TESTIMONY 64

TESTIMONY 64

Name: Mr. Jojappa 

Surname: Chedalavada 

Date & Place of Birth: 70 years old, Manikonda 

Address: Manikonda Village Unguturu Mandal, Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh State 

Relationship: Direct Witness 

Date of Written Witness: 2006

To the life style of Br. Joseph Thamby, I can truly testify that he was friendly with children and liked to take the children for prayer. When I was 12 years old, I was playing in the Church yard. This is the time, I saw Brother Joseph Thamby for the first time. Brother Joseph Thamby called us children to come into the Church for praying. As we started praying, Brother Joseph Thamby had the stigmata, and seeing this, the catechist told me to bring a towel. I brought it and was given to him. Brother Joseph Thamby spread it on the floor and knelt on it. He asked us children to go out of the Church. I came to know that he suffered for an hour. 

After that we came to Avutapalli to play a skit. I noticed that the priest there named Fr. Rasi the assistant parish priest had great love and concern for Brother Joseph Thamby. In the evening that priest asked the children to play the badminton. After the play Brother Joseph Thamby called us who were 20 in number to meals. We ate and Brother Joseph Thamby himself served us. After that we played till 4.00 p.m. and went home to Manikonda. 

Brother Joseph Thamby was a man of courage and fortitude. After the skit, all of us were going back to Manikonda. By that time water was full in the river, and it reached up to our neck. But since Brother Joseph Thamby was with us we did not feel any fear. Another day George, Chinnappa and I made confession before the Mass and were going to receive Holy Communion. Brother Joseph Thamby told all the three of us to make confession to the priest again. We obeyed, and the catechist asked him what the reason was. Brother Joseph Thamby asked him to read to us the ‘Examination of Conscience’ from his book. He did so, and we understood that we had not made proper examination of conscience before confession. The priest who was hearing confession, Fr. Showry was noticing all this. 

I am an eye-witness that Brother Joseph Thamby had the gift of working miracles with the power of his prayer. Once I saw Brother Joseph Thamby gave some leaves to a sick woman and healed her. One day when skit was being played in Avutapalli, thick cloud rose up and it was about to rain heavily. Then Brother Joseph Thamby came forward and knelt down in front of the stage and prayed with his hands extended. Soon a heavy wind blew and there was no rain. The people believed that Brother Joseph Thamby miraculously prevented the rain. 

He had the gift of reading the hearts of people. After some days we went to Kesarapalli in order to play the skit. We had to cross the river to reach Kesarapalli. Brother Joseph Thamby also had come there before starting the skit, in order to watch it. There I saw Brother Joseph Thamby calling 4 young men who had plucked mangoes on the way and brought with them. Calling them near to him, Brother Joseph Thamby told them: ‘What you have done is wrong’. They asked what they had done. Then Brother Joseph Thamby replied: ‘On the way you plucked mangoes from somebody’s property. After eating the sweet ones, you threw away the sour ones’. I understood that Brother Joseph Thamby had the gift of reading the secrets of the heart of people. 

One day after playing badminton, we were praying in the Church in Avutapalli. Brother Joseph Thamby also was with us. During prayer, in a vision Brother Joseph Thamby saw war that was going on in the British Empire. He told us that people are killing one another in Germany, America, Russia and Japan, and asked us to pray for them. After some time, he told us that war is over. After prayer we played again till 4.00 p.m. When we were about to go home, Brother Joseph Thamby called us to eat the rice that was in his house. 

Mr. Jojappa Chedalavada 

2006