No smartphones, cameras during veneration

Even those who didn't take out their mobile phones to take pictures of the saint complained that their experience was ruined.

Old Goa:  No smart-phones and no 'selfies' while venerating the sacred remains of Saint Francis Xavier, Church authorities in Goa have ruled a day after the exposition of the relics of the 16 century saint started, The Times of India reported.

Organizers confirmed that the orders were given. "We realized it on Saturday, the inaugural day of the event itself. We had initially thought of having the 'No Photographs' policy, but, didn't implement it as we thought people would behave themselves, and show respect to the occasion. We didn't imagine it would lead to such scenes," said an organizer.

Fr Alfred Vaz, chief of the 17-member organizing committee of the church, was not available to comment, the newspaper reported.

Organizers of the 17th Exposition of the Sacred Relics of St Francis Xavier didn't foresee the enormity of the situation when they began to allow people to click pictures of the saint on the first day.

Ten years ago, during the last exposition in 2004, mobile phones didn't have cameras, digital cameras were still catching on, and most used analog cameras with film. "Every second person has a Smartphone today, and everyone brought them out and started to take pictures. It was a mess and started to get embarrassing," said an organizer, requesting anonymity.

"The entire sanctity of the occasion was lost. The time to be spent in prayer before St Francis Xavier was used in clicking as many pictures as one could get during the few seconds each person got before him," said an organizer. It was definitely a time, when technology ruined a solemn moment.

"Even those who didn't take out their mobile phones to take pictures of the saint complained that their experience was ruined. It was very distracting for them to be in a state of prayer when the person in front of them was busy clicking pictures. Those clicking pictures also delayed the people standing in the queue behind them," said an organizer.

"People will be allowed to carry their cameras or mobile phones into the Se Cathedral as if they leave them outside, they may have nobody to take care of their valuables, but, they will not be allowed to use them inside the church premises," the organizer added.

The change in policy was so evident that when this journalist took out a camera as part of duty to click a photograph of the change in scenes, a volunteer and a police officer quickly pounced upon him, asking him to put the camera away. "No pictures for even press guys," the police officer said.

Source: Times of India