| The Fragrance of Sanctity |
| Saints are those
persons who are formally recognised by the Church
as having by their exceptional holiness of life
attained an exalted station in heaven and as being
entitled in an eminent degree to the veneration
of the faithful. There are three saints from India
including the Spanish-born St. Francis Xavier. |
| St. Francis Xavier |
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St. Francis
Xavier, the second Apostle to India was
born near Pamplona, Spain in 1506. He belonged
to a good Basque family of Span- ish Navarre.
While studying in Paris University he was
influenced by St. Ignatius Loyola. He joined
Loyola's Society of Jesus and became one
of the rust seven Jesuits who formed the
order at Mont Martre in 1534. He came to
India in 1541. He reached Goa after 13 months
of journey and worked there for seven years.
He converted thousands to the Church. In
1549 he went to Malaca, Japan and came back
to India in 1551.
He went to China in 1552. The country was
closed to foreigners. He landed on the Island
of Shangwan near the mouth of Canton River.
While waiting for a Chinese boat, whose
master had agreed to put him ashore secretly
on the main land, he was taken ill. In a
fortnight he died. He was 46. His body was
taken to Goa where it is still enshrined,
undecayed.
He was canonised in 1622. Church celebrate
his feast on December 3.
Address:
Basilica de Born Jesus, Shrine of St. Francis
Xavier, Old Goa.
Ph: 0832-286390 |
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St.
Gonsalo Garcia
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St. Gonsalo Garcia,
the only canonised martyr of India, was born
at Vasai Fort, the cradle of Christianity
in Mumbai in 1557. His father was Gundi Slavus
Garcia, a Lucitanian and mother a Canarine
(a local resident of Konkan).
Under the patronage of Fr. Sebastian Gonsalves,
a Jesuit Priest working in Vasai, the young
boy joined the Jesuit's school and stud- ied
there from 1564-72. At the age of 15, Fr.
Sebastian took him to Japan. His dream was
to become a Jesuit. It did not materialise.
So he went to Philippines as a lay missionary.
There he was influenced by a Franciscan priest,
Fr. Peter Baptister. Garcia worked there among
the leprosy patients from 1583-87. Franciscans
were happy to admit him to their order. In
June 1587, he joined the Friars Minor at Manila,
Philip- pines. On July 3, 1588 he made the
solemn profession. He was sent to Japan in
1594. There he established a leprosy home
at Meako (Kyoto). In 1595 he built a cloister
at Osaka. Christian missionaries were peresecuted
by the Emperor during 1596-97. On Feb. 5,
1597, 26 missionaries were taken to Nagasaki
Hills and were crucified. Gonsalo Garcia was
one among them. Hill Toleyana where they were
crucified is a pilgrim centre today. He was
de- clared blessed in 1629 and saint on June
8, 1862 by Pope Pius IX. The Gonsalo Garcia
Church, Vasai was built in 1942. It was rebuilt
in 1957. A weeklong feast is celebrated there
in February in his honour.
Address:
St.Gonsalo Garcia Church, Soprano, Thane Dt.,
Maharashtra- 401203.
Ph: 0252-402072 |
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| St. John de Britto |
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John de Britto
was born on March 1, 1647 in Lis- bon as the
fourth child of Don Sal- vador de Britto and
Dona Brites Pereira. He lost his father at
the age of four. He joined the Society of
Jesus on Dee.!7,1662 and was or- dained priest
in 1673. He reached In- dia on March 15, 1673.
He was given charge of Madurai Mission. He
became an Indian Sanyasi in food and habits.
He was accepted by all. He took an Indian
name Arulanandar. Marava Kingdom was in his
area.Marava King Sethupati was not friendly
with Christians. Among the Marava converts
of Arulanandar there was a local chieftain,
Thadia Thever. He had five wives.
On conversion he retained only one and renounced
the other four. One of them was Kadalayi,
a niece of Sethupati. She complained against
Arulanandar to the King.
Sethupati ordered his execution. Arulanandar
was taken to Oriyur where he was beheaded
on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 4, 1693. His body was
raised on a stake and became food for wild
animals. Only few bones and skull remained.
The relics were taken to Goa and Lisbon. He
was declared blessed by Pope Pius IX on
April 8, 1852 and canonised by Pope Pius
XII on June 22,1947.
The Arulanandar shrine in Oriyur was built
in 1734. It was renovated in 1770, 1890
and 1960. The feast is cel- ebrated on February
4.
Address:
Parish Priest, St. John de Britto Shrine,
Oriyur, Ramnad Dt., Tamilnadu-623 309. Ph:
04561-55261
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