The Basilica of Bom Jesus where relics of St. Francis Xavier are preserved. (Photo: AFP)
Dec 7 2023
They have been walking more than 100 kilometers since 1981, braving all kinds of hardships, to pay homage to St. Francis Xavier, the 16th century saint of the western Indian state of Goa, a former Portuguese colony.
This year, over 700 Catholics from three dioceses — Sindhudurg and Poona in western Maharashtra and Belgaum in southern Karnataka — undertook the marathon walk to join thousands of pilgrims for the feast of the missionary saint in Old Goa on Dec. 4.
“This year, the pilgrims, including Catholics and Hindus, marched in padayatra for seven days for a spiritual encounter with the saint,” Catholic Guru Santaji, co-founder of the Old Goa Padayatra along with late Jesuit missioner, Swami Prabhudhar, told UCA News.
The lay leader, who has led the spiritual journey for the last 42 years, said devotees join the padayatra because of their faith and the favors received by the intercession of the Spanish saint, who co-founded the Society of Jesus.
On route to the patron of the missions, they sing hymns, recite rosaries and halt in villages, most of them inhabited by Hindus, in the evening.
“Refreshments and dinner are served by villagers and the next day the devotees resume their journey,” he said, adding the marathon walk sees pilgrims covering highways, villages and towns.
With Swami Prabhudhar, Santaji first undertook the pilgrimage walk in 1981 with around 100 devotees.
Santaji, who runs a Prarthana Kendra Seva Ashram (prayer service center) in Maharashtra, said, “The interesting part is that entire villages join the prayer session with musical instruments and everybody is uplifted.”
The theme this year is “Like St. Francis Xavier, let us do as Jesus did”.
“People like Joao Coutinho, an illiterate who shook off alcoholism, and a couple blessed with two children after nine years of marriage, join the pilgrimage every year,” Jesuit Father Joe Monteiro, a regular member of the journey for 13 years, told UCA News.
Agnelo Carvalho, who first joined the pilgrimage in 1983, recalled an incident when about 40 pilgrims lost their way on his maiden journey.
“The faith is so deep and strong that the devotees brave all kinds of hardships,” he said.
The relics of St. Francis Xavier are preserved at the basilica and their decennial exposition will be held from Nov. 21, 2024, to Jan. 6, 2025.
On previous occasions, nearly 4 million people attended the exposition.
Pope Clement VII erected the See of Goa on Jan. 31, 1533. Its jurisdiction extended from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, to China and Japan. On Feb. 4, 1557, Pope Paul IV detached Goa from the province of Lisbon and raised it to a metropolitan archdiocese, having as suffragans the dioceses of Cochin and Malacca (Malaysia).
In 1572, Pope Gregory XIII acknowledged the archbishop of Goa as the primate of the East.
Savio Noronha, a journalist with state-owned Doordarshan TV, said he was touched to see a sea of humanity in Old Goa to attend the feast.
“The amazing fact is that hundreds of people from all walks of life are drawn here because, for them, it is a holy place,” Noronha said.
Bishop Sebastiao Mascarenhas of Baroda, the main celebrant of the feast at the Basilica of Bom Jesus, a UNESCO-approved heritage site, was joined by Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrao of Goa, and other bishops.
Thousands of people from different faiths throng Old Goa for a glimpse of the saint, said Jesuit Father Patricio Fernandes, rector of Bom Jesu Basilica.
“St. Francis Xavier wanted to bring all the people together. That is how he sowed the seed for us,” Mascarenhas said in his homily.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, ministers and legislators were among those present for the Mass. – UCA News
