In the afternoon of October 11th, EAPI held its annual alumni homecoming with some 80 guests that included past participants, former staff members and visiting lecturers. EAPI was bursting at the seams when the current participants, M.A. and English students, and the staff members joined the guests for the activities.
There was a special lecture on “Harm Not the Earth” by Dr. Megan McKenna. The crowd was indeed overflowing in the auditorium; some had to squeeze in and sat on the aisles. Dr. McKenna delivered (from memory!) the Creation stories of Genesis to stress her theme of how stories from the Bible and from around the world tell us of a spirituality of the earth/ land/ poor/ justice, ecology, etc.
After the lecture was the celebration of the Eucharist at the Nebreda Terrace. Fr Jeyaraj Rasiah, the Director, presided the Eucharistic celebration and gave a well-prepared homily (complete with statistics and figures of world population and proportion!) to the amazement of everyone.
After nourishing the soul, everyone went downstairs for dinner and more personal tête-à-tête. The rain somehow spoiled what could have been a perfect evening of sharing and dining outdoors. Everyone once again cramped the dining hall and the overflow crowd contented themselves in the adjoining newspaper lobby. The ‘cozy’ atmosphere prepared everyone for the program that followed where some current participants showcased their musical and dancing talents to the delight of the guests.