The book traces the trajectory of Sr. Marija Sres as a missionary in Sabarkantha District, North Gujarat. Born in 1943 in Bratonci, Eastern Slovenia, Sr. Marija Sres came to Gujarat in 1971. She worked among Dungri-Garasiya Bhil womenfolk until 2008 when the Indian government withdrew her missionary visa.

Packed between the covers are Sr. Marija Sres’ articles, transcripts of a T.V. and a radio interview, and three interviews to the print media. They comprise her thoughts and reflections on diverse subjects of sociological, philosophical, spiritual and human interests, ranging from ‘A Missionary Remembers’ to ‘Women’s Dignity’ and ‘Mother Teresa and Me’. Rich in ethnographical details, her experiential accounts play out her evolution as a woman and as a religious.

The major thrust of the book is the sisterhood that she was able to cultivate with the Dungri- Garasiya Adivasi women (‘my women’ as she refers to them) forged out of a strong identification with them. Her story of being ‘born again’ in new circumstances is a testimony to her willingness to inculturate herself into the Dungri-Garasiya way of life.

Readers are bound to get a feel of Sr. Marija Sres’ eventful and enriching life (not without tears and scars) spent in the vast hilly and arid region which she accepted as her home-away-from-home. But there is more to the book. It is also an important documentation of the socio-cultural, economic and political realities observed by her – patriarchal society, rising fundamentalism, etc.

Quite touchingly she views her story as ‘a story of meeting the unknown face of Jesus Christ’. A book as dense as this is impossible to encapsulate in just a couple of paragraphs. It is highly recommended as a book that makes for very meaningful and conscience-awakening reading.

• Rupalee Burke

A MISSIONARY SPEAKS: Reflections on forty years in the mission field in Gujarat by MarijaSres (2017)
Price Rs. 300/- | For copies please write to pereira.myron@yahoo.in

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