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ವನಚಿನ್ನಪ್ಪ -ಜೀವನ ಮತ್ತು ಆಚರಣೆ (229-342)

Introduction:
A popular celebration in and around Anekal- feast of ªÀ£Àa£ÀߥÀà  , has shaped the faith of the people and  has  played a vital role in their formation as Christians.


Early Childhood and History:
 250 CE, Decius was the ruler of Rome. He demanded emperor worship. As many of the Christians held Jesus as the Lord and saviour, they were subjected to persecution to denounce their faith and worship Decius. To save the life of devout Paul, he was kept in his uncle’s house. Unfortunately, falling prey to the desire of wealth, his uncle plans to hand him over to the soldiers. Young Paul flees to Egypt. He finds a cave to live on and there he lives for the rest of his life. Prayer, penance and fasting became integral part of the life of this holy man.To remain faithful to his Christian faith, he chose to be a hermit.

Stories among the Rural Christians about   ªÀ£À a£ÀߥÀà:
Like, Elijah in the Old Testament, Paul, was miraculously fed. A crow would get half the bread daily and feed him. It's believed that God himself, used to send him the food through the crow. John the Baptist was his patron.

Meeting with St Antony Abbot:
Listening to the divine voice, St Antony the Abbot came in search of Paul the Hermit. After, roaming all around, he stopped for drinking some water, near a lake. Was anxious to see a threatening creature, which was half human and half beast. Trusting in the divine providence, he made the sign of the cross on the creature and it became human and that led his  way to Paul the Hermit.
Paul was in deep meditation at the time of his arrival and had already seen Antony through his divine eyes. Thus both, though met for the first time, wished each other as if they knew each others for eternity. Antony, briefed Paul about the idol worship, atheism, cheating and many such evils that were prevalent out there in the society.


Last rites of Paul the Hermit:
As man of deep prayer, Paul knew of his death. Thus he sent Antony get the clothes from Athanasius. Paul was welcomed to the heavenly abode, by the group of angels and Antony on his way back witnessed this glorious event and praised God. The lifeless body of Paul was lamented over by the lions. They dug the grave, in which Paul was buried.  All the creatures of the forest shed tears on the departure of the saint of the forest.
He lived for 113 years and is known as the first Hermit.

ªÀ£Àa£ÀߥÀàgÀ ¨ÉÃqÀÄzÀ¯É:
Prayer and intercession in Tamil termed as- Vendudal. This word is translated into to ¨ÉÃqÀÄzÀ¯É  in Kannada. We can also associate it with a kind of  a vow or promise that people make , in faith. a£ÀߥÀà- is the Kannada translation of the Latin word-Paul.

Celebration of the feast in Anekal and around:
In the opinion of the famous historian Rice, there was a church in Anekal, in 1400 CE. Dominicans, who were inspired by this saint, were the pioneers. Thus they brought in this celebration. The Franciscans, who came later, were the devotees of Antony.
Later, in 1951, then parish priest of Anekal, Rev. Colaco popularized this devotion. He encouraged the custom of cooking and having a meal in the forest and the procession (vÉÃgÀÄ GvÀìªÀ)
10 days in advance to the feast, there will be novena prayers in the church, which are reduced to be three days of prayer at present. There will also be a flag hoisting in honour of the feast; the flag contains the picture of the saint.
The missionaries, found the model of this holy man as an apt example to  the reality of  the  local farmers and others.

ªÀ£À ¨sÉÆÃd£À:
On the day of the feast there will be a grand Eucharistic celebration. Generally Bishop joins this celebration and there will be mass Holy Communion and confirmation, followed by the grand feast day meal. Priest blesses the meal. All the families of the village have a share in preparing this meal.

ºÀgÀPÉ:
People in struggle, especially the poor, who depend on natural resources, quite often prayed through the intercession of this saint. At times they had the practice of leaving a sheep for God and cut it on the day of the feast. The faith that, the saint of the forest would help them, understanding their struggles. They pray especially for rain, to get healed from various skin diseases and to save the village from natural calamities.

Theological thinking:
1.Human Cries: Basically every human being has 3 fundamental cries in life says , G. Saurus  Prabhu.
1.      Cry for survival
2.      Cry for dignity
3.      Cry for meaning.
Given the struggles the poor and low caste Christians, , the seems to have had first two cries very strongly  seem to be part of their life.. Thus Paul the hermit, some across as a model, who stood firm and on convictions to build his life on the foundation of God.

2.ANAWIM SPIRITUALITY:
Old Testament has a special privileged position to the –ANAWIM-the poor of YHWH. At every event, at every step of their life they depended on YHWH. As they were poor and struggling, so are the people of this land, suffering due to various evils of the society and also natural calamities. Paul the Hermit can be a model to these people to remain faithful and trust in the divine providence.

3. Comparison with the feast of Passover:
 For the Israelites, feast of Passover, reminded them of the mighty works of God in their lives. It reminded them of the deep religious experience they had.
            Feast of Paul the Hermit has a similar connotation, to the poor and the farming communities of Anekal and around. It reminds them of the age old beliefs of their elders and the life witnesses of healing and miracles that they have received boost their faith. Thus like Passover, this feast strengthens the community and the relation bet God and people.

Conclusion:

Every religious celebration has something to contribute to the formation of faith. The feast of Paul the Hermit, teaches deep trust in the divine providence. The virtues of the saint have become part of the lives of the people of this village. Thus a saint, though from far, has become saint of the land. In a world, where only noise and active life attracts, Paul the Hermit is a counter cultural example and challenge to the present generation. The formation that the people of the surrounding villages have gone through, due to the faith fostered by this feast will always make these people always unique and special.

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