A Life in Mission – Brother Constantine D’Abreu (Tino)

My name is Constantine D’Abreu and I am a Christian Brother from India. Since my childhood days, I have been called Tino. I was very fortunate to have an excellent education at a Christian Brother school, St. Patrick’s, Asansol. Here, besides learning the 3 R’s, I learnt to appreciate, respect and engage with students from different social, religious and cultural backgrounds. Among the dedicated and committed teachers that taught me were Christian Brothers. Watching them in action, both in class and on the playground, I felt attracted to their way of life and the way in which they related with students, the school community and especially among themselves. Here, the seeds of my vocation were sown. These were nourished by my supportive family and in 1979, I joined the Christian Brothers Novitiate in Shillong.

The next couple of formative years were spent not just in completing my university studies but in imbibing the spirit of brotherhood and responding to the call to follow in the footsteps of Blessed Edmund Rice and Jesus as a Christian Brother.

After graduating from university in 1985, I spent nearly 8 years teaching in Christian Brother schools in India. This was the start of an enriching experience where I learnt to take calculated risks and attempt to do normal routine things differently and creatively.

While Principal of an elite school in Chandigarh, St. John’s opened its’ doors in 1997 to the economically marginalized from the nearby slums providing quality education to over 200 students. This was in keeping with the Christian Brother Chapter directions of 1996 and the new expression of the vision and charism of the Christian Brothers. Here were sown the seeds of advocacy and social justice that were nurtured in my different ministries as Director of Education for the Christian Brother schools in India and as Vice President of the Archdiocesan Board of Education, Goa.

Since 2017, I am a member of the Edmund Rice International team in Geneva. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with ERI, since as a Christian Brother, I am committed to the vision of the Congregation that every member of the Edmund Rice network is invited to engage on

issues of justice and right relationships on behalf of and with poor, vulnerable and marginalised people as well as the care of the Earth.

Towards this ERI collaborates with its advocacy partners in the countries where the Edmund Rice network is present to engage with the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva and the UN Human Rights mechanisms especially the Universal Periodic Review and the Treaty Body reviews of States. ERI’s engagement at the UN level enables grassroots ‘Rights holders’ to find their voice and shape their future by focusing international attention on the accountability of States to uphold the political, civil, economic, and social rights of their people and bring about changes in policy, law and practice that benefit especially children, women, the disabled and indigenous people.

At ERI, our vision is also to bring about a change in mindset and action within the Edmund Rice network from a ‘service’ model of development to one that embeds ‘advocacy in service’. Towards this ERI conducts capacity building training programmes in Geneva as well as at the country and local level. ERI’s online and zoom training programmes reach beyond the Edmund Rice network and are designed to create awareness, build advocacy skills and encourage campaigns that increase access to and realization of both environmental rights and the human rights of people.

A focus of ERI’s ministry is engaging with the Edmund Rice global network of schools to support initiatives that promote global citizenship and encourage awareness together with advocacy initiatives based on care of the Earth and the Sustainable Development Goals. To enable and support these initiatives ERI conducts awareness and training programmes for schools.

Each day I thank God for the gift of brotherhood and for the opportunities that I have to make a small difference in my ministry as a Christian Brother.