(written in 2004)
Nowadays, people seem to prefer enjoying visual effects, speed, pleasure, and immediacy rather than spiritual depth. In our modern times, it seems that individualism has become more crucial than anything else. However, many conscious people are still looking for something deeper to realize a more fulfilling relationship with others.
Prof. Conrad Anthony Saldanha from India is a man who is more concerned with the well-being of others. His generosity is so impressive, touching, practical and spiritual that his presence still lingers in my heart. He has some core values to share, stimulate, and encourage us.
As a lay collaborator and the vice president of the training & research team in the Times of India Group, the largest broadsheet daily newspaper, Prof. Saldanha recently visited our congregation to give us a special lecture.
Having majored in business management, he has worked with various enterprises such as Colgate, Palmolive, and Johnson & Johnson Ltd. He concentrated on marketing for many years but shifted his concern to education and training because of his inner voice. With his inward vision, he has offered various courses on individual effectiveness, personal development & growth, listening and trust, vision with mission and values, team building, group responsibility, leadership, and so on.
His business card reveals his mission as follows: "I'll not ask for my customer's business unless I am reasonably certain that I can improve it for him." His firm resolution to help and improve others is obvious in this personal statement. It's truly encouraging and stimulating to see people trying to contribute themselves for the benefit of others.
Prof. Saldanha entered the Society of Jesuits immediately after high school. However, after five years of living in the community of Jesuits, he decided that it was not his vocation. So, after discerning God's will with the late Anthony De Mello, he left the society in 1972.
Then, he studied business management and married in 1981. He and his wife adopted a son and a daughter. They are also helping several other children who are suffering from problems at home. Both Prof. Saldanha and his wife are very active in social work and their vision is to live according to God's calling, discern God's will, and be available to others.
At the beginning of his life, Prof. Saldanha was neither active in the church nor religious. It is his wife who encouraged and pushed him to get involved in various activities. In this way, he was transformed gradually.
I was inspired by his lectures as there is something intuitive, spiritual, and community-oriented in his way of talking. It's always a good thing to be able to relate secular topics with spiritual concerns.
Prof. Saldanha doesn't have a mobile phone because he doesn't want to be enslaved by constant contact with the outside world. This simple choice made me think of various opportunities in this world. Many things are given to us and we are inclined to choose something more convenient, efficient, and cozy. We are surrounded by various situations with options and priorities. I believe that our differences depend on our individual choices.
The Korea Times/ Thoughts of the Times/ July 9, 2004
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