The month of March 2002 Kerala and India are facing problems which have not happened before. The economic crisis have driven the government to take certain remedial measures, to which the state employees and the teachers of the state has a confrontation. The Ayodhya temple construction has caused blood shed in Gujarat and suspicious all over the country. The relationship between the majority communities and minority have become strained. Uncertainty prevails as we look to the future . Thank God the Kerala state issues have come to an understanding and the events in Gujarat did not have repercussions in any part of the country. Let us hope and pray the mutual understanding may prevail and the directions of the supreme court be adhered. Let our pilgrimage to national hood which have started in 1947 may grow and be strengthened. May our prime minister have the courage and strength to deal with the given situation to lead the country in peace and harmony and keep it in Gandhian secularism.

Before the Holy week there is another confrontation of the two branches of the Indain orthodox church . Purumala and Puthencuruz are two places with significant demonstration of their identity and mission. Let mutual understanding and recognition may prevail. The Supreme Court has given a framework. Let those churches follow the transparent directives of the court without their own interpretation of the direction. May the good Lord direct the leaders of both churches to understand that they are of the same body of our Lord Jesus Christ, even the church.

In order to have reconciliation and establishment of peaces among the communities and the churches the best way is to accept the realities that we can accept and respect the realities on which we differ.

The vision of one nation and one church with diverse manifestation of language, culture and faith will add the beauty of the oneness in the nation and the church, like the different colour flowers adds the beauty of the nature.

Our Lord gave the authority to forgive sins to the bishops and priests through His apostles.

Mt. 18:18. "Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

Jn.20: 20,23."And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit, if you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven, if you retain the sins of any they are retained."

To receive forgiveness of sins we have to confess our sins before the priests, confession is a process of repentance and admission of sins committed either by word, thought or action with a promise not to commit them again. The confession is a sacrament of giving absolution by a priest, of sins confessed by a penitent. Confession is always the prayer before God in the presence of a human witness in the Holy Bible. For example, Achan was asked to confess his sins before God not hiding it from Joshua.

Confession is meant for a thorough change turning from evil ways to God. It is the experience of a penitent admitting with a contrite heart to God that he or she sinned against God.

King David confessed his sins to the prophet Nathan, the servant of Jehovah, and conveyed to King David the absolution of his sins by God.

2 Sam. 12:13. "And David said unto Nathan. I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David. The Lord also hath put away thysin, thou shall not die".

Confession is a process of repentance and admission of sins committed either by word, thought or action with a promise not to commit them again. The confession is a sacrament of giving absolution by a priest, of sins confessed by a penitent. Confession has the following salient features:

Confession is a process of turning away from evil ways to God.

Ezek. 33:11. "Say unto them, As a live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, and that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye form your evil ways, for why will ye die, O home of Israel"?

Confession is the experience of a penitent admitting with a contrite heart to God that he or she sinned against God.

Ps. 51:4. "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when though judgest."

Achan confessed his sins to Prophet Joshua.

Joshua 7:19. "And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto him, and tell me now what thou hast done, hide it not form me". It is also an opportunity to get counsel and advice from the priest. The Bible says that one should consult the priest to learn form him.

Malachi 2:7. "For the priest's lips should keep knowledge and they should seek the law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts". Through holy confession the priest is enabled to pray for the penitent more meaningfully.

A Priest has authority form God to absolve sins, which power he received through the apostolic succession.

Jn.20: 23. "Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose sover sins ye retain, they are retained".

Priests are the ambassadors of God making people reconcile to God.

2 Cor. 5:20. "Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in; Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God".

Christ had asked the lepers whom he cured to show themselves to the priests. Christ has respected the priests.

Lk.17: 14. "And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go show yourselves unto the priests and it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed".

Confession is also a promise that a penitent undertakes not to commit sins at all.

For the last two thousand years there have been tremendous changes in the cultural life and the standard of living of mankind. Slavery and slave trades were obliterated, women have been liberated from social clutches, educational facilities and medical and technological advancement have reached and influenced even the remote underdeveloped areas and they became vital instruments for social change. These feasible changes have brought enlightenment among the depressed, downtrodden and marginalized people for emancipation from social chains and segregation from social life. 'Freedom, equality and brotherhood' were the slogans reverberated in the social atmosphere.

There evolved a respect for democracy as the just way of governance and aroused a disfavor against all the totalitarian ways of authority. The work for controlling the dissemination of all the dangerous weapons including atomic weapons has become intensified. Thus, for the last two thousand years there have been tremendous developments in the human life. In all these kinds of works we can see the glittering love of God to the mankind

At the same time, newer issues are also evolving to hinder the developments we have acquired over the last two thousand years. The positive and a vital role played by religions in the personal and social development of the human kind is doubtless. But, as we look, by the end of the 20th century, impatience among different cultures, religious hatreds and conflicts due to various socio-economic reasons have moved to extremely dangerous dimensions. A situation was evolved where the major world religions, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism look each other suspiciously by the end of the 20th century.

The development of the Information Technology and electronic media paved the way for the development of communication systems and its future seems highly unpredictable. Our world has shrunken into a global village. At the same time, the personal relationships and cooperation existed in our society from the beginning of the human culture have become perturbed and disconcerted. The gap developed between individuals and within the family has become wider and extensive.

Economists point out that the new stratagem of the developed countries which is nicknamed as globalization and liberalization creates impediments to the free augmentation of the so called third-world economy. This leads the poor and undernourished community to an increasingly impoverished and debt stricken world. The developed countries which already have surplus money and resources and been self-sufficient as a result of exploitation of the poor countries are becoming more and more wealthy due to the magic spell of the so called globalization. Powerful nations are enslaving and suppressing the poor countries with the help of new technologies, potent and sophisticated weapons and by the power of the media and communication systems.

On the one side, as science and technology develops, exploitation of the 'Mother Earth' and environmental degradation have reached a high scale. Today, this has become uncontrollable, and as a result the rights to live and breathe have become a matter of uncertainty.

The new millennium gives us the responsibility to deal with these vital existential issues which affect the very being of our life. It is mandatory to brood over seriously the ways by which Christian witness can be reveled in the midst of these significant issues.

There are several questions in this context, that remains unattempted or unanswered. What does it mean by 'Christian witnesses? 'Witness is the evaluation of our faith in Jesus Christ our savior, through our actions in this world. This is precisely a test of our faith in Christ by our action. Prof. Nicos Nicioshis , late moderator of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches(WCC) defines it as " Witness is the verification of our faith in action with respect to the image of Christ".

How witness could be manifested in this world? Firstly, "witness in and for solidarity with the world". This is the witness that relates our faith in Jesus Christ to or for the world, and prepares a pure Christian to endeavor for establishing peace and justice in this world. This is the witness which evolves from the faithful motivation to intervene in all the human conditions existing in this world. Church has to intervene in all the life situations which negate the love of God, like communalism, racism, exploitation, injustice, poverty, war and conflicts etc and thereby try to reveal the love of God for the humankind.

There is no doubt that the Church is a holy institution. At the same time it has enormous social commitments to do; it is a social institution too. This is an important perspective that needs to be widely accepted in our society.

Another manifestation of Christian witness is as 'a prophetic judgment of the world'. This is a sort of critique about the advancement and ways of happening in this world. This is the kind of the witness that was reveled to prophets during the period of the Old Testament. In a prophetic judgment there is always a possibility of severe criticism and opposition from the prophets on the way of life which the contemporary society follows. This is evident in the book of Isaiah in which we read:

"Your fasting ends in quarrelling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? It is only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying on sack cloths and ashes? Is that what you call fast, a day acceptable to the lord? Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and unite the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-when you see the naked, to cloth him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard"(Isaiah 58:4-8).

This critique is highly relevant today. It may be necessary to oppose the course of the world and centers of the power in order to serve the humanity. Prophetic judgment is inevitable for proclaiming total integration with the world based on the love of God.

There is another fascia of Christian witness which bears martyrdom for the glory of God-"Witness in martisia to the glory of God". This is nothing but the offering of one's life for the benefit of others and it involves sufferings and pain which ordinary people will not be able to offer. Christian witness involves sufferings and agony, and one would say that both are interlinked.

How can we reveal such different forms of Christian witness in the new millennium? Although for most of the churches there is no clear vision regarding this, ecumenical movements and organizations like World council of Churches (WCC) put forward certain priorities in this field. The important among them is the intervention of the churches in the human right issues. It is worthwhile to discuss those issues categorically as follows:

1. The efforts of the churches for economic and social justice.

As we have seen in the beginning of this article, globalization has been recognized more vividly as a technique of the developed countries for acquiring more wealth by exploiting poor countries and societies. Experts observe that globalization of the world economic order is extremely worldly and intended to acquire more wealth in an inhuman way and by destroying the social life of the human being. The philosophy of the market forces to reduce the world to a monoculture is contrary to the Biblical vision of unity. God wishes us to live with mutual responsibility; He does not want us to live in a 'blue lagoon' where he/she can enjoy his/her own privileges, benefits and personal freedom. God created us as social beings and it gives us the responsibility to respect each other and live a responsible life which gives happiness to others. In the new millennium Churches have to take efforts to confirm a social life, which was negated by the profit oriented life style, where mutual responsibility and consideration exists.

2. Churches for establishing the rights of children and women.

Sexual exploitation, discrimination faces at work place, family situation and in public life, violence encountered at the home atmosphere etc are some of the problems faced by women. This has become more intense in the recent past. Church should take necessary initiative to deal with these issues and work for the rights of the women.

Today, there exists a social tendency to exploit children in different ways and lead them to harmful physical and social situations. There is clear evidence for using children in warfare, forceful child labor, sexual abuses, child slavery, infanticide etc in several parts of the world. Churches have to come forward and take creative efforts to eradicate these evil practices, by awareness programs and by persuading governments to enact suitable legislation for preventing such social evils. Churches should also take initiative in the rehabilitation of those children who were left abandoned by natural disasters, severe poverty, internal violence, war situations, diseases etc.

3. Efforts for the rights of the refugees, displaced people and tribals.

The problems faced by refugees, internally displaced people and tribals for their existence are not considered seriously not only by the churches but by the governments either. However, it is important that we realize that such issues exist in this world. There are clear evidences for the massacre of tribals in various places, as a result of increased attempts to acquire land from the forest. They have been displaced from their forest dwellings, and ethnic environment in the name of the so called developmental efforts, and ultimately they no longer have their soil and cultural life. Their life has become increasingly deplorable as they have been uprooted from their traditional living situations. It is high time that a sensibility has to be evolved that the traditional knowledge, culture, land, spirituality, language and the living situations of the tribals should be preserved. This is an occasion where church has to exhibit its social commitments by taking frontier steps to keep their rights.

As a society, today, we are not bothered about the problems faced by refugees and internally displaced communities. The number of refugees and internally displaced people are on the rise as a result of growing conflicts between countries, human rights violations of the military and extremist groups, unscientific development projects, and poverty. Churches have to take initiatives in providing humanitarian assistance and keeping human rights of the affected people in the local, national as well as international levels.

4. Efforts for environmental rights.

Today ecology has become a matter of faith. Justice is to be redefined in terms of the question how do we relate to other forms of life. If we neglect the inter-relationship between the human and other forms of life, the very right of humans to live on this planet is denied. Churches have the responsibility to work for the rights to preserve our 'mother earth' and work for ecological rights. This is particularly important in today's situations where environmental degradation and violence on ecosystem are on the increase. Ecological balance is inevitable for the existence of life in this planet. But environmental degradation as a result of air pollution, water contamination by effluence from large scale industries, increasing vehicular traffic, atomic/nuclear experiments, and discharges from atomic reactors has been increasing inconceivably and these are seriously affecting the life of the 'mother earth'. It is time to realize that, what ever threatens the ecological equilibrium of the nature is a threat against the will of God. That is not only against nature but in opposition to God as well. Hence we should be able to plan some actions with prudence to prove that the existence of the nature is our own existence.

Finally, churches have to give priority to these kinds of issues which threaten the life of the humanity in the new millennium. This does not mean that there should not be any other priorities; but these are some of the priorities. Sincere and prayerful action is the need of the time. The reasons for several of the issues faced by the world today are not because of the lack of ideas to solve them but because of the lack of suitable and sincere persons for implementing them. The new millennium gives us the challenge to prove the responsibility given to us by God to keep the human kind and the nature safe

Even though happiness and unhappiness are part of our life, we always wish for happiness. A positive and pleasant experience, happiness is very important for our life. Our health and wellness depends on our level of happiness.

Many special occasions as graduation, birthday, wedding, etc. make us happy. We feel enlighten with beautiful flowers, smiling faces, appreciating words, special gifts and honors. Having happiness for a day or few days is not sufficient. It has to be maintained every hour and days throughout the entire life time. Some people refuse to be happy or be around happy people. Where can we find happiness? We can happiness in many things in and around us. The smile of a baby, loving words of a friend, the song of a bird, the bright day, the clear sky etc..

Our day-to-day responses such as feeling great, supper, wonderful etc. really mean we we are enjoying happiness. There are many misconceptions on happiness. We have to face the reality and make the best of it. We must plan to be happy and make others happy as well.

As written in many religious books as well as we all believe, God loves us and we are blessed us with every thing. Also, we are blessed with the amazing ability to enjoy happiness. it is, every good and perfect gift is from God The Almighty. Also, God has blessed us with every thing We must appreciate the value of all these gifts and find happiness in everything. Let us imagine, what would happen or how we feel if we didn't receive any of these gifts. If we think, we have everything, because we are smart, we are ignoring the truth,. above (James, 1:17). If we respect and make the best use of our gifts, our life will be much more enjoyable.

Happiness comes from seeing the love of God in everything. Maintaining our relationship with God others and the nature. In order to have happiness, we must have the right attitude towards our self, God and other. A loving, trusting and thanksgiving attitude. Happiness comes from patience. Waiting patiently to hear others, waiting for the fruits of our work and waiting for the good change. Happiness is fulfilling our life purpose. It will reduce suffering. A happy person will get along and work well with others. Positive and useful thinking will help us meet our life goals, keep us safe, happy and healthy. A negative thinking people make wrong decisions, tend to be anxious, depressed and make themselves and others unhappy. If we use our gifts and talents, we can maintain happiness in our life. The secret of life is to meet the challenges of each new day and maintaining happiness by doing the best that are pleasing to God, others and our self.

As it is written in Vedas and Bible, we are the temple of God and the Holy Spirit is in us. Our body, mind and spirit belong to God. We must love God, and love our neighbors as well as love ourselves. We communicate our love through our way of thinking, words and actions. Good thoughts, good words and good works will bring happiness and meaning to our life. We need to accept the facts that our decisions, words, and actions to us and others. Whereas wrong things takes the joy out of our life. Right thinking, In our daily life, we must do our best to love and respect God, ourselves and others. We must avoid things that are harmful to God, ourselves, or others. By being faithful and thankful, we love and respect God. Our love and self respect, help us to take good care of our body, mind and spirit. We respect and love others through our good work of caring and sharing. Happiness does not come from doing what we like to do. Our happiness comes from doing our responsibilities as commanded by God.

We are not perfect. Periods of suffering, pain, mistakes, conflicts, failures, and worries are part of our life. Many things can get on our way to happiness as we lead our life in this world. Weather it is in our home, work, organization, community association. We must come out of these things. We should not let these worries and fears get us down. We must come out of these worries by being happy.