St. Sebastian Church

John the Britto was the Scion of a powerful aristocratic Portuguese family. His father Salvador de Britto Pereira died while serving as Viceroy of the Portuguese Colony of Brazil.
He joined the Jesuits in 1621, studying at the famous University of Coimbra. He travelled to missions of Madurai in South India, present day of Tamil Nadu way back in 1673 and preached the Christian religion in the region of Maravar Country. He renamed himself as Arul Anandar in Tamil. The ruler of the Marawar country imprisoned him in 1684. Having been expelled, he returned to Lisbon in 1687 and worked as a mission procurator. King Pedro II wanted him to stay on, but in 1690 he returned to the Marawar country with 24 new missionaries. Read more

The presentation of Jesus at the temple in Jerusalem is an early event in the life of Jesus, wherein He was officially inducted in Judaism.
As it was the custom in their religion that the new born should be presented to the Lord in the temple, Joseph a staunch believer and a devout person who followed Law of Moses to the core, went to the temple along with baby Jesus and Mother Mary. As per the custom then, and the rule book, one had to carry along with them the offering animal for sacrifice, namely LAMB, TURTLE DOVES or PIGEONS, depending on one’s capacity or the financial condition. As you all know, they carried two turtle doves for the sacrifice. Read more

Our Lady of Lourdes is a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated in honour of the Marian apparitions that reportedly occurred in 1858, in the vicinity of Lourdes in France. The first of these is the apparition of 11 February 1858 when 14 year old Bernadette Soubirous told her mother that a ‘lady’ spoke to her in the cave of Massabielle while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. Similar apparitions of the ‘Lady’ were reported on seventeen occasions that year, until the climax revelation of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception took place. Read more

The Lateran Basilica (dating 12th Century)
The Arch Basilica of St. John Lateran Basilica is the oldest and highest ranking of the four major Basilicas in Rome. The Basilica of St. John Lateran is the Cathedral of the diocese of Rome, the official ecclesiastical seat of the Holy Father, the Bishop of Rome. The Basilica is also called the church of the Saviour. In ancient Rome this was the church where everyone was baptized. It was built during the time of Constantine and was consecrated by Pope Sylvester in 324. At first the feast was celebrated only in the city of Rome but then, in honour of the Basilica which is of the city and the world, it was extended to the whole of the Roman Rite as a sign of unity and respect towards the Holy See, which as St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote, presides over the whole assembly of Charity. Read more

The Se Cathedral is dedicated to St. Catherine in Old Goa. It is considered to be one of the largest churches in Asia. It is also known to be the oldest and most celebrated religious buildings in Goa and has the prestige of being the seat of Archdiocese of Goa. The UNESCO has also declared it as a heritage site.
The Portuguese Viceroy Redondo commissioned the Se, or St. Catherines’ Cathedral, southwest of St. Cajetan church to be “a grandiose church worthy of the wealth, power and fame of the Portuguese who dominated the seas from the Atlantic to the Pacific”. Today it stands larger than any church in Portugal, although it was beset by problems, not least a lack of funds and Portugal’s temporary loss of independence to Spain. It took eighty years to build and was not consecrated until 1640. Read more

One year, 365 days to be precise, has passed by and we have entered into the New Year 2019. Only our heavenly father knows, what this year brings for all of us – what is in store for us. As we step ahead in the fresh year, we need to move with a positive mind set full of hope and aspirations. To help us venture into the unknown, Church dedicates the New Year’s Day to our heavenly mother, who is always ready to intercede for us. Read more

Saint Joseph Vaz, born on 21 April 1651 in Benaulim Goa (India) was an Oratorian priest and missionary in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). He entered Ceylon when the Dutch ruled and they had imposed Calvinism as the official religion. He travelled throughout the island bringing the Eucharist and the Sacraments to groups of Catholics. Later in his mission, he found shelter in the kingdom of Kandy where he was able to work freely. By the time of his death, Fr. Vaz managed to rebuild the Catholic Church on the Island.
As a result of his work, Fr. Vaz is known as the Apostle of Ceylon. On 21 January 1995, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II, in Colombo. He was canonized on 14 January 2015 by Pope Francis in an open-air Mass ceremony at the Galle Face Green in Colombo. Read more

Nikhil was not an ordinary child. The only son of a well-settled family in Goa, Nikhil was blessed with a loving family, handsome features, and a bright mind. He was barely two when he could recite popular rhymes, garnering proud smiles from his doting parents. As he grew, he not only excelled in academics, always managing to be one of the top three rankers in the school, but also in sports, especially football, his favourite game. Nikhil had also inherited the musical gene from his mother – his fingers deftly creating magic with six strings, earning him friends and admirers throughout his teenage life. Read more

God is the ultimate healer of any illness and the doctor is only the mediator. We have heard of miracles performed by saints where hopeless cases which were given up by doctors have been cured through the intercession of saints and God, baffling the medical fraternity. Also there are testimonies of certain bad habits, vices etc which can cause problems and illnesses for family members, not necessarily for the family member having these habits, but for others. Many have testified how a good honest confession of sins with a priest has cured them of physical ailments which could not be cured medically. Below are a few examples. Read more