DIANA FERNANDES
diana@herald-goa.com
OLD GOA: Describing the Exposition of the Sacred Relics of St Francis Xavier as ‘a moment of God’s grace’, Archbishop of Goa and Daman Rev Filipe Neri Ferrão speaking to Herald said, “It is a moment to have a deeper experience of our faith drawing inspiration from the likes St Francis Xavier and to deepen our commitment to share his life. He gave up a bright career once he encountered Jesus, came to the East and faced obstacles. I think the secret is the fire in his heart.”
Archbishop Ferrao said that the pilgrims come and venerate the Sacred Relics of St Francis Xavier to experience the joy of Jesus and to be messengers in the world.
Speaking exclusively to Herald on Tuesday, Rev Ferrao said he would be going to Sri Lanka in January for the Canonization of Blessed Joseph Vaz for which many lay Catholics are also going.
“We will have the feast on January 16. This will be the first feast of Joseph Vaz as a saint. This year it will definitely be bigger and we will make it participatory trying to get all the deaneries to come. Two deaneries will come every day during the novenas. I’m sure the feast, that will come two days after his canonization, will be a wonderful opportunity for us to get to know him better and to emulate him in our life, because he was a man ahead of his time. He too was a man of fire like St Francis Xavier, but who spread the fire in a different way: in simplicity and hardship.”
The Archbishop recalled what the Archbishop of Kandy had said two decades ago after the beatification of Bl Joseph Vaz. “Myself, Archbishop Raul (Gonsalves) and other lay people went to celebrate mass in Kandy, where Joseph Vaz died, and the Archbishop of Kandy said that had it not been for this son of Goa and India, there would not have been a Catholic on the island. Vaz was the only priest for 10 years in Sri Lanka and he walked the length and breadth of the island barefoot doing most of his work during the night to evade capture,” the Archbishop said.
