By Anneli Reigas, AFP
TALLINN: As another long, dark winter
enshrouds the northernmost of the Baltic states, a
band of girls gathers in a convent in Tallinn, not to
share the warmth of communal prayer but to study the
art of bodily expression with a dancing nun from
India.
Sister Creszenzia, 37, originally from Calicut in the
south Indian state of Kerala, has been giving Indian
dance lessons at the convent since her arrival in
Estonia four years ago.
"When I see Estonians performing these dances with
such grace, my heart fills with pride," she said after
a recent class.
"People here are said to be reserved and unwilling to
show emotions, but I have the opposite impression,"
she added.
Most of Sister Creszenzia's pupils are young, between
seven and 17.
"The dancing is very hard -- like a fitness program --
and afterwards I am very tired," said Ingrid Aavola,
17, who has attended classes since they began four
years ago.
"But I like it a lot, partly because Sister Crescenzia
is a very joyful nun," she added.
In September, the Sister's youthful dance troupe gave
a performance to mark the ordination of French-born
Philippe Jourdan as the first Catholic bishop since
World War II in this overwhelmingly Lutheran country.
"Indian dances tell a story with the body," Sister
Crescenzia explained. The saga performed for Jourdan's
ordination was "about unhappy love -- the battle of a
young couple whose feelings were denounced by their
families, resulting in the death of the boy," she
said.
And how did the good bishop feel about this rather
spicy dance drama?
"I think it is very positive that the convent offers
these girls the possibility to learn Indian dance," he
said. "I liked their dancing, it was rather exotic."
"True feelings are nothing to be ashamed about," said
Sister Crescenzia, whose given name was Mary. "I was
in love myself when I was a young girl in India but
now my soul is dedicated to God."
A convent has stood on the site where the dance
classes are held since 1419. But only in 2001 -- after
a break of several centuries -- did nuns once again
take up residence in the renovated complex, which
includes a church and hostel, built by the Sisters of
the Order of St. Birgitta.
The nuns wake up every morning at 5:45, say their
first prayer at 6:10 and then attend mass at 7:30.
Once a month every nun has a free day -- she can sleep
in but still has to pray.
"A nun's life has changed a lot in recent decades, for
the better. The dance course is proof of that," Sister
Creszenzia said.
Other nuns in the convent have different hobbies.
Mexican-born Mother Riccarda, who heads the convent,
practices ikebana, the Japanese art of flower
arranging.
"These days people value money too much. They should
cherish their families more and look for happiness in
less materialistic things. In poor countries like
Mexico and India, people seem somehow happier than in
the rich West," the mother superior said.
Estonia's 1.33 million people are mainly Lutheran,
with a minuscule Catholic community numbering around
6,000.
21 October 2005
No comments:
Post a Comment