Fr. Praveen Gopu - little brother
Why “Little
Brother”?
St. Francis of Assisi never intended to be the founder of a
religious Order. But he soon found himself surrounded by men and women who were
fascinated by the good news of the Gospel and wanted, like him, to live as
Jesus and the apostles had done. He wrote in his Testament: “After the
Lord gave me brothers, no one showed me what I should do, but the Most High himself showed me that I should live the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus
Christ”. And he also said: “I want my Order to be called the Order of
Little Brothers”. The name “Friars Minor” refers to members of the Franciscan Order today. ‘Friar’ means 'brother' and
‘Minor’ means 'little' or 'lowly'. So, two little words mean, “little brother” and it sums up
the vision of St. Francis of Assisi.
But where
did Francis get this idea from? He got it by treasuring the words of the Gospel pondering day and night in his heart. He was overwhelmed by the fact
that the almighty God, Creator of everything that is, should make himself small
enough to come among us as a baby in the manger. That he, “the lord and
master”, should humble himself to wash the feet of his disciples; that he gave
his life and poured out his blood on the Cross, and made that moment present
for all time by giving himself to them in a humble piece of bread and a simple
cup of wine; that he told his followers to call no one on earth father because
they were all children of their Father in heaven.
Francis was
a spiritual genius who went right to the heart of the Gospel. He saw that the
basic relationship among all Christians, whatever their nationality or race or
caste or language, was that they were brothers and sisters of each other,
equally loved and cherished by their heavenly Father. And he insisted that his
brothers would not hold any power over any another person – least of all among
themselves – because they were to be like Jesus, who washed his disciples’
feet. “Among the pagans, their great men make their authority felt… It must not
be so among you. No, whoever wants to be the first among you, must be the
servant of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and
to give his life as a ransom for all”
This is why
Franciscans have no titles, but simply call each other “brother”. Francis saw
that every created thing, the earth itself and all its wonderful variety, comes
from the hand of the same loving Father. And so he even referred to all
creatures as “brother sun, sister moon, brother wolf….”. This is why Blessed
Pope John Paul II named him, as the patron of all those who care for and protects
our earth.
Why this Blog?
To share the Gospel of Christ: With all my Franciscan brothers and sisters in the
world, I am blessed to see something of the wonder that Francis saw in
the Gospel of Jesus. I hope to share it with you through this blog.
In this blog, I share the spiritual reflections based on the Gospel of Christ - Sunday and Feast day reflections for the Liturgical Year A, B, C; Theme-based Reflections, Pope's Messages...etc.,
As there are a number of sites available in English for Catholic Reflections, my reflections will be here in Telugu.
About
little brother:
I was born on 1
May 1978 at Rampuram, Warangal District of the southern state of Telangana, India. I was baptized as Gopu Arogya Chinnappa Reddy, and called Gopu
Praveen Kumar.
Schooling:
- Primary
School (Class 1-5) at Fathima School, Manugonda parish in Warangal Diocese, Telangana,
India (1983-1988).
- Upper Primary (Class 6-7) at Sacred Heart School, Kanchanapalli parish,
Warangal diocese, Telangana, India (1988-1990).
- High School (Class 8-10) at St. Alphonse High
School, Karimnagar, Warangal diocese, Telangana, India (1990-1993).
Call to Religious Life:
I received the call to the Order of Friars Minor Capuchins (OFM Cap.) when Fr.
Avito Pottukulam OFM Cap., came to the boarding where I was studying 10th class.
He narrated the life of St. Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Order.
Inspired by the life of St. Francis of Assisi, decided to join the Friars.
Religious Formation:
- Minor Seminary or Pre-Postulancy (1993-1996) at Enikepadu, Vijayawada, Andhra
Pradesh.
- Pre-Novitiate or Postulancy (1996-1997) at Portiuncula Ashram, Kattappana, Kerala, India
- Novitiate (1997-1998) at Muvattupuzha in KERALA respectively.
- B. A. Philosophy (1998-2001) at Vijnananilayam, Institute of Philosophy and Religion, Janampet, Eluru diocese, Andhra Pradesh.
- Regency (2001-2002) at Assisi Ashram, Pre-Postulancy, Vijayawada Diocese,
Andhra Pradesh.
- B.Th. in Theological Studies (2002-2006) at Vijnananilayam, Institute of Philosophy and Religion, Janampet, Eluru Diocese, Andhra Pradesh.
Important Moments:
- First Profession on 15 May 1998.
- Perpetual Profession on 15 May
2004.
- Ordained priest on 8 January 2006.
Priestly Ministry:
- Assistant Parish Priest from February to April 2006 at Br. Joseph Thamby Ashram,
Peddavutapalli, Vijayawada Diocese, Andhra Pradesh, India.
- Provincial
Secretary from 1 May 2006 to June 2009, Marymatha Capuchin Provincialate, Enikepadu, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India.
- Service at Capuchin Generalate, Rome from July 2009 - September 2013.
Licentiate in Sacred Theology (STL in Biblical Theology) from October 2013 to June 2015. at Angelicum, Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, Rome.
- Vice-Rector at Brindisi Bhavan, Capuchin Philosophate from October 2015 to April 2016 at Janampet.
- Rector at Brindisi Bhavan Capuchin Philosophate from May 2016 to April 2017.
- Rector at St. Francis College, Capuchin Theologate from May 2017 to April 2018.
- Vice-Rector at St. Francis College from May 2018 to April 2020.
- Member from May 2020 at Br. Joseph Thamby Ashram, Pddavutapally, Vijayawada Diocese, Andhra Pradesh, India.
- Dean of Theology from May 2016 - May 2020 at Vijnananilayam, Institute of Philosophy and Religion, Janampet, Andhra Pradesh, India.
My
Inspiration: My Great Grand Mother - Late Gopu Chinnamma:
I am most happy to present my Great Grand-mother, who is
my inspiration. She almost lived for 100 years. She was the prayer House of our Gopu family. Indeed, she is the source of inspiration for all of us especially
to all the young ones in our family. She has been great power and model for all
of us. Personally, to be a strong and committed religious, she has been my role model and source of inspiration. I learned a lot from her life and still
have much to learn. May her soul rest in peace!
Special Ministry:
- Vice Postulator for the Cause of the Beatification / Canonization of the Servant of God, Brother Joseph Thamby from 2015.
- Teaching is my passion. Teaching Biblical Subjects - Historical Books, Minor Prophets, Wisdom Literature (O.T.), Acts of the Apostles, Pauline Letters (N.T.) - at Vijnananilayam, Institute of Philosophy and Religion, Janampet, Eluru and at St. Holy Spirit Major Seminary of Missionaries of Compassion Fathers, Sanigudem, Eluru.
- Recollection Talks
- Retreats
- Writing Catholic Spiritual Articles
At Present:
Brother Joseph Thamby Ashram, Peddavutapally, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA working for the Cause of the Servant of God, Brother Joseph Thamby.
Blog for the Servant of God in English: http://josephthamby.blogspot.com/
Blog for the Servant of God in Telugu: https://josephthambytelugu.blogspot.com/
May the Lord give us joy and peace and all that is good!
With the Love of Christ,
Little Brother
Br. Praveen Kumar Gopu, OFM Cap.
Br. Joseph Thamby Ashram (Shrine and Parish)
Peddavutapally, Unguturu Mandal, Krishna District - 521 286, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA.(+91) 955 06 29 255