St. Sebastian Church

In 1954 Pedro Paul Rodrigues, a Goan tailor of Raia, 41 years of age and living in Bombay, came to Aquem with a view to invest in a home for his wife and seven children. His wife Laurente, put only one condition to him that the dwelling should be close to a church. He contacted Late. Joaquim Santana Dias whom he knew personally for guidance. Late Mr. Dias, (father of our good family friend, Felix Dias) suggested a bungalow that was for sale on a property known as “Rivontoloi – Batta alias santu xevoilam”. Pedro Paul bought this property from a Portuguese family. After various repairs to the bungalow, well and a surrounding compound, the place became presentable and livable. But sad to say, Pedro Paul passed away on 15th March 1958 not destined to live in this place he had bought.

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When one goes back in time, it is always with a sense of nostalgia about the good old days when good health was in abundance and there was that feeling of contentment and well being. Why is that nowadays we have all these dreaded illnesses like diabetes, hypertension, cancer etc. taking their toll on an already stressed out populace?

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So goes the Christmas song “Do you hear what I hear?” When we listen to this carol, every December we usually think its about hearing, seeing and knowing what happened the night Jesus was born. However the main intent of the couple who wrote the song was different.

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December is the last month of the Calendar, a month which is eagerly awaited by all Catholics as well as others. It is a time to be joyful. A time where families unite to celebrate the birth of Christ. Its Christmas time.  As the magazine reaches you we will be already in the mood of celebrating Christmas, with the markets flooded with decorations, Christmas carols are in the air,  and we listen to this music, as it helps us to come in the right spirit, right mood. But what is Christmas time?  Read more

Daisy and Amanda were schoolmates. Daisy hailed from a humble background while Amanda’s parents were from a rich and prosperous family. With the same education and almost similar career prospects, Daisy ended up toiling hard for a decade. Meanwhile, she married and had two beautiful children. Although Daisy earned a decent salary, she believed in enjoying the good things in life when she could afford them. However, her extravagant lifestyle resulted in lack of adequate savings to fall back on. Read more

I was on a short vacation to Europe, to cut off from my usual routines. I visited England, Rome-Vatican, Venice-Italy and finally Lisbon-Fatima. I was fortunate to get a glimpse of our Pope Francis, who appeared on the window, recited some prayers and then blessed the multitude of people, who inspite of hot sunshine, thronged the Basilica square. It was an awesome feeling.
Wherever I went, one thing which struck me most, at every nook and corner was the ‘Discipline’. The respect and fear of the law, little scope for breaking the rules. Be it the parking, traffic signals, queue systems everywhere, respect to elderly people and women, zebra crossings, everything is streamlined. Every possible act is captured on CCTVs with lot of monitors which record speeds of vehicles zooming along. The people of these countries must be really proud to boast of these nearly inch-perfect surroundings. Read more

Every month of the Calendar year is dedicated to some event or for a specific purpose, wherein the laity is requested to pray for the cause or commemorate the festivity.
The month of October is dedicated as month of the Rosary. The month of December is awaited as Christmas time. In any month of the calendar you will recall as what is most important in that particular month. Read more

In our Christian faith, we refer to our Lord Jesus, as ‘Christ the King”, a king of the Kingdom of God and not of any earthly kingdom. We believe that Jesus Christ is seated at the Right Hand of God, our Heavenly Father, ruling this kingdom.
By essence and by nature, Christ has dominion over all creatures. He is one with the Father and has all things in common with Him and therefore has necessarily supreme and absolute dominion over all the things that are created. Angels and the mankind are His subjects. He is our King by natural right as well, as He is our Redeemer. Christ has purchased us with a great price of His own life. We are no longer our own property but our bodies have become ‘members of Christ’. Jesus Himself said, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me”. (Mathew 28:18). Yes God has bestowed upon Christ, the nations of the World as His special possession and dominion. Read more

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru once said “The children of today will make the India of tomorrow. The way we bring them up will determine the future of the country”. He was known for his love and affection towards children, Nehru was affectionately addressed as Chacha Nehru.
The day talks about the importance of the rights to education care and a safe childhood. Nehru is often cited as saying that children should be lovingly nurtured as they are the nation’s future citizens.
Prior to the death of Jawaharlal Nehru, India celebrated November 20 as Children’s day as observed by United Nations but following his demise in 1964 Nehru’s birthday was unanimously decided to be celebrated as Bal Diwas or Children’s day in India. This day is celebrated with zeal and enthusiasm in the country. It’s a fun day for kids, it emphasizes the rights and needs of children.

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