Dear Goykars, Wish you a very happy feast of St. Francis Xavier, the universal "Goycho Saib" for all Goans, irrespective of religion or caste, with few exceptions. Rumours spread about SFX's role in the inquisition ..... or the purpose why he had requested for it ... are generally not borne out by history and his stay in Goa. He died in 1552 at age 46 years ...and spent less than 2 years in Goa ... 8 years before the inquisition started, over his dead body so to say!
St. Francis Xavier's life story is one of simplicity and service in the Society of Jesus that he co-founded with St. Ignatius of Loyola and Fr. Peter Faber. Born on 7th April 1506, at Xavier in Navarro, Spain. First arrived in Goa on May 6th 1542. [32 years after colonization and conversion of Muslims, low caste Hindus and animists to Catholicism by the colonial forces on the island of Tiswadi] Stay of 4 months. [SFX left before the conquest of Bara Des or Bardez and and Sahaxtti or Salcet from 1543 onwards] Major work in Tuticorim and Cape Camorin, South India, among fishing communities. Second visit to Goa 1548 Died on an island in South East Asia in 1552 Canonised by Pope Gregory XV in 1622 His unpreserved and as yet undisintegrated body has been on display during the expositions. Expositions held so far in 1782, 1859, 1878, 1900, 1922,1931,1942,1952,1961,1964,1974,1984 , 1994, and 2004 Today his body is 502 years old ...and still not disintegrated. Happy feast to those who beleive in the Truth. Mog asundi Miguel Date: Tue, 2 Dec 2008 21:28:15 -0800 (PST) From: "Goa's Pride www.goa-world.com" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [Goanet] Festachim Porbim - Happy Feast Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.goa-world.com All About Goa & Goans Worldwide Goychea Saibachea festachim porbim tumkam soggleank. Today, December 3, 2008 is the feast of St. Francis Xavier (1506-1552). St. Francisco Xavier - his life and times By Dr. Jose Colaco INTRODUCTION: St. Francisco Xavier lived in vastly different times from ours. Born into nobility and affluence, Francisco Xavier, a Basque Spaniard, heeded the call of Ignatius of Loyola ( Ignacio de Loyola ), the founder of the Society of Jesus and submitted himself totally to a life of poverty, chastity and apostolic labours. His journey from Portugal to Goa, over 13 months and the treacherous waters in-between, is perhaps one example of the passion and fervour which symbolised his spirit and devotion to his mission. He landed in Goa, 32 years after Afonso de Albuquerque and his Hindu allies had defeated and expelled its Muslim ruler, Adil Shah of Bijapur. The Hindus and Muslims were busy persecuting each other in the domain of Kanad or Kanara, which included Goa, at its northern front. The main interest , at the time, of the Portuguese in India, was to control the lucrative spice trade, hitherto commandeered by the Muslim Turks and Arabs. The Hindus were, therefore, keen to have the Portuguese, as allies, alias protectors against Muslim attacks. It was a case of symbiosis. And, Christianity became a refuge, albeit convenient one, for many of the lower caste Hindus from the oppression and discrimination practised against them by upper caste Hindus. It also was a protective shield for many Hindus of all castes from the ever-menacing Muslim invaders. Most of the initial converts to Christianity, however, were from the lower castes of Hindus. Courtesy Clevor Menezes The horrible Inquisition ( Inquisicao or Inquiry ) in Goa is the source of some criticism against him. The reasons for his call for an Inquisition in Goa are quite clear, in his letters to King Joao III. He was totally frustrated by the state of immorality among many of the elite in Goa and the inabilty or unwillingness of the King of Portugal, to do anything about it. It is ludicrous to assign to him any of the responsibility for the crimes and cruelty of the Inquisition in Goa. He was absent from Goa at the time - by virtue of his death, eight years before the Inquisition came to Goa!!. Thousands of churches and universities, worldwide, have been named in his honour and he is one of the most important saints for Catholics especially in the Orient and in Goa, where he is venerated as 'Goemcho Saib' or Lord of Goa . A mere four months after his arrival in Goa, he was commanded to leave and go elsewhere. There was work he had commenced and there was no replacement yet. Besides, there was more work to be accomplished in Goa. He was barely over the hurdle of Konkani and did not have a clue of Tamil or Malayalam - and yet, this hurried departure from Goa. Numerous miracles have been attributed to Fr. Francisco in the South Indian region of Tuticorin. He is recorded as having held off the invading Vadugers, from Vijaynagar in the the north, with the help of his crucifix. The Vadugers had earlier massacred some of the new Parava Christians and taken others captive. A complicating factor in the episode was a secret deal between the Vadugers and the local Portuguese commandant of the region. His efforts with the Parava fishing community to the east of Cabo Camurin [Cape Camorin] were being watched with interest by the Mukuva fisherfolk who lived on the western side of the Cabo Camurim. Fr. Francisco's efforts in 1544 ensured their conversion to Christianity. By now, he had memorised the necessary phrases and sentences in the Tamil language. Several thousand Mukuvas were baptised and given Portuguese names. It is while he was with the Mukuvas that Fr. Francisco heard about the massacre of several hundred natives of nearby Mannar. The Hindu King of Jaffna, in northern Ceilao, now Sri Lanka upon hearing of the conversion of these Mannars to Christianity, sent his men to their villages and slew them. In another part of Ceilao, the Crown Prince of Kotte was murdered after he was baptised . The fate, befallen these martyrs greatly disturbed Fr. Francisco. He had to find a method of protecting his flock. What is quite clear from all accounts is, that Fr. Francisco communicated quite regularly with his fellow Jesuits, the Portuguese Governor of Goa, King Joao III of Portugal and Pope Paul III . Many of these letters were written in Cochin, then an important Portuguese port, now Kochi, in the Indian State of Kerala. He returned to Goa in 1548. A new Viceroy, Dom Joao de Castro was in office. The Portuguese elite and some members of the clergy in the city, still smarting from the stinging comments about them by Fr. Francisco to their King, began a smear campaign against the Jesuit. The Viceroy was advised that Fr. Francisco was a 'meddler' and 'mischief maker', who was 'partial' to his fellow Spaniards. Upon meeting Fr. Francisco, however, Dom Joao realised that he was an honest and religious man who had a gripe against the immorality and corruption among the government officials in Goa. Thereafter, he frequently sought advice and guidance from Fr. Francisco. Fr. Francisco formally took over teaching at the College of the Holy Faith in 1548. This college trained secular priests from all over Asia and the eastern seaboard of Africa. These 'natives of distant lands' travelled back to their homelands to carry on the work of the Church. ( The majority of priests in Goa today are secular. They provide for the flock of Goan Catholics in parishes all over Goa. ) Fr. Francisco's next journey would be to Japan. The evil ways of the Portuguese officials and elite in Old Goa, the perils of the numerous sea journeys to the far flung lands, the complicated politics of the days - some involving the duplicity and cunning of the Portuguese commandants in those lands - the struggles with the poor fisherfolk on either side of the Cabo Camurim, the anxiety over the risks these poor people faced for having converted to the Christian way of life and the horrible massacre of the Mannars by the Hindus must have caused deep anguish to Fr. Francisco. The Paravas, however, resisted all the pressure they faced from the neighbouring peoples. They have remained faithful to Christianity till this day - a fine testimony to the effort of Fr. Francisco. Conversions from Hinduism on the Indian subcontinent have mainly been from the lower classes and castes. It was also a means for the people of the lower castes to escape the unmitigated, unrelenting subjugation to and humiliation by the upper castes. After all, the structure of the caste system ensured that the down-trodden had no hope of overcoming the caste based discrimination - ever. In the 1950s, millions of lower caste Hindus escaped this 'Karma' or 'fate' by converting to Buddhism. Francisco de Xavier was canonized in 1622, along with his mentor Ignacio de Loyola. Today, the unpreserved but as-yet-undisintegrated body of St. Francisco lies in a wooden coffin inside a silver casket in the Basilica de Bom Jesus in Old Goa. It can be seen in the chapel, as one turns right, at the main altar of the basilica. The casket has a glass window through which, the head is clearly seen. There have been numerous expositions and millions of people of all faiths and countries have seen the body. The body has gradually lost some of its moisture and future expositions have been restricted. Photography during The Feast Of St. Francis Xavier By William Rodrigues KEEP IN TOUCH WITH GOA THROUGH THE PRINT MEDIA http://www.v-ixtt.com http://www.gulabonline.com http://www.oheraldo.in http://www.navhindtimes.com COLLECTION OF KONKANI POEMS OF LINO B. DOURADO http://www.goa-world.com/goa/poems/ http://www.ordinarywords.com/questforlife/ Source: Goanet Digest, Vol 3, Issue 1544 *************************************** -- -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. Miguel Braganza, S1 Gracinda Apts, Rajvaddo, Mhapsa 403507 Goa Ph 9822982676 [EMAIL PROTECTED] -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.