CELEBRATING THE BIRTH CENTENARY OF AN ARTS VISIONAIRE | LUMEN
from left Mr Justin Pierre , Ms Koh Bee Liang , Mr James Khoo , Mr Alan Johnson , Dr Alfred Pang , Mrs Shelley Ee and Mr Daniel Ee with one of Brother Joseph ’ s most famed sculptures - The Counsellor - located in the SJI office . ( Photo : Mr Michael Ee )
James , while documenting the life story of Brother Joseph , noticed “ how a lot of his works are from broken materials ; his last work was “ The Twin Towers ” – done after the 9 / 11 incident . He saw the value in broken materials and people ; and that everyone has the potential to be developed and nurtured .”
Echoing the same sentiments , Dr Pang paralleled the Catholic ethos witnessed in the life of Bro Joe , “ the collection of recycled materials and putting them together as the ‘ resurrected Christ ’... education is really about bringing people to life , educating them for life . It ’ s not just being ‘ future-ready ’; we can only understand about being future-ready if we understand the goodness of life .”
Dr . Pang commented on the Lasallian spirit of community which has a transformative effect on individuals and consequently , society as a whole , which Bro Joe ’ s life embodied . In concluding the lively discussion , Dr Pang summed up the life of Bro Joe , “ He saw things people don ’ t normally see . It ’ s an invitation for us as educators to see the potential in our students , like ‘ seeing the wood and its potential to be sculpted ’. We form them based on our understanding of the material ( or people ) they are meant to be . A teacher is never just a teacher ; the students ’ personality blossoms with the teacher ’ s personality .”
Indeed , Brother Joseph ’ s values of “ tolerance , openness , flexibility , not denying others of opportunities ” – were looked upon to be cherished after his death . With a personality larger than life that transcended even religious boundaries , a memorial mass that was held after his death in Ireland in 2002 at Holy Family Church was attended by 10 religious representatives who said a special prayer for him , an ineffable gesture that reflects his muchcherished presence in the local community .
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