I Am Indeed Your Brother

Overview

During Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, Mamoon invited me into his home. When he and his wife started to prepare a snack for me I reminded him that I, also, was keeping the fast with them. His mouth fell open in surprise. You are a Christian and you are fasting with us? Mamoon threw his arms around me. You are doing so much for us! Solidarity.

For over forty years, Bob McCahill, a Maryknoll priest, has pursued an un­usual witness among the Muslim poor of Bangladesh. Rather than traditional pastoral work, McCahill simply tries to live as a friend and brother to his Muslim neighbors, offering a positive witness to the gospel ideals of service and love. In a series of small towns he has lived a life of utter simplicity, serving the sick, showing respect for Muslim piety, and explaining to all those who inquire the reasons for his way of life and good works.

This book is a collection of annual letters that Bob has sent home each year from Bangladesh over the last forty years. For many years these have appeared at Christmas time in The National Catholic Reporter.

Bob McCahill, a native of Des Moines, IA, grew up in Goshen, IN, and became a Maryknoll priest in 1969. From his original assignment in the Philippines, he was transferred to Bangladesh in 1975. He is the author of Dialogue of Life: A Christian among Allahas Poor (Orbis 1996).