Chronicling journey of Fr Casimir Raj as a priest and educationist
Rev Fr Dr N Casimir Raj SJ, who is celebrating 50 years of his priesthood, has jotted down his life experiences and released a book titled ‘Yours Faithfully: Life and Lessons from the Church and the Classroom’, published in association with
DT Next. One of his students and good friend Thiyagarajan Kumar helped him bring out this memoir. In the book, Fr Casimir recounts his journey reflecting upon the lessons he taught and learned from life. The book chronicles his childhood, priesthood, his struggle for education in the hinterlands of Tamil Nadu, his journey to the US to study MBA, and a PhD in Management, and his contribution to institutions of management across India. “I was born in a village in Tamil Nadu. Though we battled famine and drought, my father wanted to give me the best education. His biggest dream was to see me as a priest and I became a Jesuit priest. After my studies in Santa Clara, US, I returned to India in 1975 and joined the Commerce Department at Loyola College. During my stint there, I discussed the idea of starting a new course in Loyola with Principal Fr Kuriakose. He got all the permissions required and encouraged me to start a part-time course in the evening for working executives, using the existing infrastructure. LIBA was established in 1979 within the premises of Loyola College,” says Fr Casimir Raj.
But the priest’s happiness of starting the institution didn’t last long - on March 5, 1986, the Provincial informed Fr Casimir that he was suspending LIBA for a year and no fresh admissions should be made. Though Fr Casimir fought for LIBA, he couldn’t do much. “I was just 47 years old and was so upset about this move – I felt demotivated. But I knew that this was God’s plan for something better in my life,” he adds. Fr Casimir has also noted down his life and learnings from XLRI, Jamshedpur in the book that’s released on December 28.
Looking back, the father says that God has written the story of his life very well. “He has chosen the paths that I have travelled, held my hand to help me get through challenges, and instilled in me the grit and determination to stand by the difficult choices I have made,” concludes Fr Casimir Raj.