Father Apolline Miranda S.J.
(23.07.1919 - 22.01.2011)
"Poor Lazarus died" says Lord Jesus in one of his stories, "and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom". We can also say with fair certainty, "Poor Apolline died and was taken to Abraham's bosom". But there is a marked difference between the two stories. There is no indication that the penury of Lazarus was self inflicted. Apolline, on the contrary, hailing from a very rich family had voluntarily chosen poverty and lived it to a remarkable degree. A life of poverty coupled to unassuming simplicity was his forte.
The native place of Fr. Apolline is Manapad, a village in the east coast of South India, some 45 km. south of Tuticorin, the sea-port of Pearl Fisheries. The hamlet, Manapad, must be very dear to every Jesuit because it is there in a small natural rock-cave at the seashore that St. Francis Xavier some 500 years ago lived and wrote a number of Letters to Holy Father, St. Ignatius, And these letters ars very much extant. From this cave St. Xavier walked on one side along the beach up to Tuticorin and the other side also along the shore some 40 miles assiduously doing his ministry of bringing these Hindu coastal folks to Christ. Thus at their baptism these folks added to their Christian names their Portuguese on Spanish god-Fathers' names also such as Miranda, Coasta, Machado, Fernando, Diaz etc. Now let me not digress too much but come back to Apolline. He was the fourth of the eight children of Matthew Miranda and Soosai Xavier Costa, born on July 23, 1919 in an enormously, palatial house named "Cecilias". Many of these Manapadians crossed over to Ceylon, the present Sri lanka, established their business and made oodles of money. Mr. Mathew Miranda was no exception. If there was any town worth the name in Ceylon it prided itself of "Miranda Stores" and you can guess how fabulously rich Mathew Miranda must have become. But he was equally magnanimous in helping others but with the least publicity. He was so munificent and lavish for the building the grand Cathedral-like St. James Church of Manapad that the parish priest, most against his entreaties had his name inscribed in the plaque at the entrance to the Church. And at a later stage, the parish priest, after the demise of Mr. Miranda while celebrating his birth centenary, with all the parishioners unanimously had Mr. Mathew Miranda's statue erected in front of the Church.
Apolline was not the pioneer from his family to join the Jesuits. An uncle of his. Fr. J. Raphael Miranda, the elder brother of Mr. Mathew Miranda, joined the Madurai Jesuit Mission and did yeomen service as Principal of R.C. Teachers Training Institute, Tiruchy. Apolline followed suit, after his studies in the home town and later in St. Joseph's College, Tiruchy and Shenbaganur Novitiate Gladly welcomed him on June 20, 1940.
One could always hear a tinkling of a Piano or a resonant melody of a harmonium from Apolline's house which had been named "Cecilias" after one of his sisters and the saintly patroness of music. Mathew Miranda himself was an accomplished musician -as the then French Jesuit parish priests had taught these people western Polyphony well. And when Mr. Mathew Miranda played on the Church Organ, "How the stately of vaults of St. James Church reverberate the sonorous booming notes!" the people used to remark. Small wonder Fr. Apolline also was infected by the art and he could play western music on Piano or harmonium well. As a Regent in St. Mary's, Madurai he was conducting the school brass band which had been instituted, we learn, by Fr. Benjamin Natar S.J. of Madurai Province. S.P. Savarimuthu, than a promising stripling in St. Mary's Apostolic School, Madurai recalls even today how interesting those Catechism classes were in which Fr. Apolline taught religion by couching the dogmas in simple lyrics and setting them to his own music.
A smiling, radiant morn of March 24, 1955 saw Apolline ordained a Priest in De Nobili College, Pune. He was lucky to have the erudite Fr. Louis Leguen as his Tertian Instructor in 1959 in La Providence, Kodaikanal.Fr. Apoline seems to have been nicely hammered out to be a pukka parish priest and spent long years in Virudunagar, Kalladithidal, Karankadu, Sherrnadevr, Irudayakulam and Ambasamudram. He had some stint put in Keelakarai and then in Oriyur as well helping the parish priests. This unassuming missionary,not wont to eloquence or effervescence, spoke in jerky, precipitated style mingled with a disarming smile. He was very much remembered for his quiet, silent generosity, again a virus inherited from his dear dad probably. He threw over his shoulder a careless kakhi satchel -of old shembag trade mark -and walked and walked on his errands of mercy meeting poor people and doling out his little bounties like a day-time Santa Claus. How many students he had quietly helped to educate in the annals of his priestly career, one never knows! Fr. Apolline went to Sri Lanka a couple of times, to meet his siblings, he said. But I suspect, it was a ruse to get some cash to help some students.
Once I went to meet him in Shermadevi. He gave me a warm welcome though his table was not sumptuous. While breakfasting we heard a waif calling from outside. Fr. Apolline went out to see-him, came back, took his plate and emptied it in the waif's vessel With a broad smile he said he had almost finished eating. Another time, this was in Ambasamudram, a poor lady came for some help, while I was there. Fr. Apolline opened his table drawer, pursed his lips and felt his pockets that were empty. Suddenly he brightened up and quipped, "a rich lady daily drops a Rs.20/- currency in the dumb-box at the grotto". He hurried to the grotto, came back all smiles and sent away the lady also smiling.
One thing I could not quite figure out in Fr. Apolline was that streak ( or is it freak?) in him which enabled him to reach places invariably at the end of the function. Was it to avoid crowd? or escape notice? or a desire to take the last place? Or deliberately miscalculated the date or time? Not easy to tell. It was amusing all the same. An instance or two will clarify what I mean: The Parish priest of Manapad has once earnestly requested the Priests -sons of the soil -to attend the birth centenary of Mr. Mathew Miranda whose statue which he had erected, before the fa�ade of the Church, was to be unveiled. All of us turned up gladly in deference to the great, magnanimous man. The function went off Well, mind you, sans Fr. Apolline. And when the visiting priests were leaving the place arrived in Fr. Apolline with his never failing satchel and smile enquiring in his characteristic style, "some function here? was it yesterday? or today? It is over, is it?" Sadly amusing! And when we walked the streets with Fr. Apolline, some women behind us audibly gossiped, "He is Mathew Miranda's son, isn't he? Look at his soutane. Good Lord!
how'many patches and stitches so unseemly!" And he had come to celebrate the millionaire- dad's birth centenary!
Again another parish priest of Manapad had invited the Manapad - priests for the feast of the Holy Cross at the famous Shrine built on the elevated sand dune (near the cave of St. Xavier) the occasion being some centenary of the arrival and installation of True Cross (a relic from Calvary) brought by the Jesuit Fathers from Rome. A number of priests attended the celebration. At the end when the priests were bidding farewell the parish priest asked. "How is it Fr. Apolline has not turned up?" Talk of the devil and those he is! At that instant, in trickles Fr. Apolline, asking artlessly, "where are you all going? Some feast no? When is it? Today? Is it over?" -That is Fr. Apolline.
While he was on his rounds once in Virudunagar dispensing his munificence, a boy came panting with the message that Archbishop Diraviam was waiting for him in the presbytery. Fr. Apolline hurried up and found the prelate all tense, standing at the veranda. There was nothing but are old bamboo coir-cot. In all simplicity says Fr.Apolline "sit down, Your Grace". Hesitatingly his Grace did. And down went the cot and His Grace! -not so gracefully though, was Fr.Apolline terrified?flabbergasted No. Not Apolline.He took these things on this stride.with a whimsical smile he calls for a boy and brings in an old dilapidated chair and seats the prelate without further ado. In Beschi Illam some one told me lately, but could not be sure of its authenticity: Arch Bishop Diraviam made a surprise visit one early morning to Fr. Apolline and was shocked to find he had nothing for breakfast. Fr. Apolline was keen on enriching others but made himself as poor as a rat. All his parishioners remembered him as a simple, poor, quiet priest, always faithful to his priestly duties.However much he might try to hide his magnanimity somehow people came to know of it.
At the evening of his life Beschi Illam housed him comfortably for nearly ten years. He gave no trouble to any one. Regular in his life and the evenings found him watering the flower garden near the JRS Office. Gradually his health was declining and his memory was playing tricks. He was not keen on receiving visitors in his room. Whenever I went to see him "Ah! Vitalis", he smiled, "You go to your room and I'll come and see you".
Thus he miled me out,It was his gentle way of saying, "Get out of here, quickly". He confined himself to his room almost like a recluse. When months flew because of loss of memory he could not recognize his own relatives or friends. Beschi reported that a few days before the end he could hardly take any food. On seeing his condition the ever alert Infirmarian, Bro. Aloysius,took him to St, Joseph's Hospital. Fr. Apolline passed away peacefully around 4.30 p.m. on , January 22, 2011. The funeral was at 4.00 p.m. next day. Fr. A. Arulanandam,Socius to Provincial, presided over the funeral Mass and Fr. Vitalis gave the homily. Fr. Arul Sivan, the Superior of Beschi Illam thanked the Sisters of St. Joseph's Hospital and the Co-workers of Beschi for their care of Fr. Apolline. And at the obsequies at Beschi cemetery Fr. Vitalis gave the final blessing.
V. DIAZ, S.J.
