Ráia is a quaint village situated in the Salçéte taluka of South Goa district in India. It is located 4 Km East from the district headquarters of Margão and 35 Km from the state capital, Panjim. This quint village boasts of its magnificent Igreja de Nossa Senhora das Neves, built in 1699. It was consecrated by Archbishop Agustinho de Anunciação. Among other devotions in Ráia, the devotion to Nossa Senhora das Neves (Our Lady of Snows) is greatly visible in this parish, being dedicated to her.
The Our Lady of Snows Church in Raia originally had four Confraternities, each having distinctly colored Opas and Murças. The names of these Confraternities are – Confraria do Santissimo Sacramento (Blessed Sacrament) whose members wore a deep red single piece sleeveless Opa, Confraria da Nossa Senhora do Bom Parto (Our Lady of good delivery) whose Confrades wore a red Murça over a white Opa, The Confraria do São Miguel e Santas Almas (St. Michael and the Holy souls) which wore a Blue Murça over a white Opa and the Confraria da Nossa Senhora de Piedade (Our Lady of Piety) whose confrades wore a white Opa and a white Murça. The Confraria de Santissimo Sacramento was the Confraria managed exclusively by the Brahmin community. As of today, all the above-mentioned confraternities have been dissolved to create just one wholistic confraria without and cast based distinction.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
The staple food of Goa as everyone knows is rice, fish and curry. The cultivation of rice begins in the month of June, and reaches maturity by mid of August which is ready for harvesting during the months of September and October. It seems that the month of August is known for celebrating newness. But what’s really new in August? Well, it is the paddy crop which is on its way to maturity and gradually to the date of its harvest. The new harvest that is, and hence the month of August is known for celebrating newness or ‘novidade’.
Different parishes in Goa celebrate the ‘novidade’ on different dates in August. On this day the Parish priest visits a demarcated paddy field and blesses the new crop. A bundle of blessed paddy sheaves is brought to the church where they are distributed among the congregation (one sheave per family). The family then places this blessed paddy sheave onto their family altar or oratory (sheaves of the previous year are burnt). The mother of all celebrations is that, carried out in Raia a village in South Goa on the occasion of the feast of Our Lady of Snows, on 5th of August, every year.
The parish of Rachol, celebrates their ‘novidade’ on the Sunday following August 05. Aldona celebrates it on Aug 06. On the 10th of August, the parish of Sinquerim, North Goa, dedicated to Saint Lawrence, celebrates the ‘novidade’. Most of the parishes across the state celebrate the ‘novidade’ on the 15th of August, i.e. the feast of Our Lady of Assumption. Finally, the last day for celebrating the new harvest is on 24th August, the feast of Saint Bartholomew, celebrated on the following Sunday (if 24th happens to be a weekday) in parishes like that of Betalbatim, South Goa, where the parish church is consecrated to Saint Bartholomew.
