St. Sebastian Church

Over the years, 1^st May has been bestowed upon with many honours. But the most notable are summarized below:

May 1 is also metonym for International Workers Day or Labour Day, a day of celebration of the working class in many countries. Behind it lies a history dating back over one-and-a-half centuries.
An interesting point to be noted, is that the industrial revolutions that took place largely in Europe and USA in the later part of the 19^th century resulted in reducing the work hours from 12-15 per day to 8 hours per day. The highlight of this phase is the Haymarket Massacre – When labourers assembled at the Haymarket Square in Chicago on May 4, 1886 and took out a rally for 8 hr. work day, a bombing attack was mounted on them by some unknown forces. Read more

With age comes wisdom….. Specifically wisdom teeth. Our mouths go through many changes in our lifetime. One major dental milestone usually takes place between 17 to 21 years i.e .appearance of third molars. These are called wisdom teeth because they come through at a more mature age.

When they come through correctly, healthy wisdom teeth can help you chew and can be a valuable asset to the mouth.

It is normal to feel a little discomfort when wisdom teeth begin to erupt but if there is pain it’s best to see your dentist. Read more

Rosary is a prayer,
That we Christians pray
We will be safe from all danger,
If we say it every day.

Mother Mary intercedes to Jesus,
When we say the Rosary
She asks Him to protect us,
And help us live happily. Read more

Mogall Firgozkaramno,

COVID-19 piddek lagun sogllem bodlunk laglear Marsache 22^ver sarkhem ek voros zalem. Hea vorsa bhitor soglle torechem vaitt-borem soglleanim onnbhovlem. Konn girest zalo, zalear konn bhikek pavlo. Konn dukhant poddlo zalear bhov thoddo konn kuxal zalo. Konn konn apleam ghorcheam koddlo pois urlo ani doxim zalo. Konn pois ghelolo to thoinch urlo. Hantunt modem kitlo dubhav ani bhirant gheun akhem voros sarlem. Read more

The young and the old have faced it. A phase full of fear and anxiety. An experience for a lifetime. Twelve months of uncertainties and dreadful feelings even to the extent of losing your dear and loved ones. The crazy and anxious moments thrust upon us by the dreadful COVID -19 will leave some memories for a long, long time. The virus had a sour start in March 2020, leading to chaos and the subsequent lockdowns. Yes, we have all gone through it for over a year but it appears that things are now settling down, at least in our very own state of Goa. Let us hope and pray that the worst will be a thing of the past bringing relief to one and all, at the earliest. Read more

Tadev: Simao Titiv, Dev Boro dis dium. Aiz tuka Misak hanvem pollounk nam. Kitem zalem tor?

Simao: Baba Tadev, Tukai Dev boro dis dium. Aiz hanv poilea Misak ghelolom. Hea disamnim ghormi chodd zalea nhoim, taka lagun vot chodd zaunche adim hanv ghora pavlom.

Tadev: Prachit Kallache dis anim soglim sompeponnam asunuim, kitlinch amchim bhavam – bhoinnam Misak pasun dixtti poddonant. Read more

The Fourth Sunday of Easter (25^th April) is dedicated to our Diocesan Seminaries by our Archdiocese of Goa and Daman. Seminary is an institution for the training of the candidates for priesthood. The Diocesan Seminaries directly come under the care of the Bishop of the Arch-diocese or Diocese. Through this article I wish to make you aware of the seminaries of our Arch-Diocese of Goa and Daman.

SEMINARY OF OUR LADY, SALIGAO-PILERNE

The Seminary of Our Lady, aims at the all-round development of young seminarians by living unto the motto “seeking the things that are of above”. The Seminary helps the seminarians to nurture their priestly vocation by imbibing different values so that they become good priests. Read more

We have approached the end of the Lenten Season. With our daily practices of prayer, fasting, abstinence, almsgiving, stations of the cross and listening to the word of God (maybe online) there is sense of being enfolded in the sufferings of Jesus, which He undertook in obedience to His Father. God so loved us that He sent His ONLY begotten son to deliver us from sin and a life of everlasting torment, to live a life of holiness and enter His kingdom to a life of bliss for all eternity.

Over the years we have got accustomed to work with Jesus and Mary through the 14 stations of cruelty and brutality. Today I would like to share my meditation and invite you to view the passion of Jesus as it were from above i.e through the eyes of our loving father along with the Prophets of old, all the Angels and Saints. Read more

“I am healed in the name of Jesus… He is a miracle worker”

On 20^th May 2006, I was operated for solitary thyroid nodule in Goa and the sample was sent for biopsy. The test report came as cancer of thyroid (malignant). I was thus advised to operate the other side of the neck to remove the second nodule.

For the second operation, it was suggested by another doctor that I go to either Manipal or Bombay. I chose to go to Manipal as I was asked to operate within a month from the first operation. There I was told that I might lose my vocal cord as the wound was raw (not healed.) But my Jesus was there with me and my operation was successful. The doctor had given hope and I was under medication. Read more

Necessity is the mother of all inventions. Prior to the discovery of anaesthesia in the 19^th century surgery was looked upon as a last and desperate resort. Conscious and without pain relief, it was beset with unimaginable terror, unspeakable agony and unmitigated risk. The experience and emotions of a patient undergoing surgery before the discovery of anaesthesia was perhaps best captured by the vivid description of Fanny Burley an English novelist who underwent surgery in the early 18^th century.

“When the dreadful steel plunged into my chest, I needed no injunctions not to restrain my cries. I began a scream that lasted unintermittently during the whole time of the incision, so excruciating was the agony, I then felt knife scraping the bone”. Read more