First Gujarati Mass celebrated during exposition

Services have been held in Hindi, Marathi, Tamil and Malayalam as well as Portuguese, French, and Spanish in the past.

Old Goa:  Bishop Thomas Macwan of Ahmedabad led 38 priests from Gujarat and some 200-odd pilgrims on Tuesday in the first Gujarati language Mass celebrated in the precincts of Basilica of Bom Jesus during an exposition.

For the church authorities at Old Goa, "it is a historic occasion, as this is the first time we have a mass in Gujarati during the novena of St Xavier," Fr Savio Barreto, rector of Basilica of Bom Jesus said.

As an international pilgrimage and tourist centre, it was another milestone for the Church. The expression of faith in regional and foreign languages during the novena of Goencho Saib is growing every year.

In 2013, the pandal echoed to the sounds of Kannada and French. While holy masses are celebrated in Konkani and English regularly, a priest or a Bishop traveling with a groups of devotees from their region can help them express their faith in their own mother tongue.

Services have been held in Hindi, Marathi, Tamil and Malayalam as well as Portuguese, French, and Spanish in the past.

The pilgrims from Gujarat may have been also pleased that Tuesday, November 25, is rooted in another significant historic landmark - Portuguese general Afonso Albuquerque's conquest of the former capital.

And it was Bishop Macwan, who informed them that the Portuguese conquered Old Goa today in 1510. "It is a historic day. When the Portuguese came here, they built a chapel dedicated to St Catherine of Alexandria and later Se Cathedral received the patronage of St Catherine. It is a titular feast of people of Old Goa on November 25," he said.?

We feel blessed after the spiritual experience at the mass," Nivedita Thomas Christian, a pilgrim from Gujarat said.

The visit to the cradle of St Francis Xavier's Sacred Relics in the former capital was a memorable pilgrimage for the devotees from Gujarat, but for Bishop Thomas Macwan it was more than a defining moment to ponder over.

As a youth, Macwan had visited Old Goa in 1974 after he had a calling from God.

"I had prayed before the Relics of St Xavier, asking him to pray for me that I may become a priest full of zeal. I already had the calling from God and it got strengthened by praying to him," he said, speaking to TOI outside Basilica of Bom Jesus.

"I am the first Gujarati bishop," he said. For him, the pilgrimage to Old Goa with 38 other priests and pilgrims from Gujarat is also an opportunity for thanksgiving. In January 2015, he will complete 12 years as bishop.

"St Xavier is a model priest and a model saint. He is a great saint for everyone to emulate," Macwan said.

Source: Times of India