enquired about seminary life. I found the seminarians had good food and modern comforts but only to be infected with physical and mental diseases. So I did not feel inspired to go there as I had a natural abhorrence to comfortable living. Still, I personally dedicated myself to Christ in my imperfect way. At first I served in a mission and then started an orphanage and a service center in a refugee colony of Behrampur, West Bengal. After that I am running missions among Muslims for the last 27 years. There I live like my poorest muslim neighbors living on a vegetarian diet.
In my parental home, there was good non-vegetarian food and comfort, but I frequently fell sick. After I started orphanage and ate the same poor diet as my orphans, my non-Christian parents told me that I would soon die, because my vegetarian diet was not nourishing enough. But thanks to Christ, instead of sickness all my diseases vanished.
Since my conversion I kept away from medicines and for these last years I have relied completely on Jesus who has rewarded my faith, prayer and fasting by healing all my diseases. Jesus is the Supreme Healer. He said that those who follow him will have life abundant both physically and spiritually.
Once deciding to become a priest, I joined the seminary, after safekeeping my lands and properties in Catholic Church’s custody. I had completed the philosophy course, but a new bishop dismissed all aged vocations including me. I also took it as Christ’s deliverance from the corrupt church.
My work now is mostly among Muslims. I am doing this work single handedly without any help from the Church. They usurped my property in their care by forged deed. Christ debars me to fight legally. Now I get only my pension for my past job in a polytechnic. Since, I am a celibate, my personal monthly expense amounts only to Rs. 350 (8 dollars aprox). With the help of local volunteers, I am running non-formal schools and five free homeopathic dispensaries. I am now 72 years old, but Christ has given me strength to visit and run my scattered mission fields. Everything is possible when you rely on Christ.
I must tell you what happened to Fr. Premananda. Other priests were sent to his jungle mission to care for the large converts. They forced Fr. Prem to eat meat and high calorie food. Walking was done away with. Attacked by diabetes and heart disease, he died within two years.
Everyone knows that exercise, fasting and vegetarian diet are good for physical and mental health. When Jesus said “I have come to give you abundant life,” he meant both physical and spiritual life. Cross is life giving both to body and soul. Those who follow Jesus to the Cross will be free of disease and have a fruitful, active life. But the life style indulged in by most of the leaders of Churches and religious societies has no scope for voluntary poverty, active physical work or fasting. So without the empowering spirit of Christ they fall to the greed of food, money and illicit sex
I feel a good number of priests and religious do want to resist this degradation. But a minority, resolutely worldly minded, drags down the whole system. If one does not join their drinking and feasting, frequent parties and celebrations of clerics, he is termed a hypocrite and a humbug. The responsible leaders look on helplessly out of fear of being abused or losing popularity. They forgot Christ’s command, that whoever adores his church, organization, security and popularity more than him, will be finished. As a result both they and the sheep entrusted to their care die
 
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