A grateful Moira parish honoured its son of the soil, Canon Fr Atanasio Lobo, as he celebrated his sacerdotal diamond jubilee on Friday.
To commemorate the significant milestone in his life, parishioners of Moira honoured him with a token of appreciation and recognition for his services to the church of Goa and in particular, his village of Moira.
On the occasion, a concelebrated Mass was concelebrated by over 15 priests, at which Archbishop-Patriarch Filipe Neri Ferrao was the main celebrant. The Mass was followed by a short entertainment programme, which included glimpses of Fr Atanasio’s life. During a felicitation programme, Archbishop Ferrao extolled the virtues of Fr Atanasio.
Popularly known to all as the “walking priest”, even at his advanced age, Fr Lobo walks long distances in going from place to place and is very often found travelling by bus wearing a cassock in preference to civilian clothes.
On Sundays, the octogenarian priest celebrates mass at the Lourdes Chapel in Moira, before proceeding by bus to celebrate mass the Se Cathedral at Old Goa. From there, Fr Lobo then proceeds to celebrate mass at Candolim.
Born on May 2, 1929, he was raised in a spiritually sound environment. His devout parents, Tamaturgo and Idalina Lobo, happily entertained the idea of his joining the priesthood. Accordingly, he was ordained priest 60 years ago on October 3, 1954.
Since then, he has served the diocese of Goa in various capacities. He was designated Prefect to the Rachol Seminary from 1954 to 1968. Thereafter, he served at the Saligao Seminary from 1968 to 1974.
In 1974, he was transferred to Bishop’s House, Altinho where he held office in the Seccao das Confrarias till 1979. Thereafter he became the parish priest at Thivim Church, followed by a stint as parish priest at Guirim.
