Goa celebrates canonisation of St Joseph Vaz

Goa celebrates canonisation of St Joseph Vaz

Reporters Name | CAMIL PARKHE | Friday, 16 January 2015 AT 12:05 AM IST

    

Joseph Vaz

Panaji: The excitement at the ancestral house and sanctuary of St Joseph Vaz at Sancoale is palpable. Sancoale will celebrate the feast of St Joseph Vaz on Friday, for the first time after the son of the soil became the first Goan to be declared a saint.

Hundreds of people have been visiting the oratory of St Joseph Vaz and his sanctuary at Sancoale during the ongoing novena of the new saint.

The feast mass will be celebrated at St Joseph Vaz Sanctuary at 10 am on Friday, January 16. Goa, Daman and Diu Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao who attended the canonisation ceremony in Sri Lanka on Wednesday will be the main celebrant at the feast mass.

The feast day is celebrated on the death anniversary of the saint who had died at Kandy in Sri Lanka on January 16, 1711. St Joseph Vaz’ oratory room, the only remaining portion of his ancestral house in the village, is maintained by the nuns belonging to a local congregation, Holy Family of Nazareth. The nuns said that a large number of devotees have been visiting their convent to pray at the oratory room of the new saint.

Holy Family of Nazareth congregation’s Mother General Alivita along with a team of a nuns had gone to Sri Lanka to witness canonisation of Joseph Vaz.

The nun’s congregation also runs a school in Sancoale which is named after the new saint.

‘Canonisation of St Joseph Vaz a memorable event’

‘Canonisation of St Vaz a memorable event’

Reporters Name | CAMIL PARKHE | Sunday, 18 January 2015 AT 11:36 PM IST

    

St Joseph Vaz, Canonisation of St Vaz

Pune: For Fr Denis Joseph, who was among the group of 15 Puneites who recently flew to Colombo, witnessing the canonisation of St Joseph Vaz and watching Pope Francis from up close was an exciting and memorable experience.

“At the canonisations ceremony, I was hardly two feet away from the Holy Father. He is so humble and has an infectious smile,” says Fr Joseph, Principal of St Joseph School in Ghorpadi. The canonisation ceremony of Goa-born missionary Joseph Vaz was held on January 14.

Fr Joseph said that over a million people from Sri Lanka, India and other parts of the world had assembled to witness the ceremony, presided over by the pope.

“The flags of Vatican City and Sri Lanka greeted the visitors on a nearly 100-km stretch of road leading to Colombo. It was such a wonderful experience,” he says.

“St Joseph Vaz, the only Goan to be declared a saint, has done tremendous work in Sri Lanka. During our short visit there, we could see the fruits of his hard work in the island nation,” Fr Joseph told Sakal Times.  “That is why St Joseph Vaz, the pride of Goa, was also described at the ceremony as a gem of Sri Lanka,” the  priest added.

Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth to celebrate 60 yrs of shifting to Pune

Home » Pune » Detail News   0 0 Copy URL JDV to celebrate 60 yrs of shifting - CAMIL PARKHE Thursday, 21 November 2013 - 11:06 AM IST Tags: Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth, JDV, autonomous university, courses, philosophy, theology,diamond jubilee, Pune, Camil Parkhe PUNE: Ramwadi-based Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth (JDV), an autonomous university conducting graduate and postgraduate courses in philosophy and theology, will start a year long diamond jubilee celebration next year to commemorate the 120-year-old institution's transfer from Kandy in Sri Lanka to Pune. An alumini association, led by Cardinal Cleemis Catholicos, Major Archbishop of Syro-Malankara Church, has been formed as a part of the diamond jubilee celebration. A committee formed to finalise various activities for the diamond jubilee celebrations held its first meeting recently. The meeting was attended by JDV acting president Fr Jeorge Pattery, theology faculty dean Fr Thomas Kuriacose, philosophy, faculty dean Fr James Ponniah and treasurer Fr Alex. Jnana Deep Vidyapeeth name was given in 1972 to the Pontifical Athenaeum which was founded by Pope Leo XIII as a Papal Seminary in Kandy. The Vatican had then entrusted the institution's administration to the Society of Jesus. The then Jesuit Superior of Pune Fr Pius Geisel had supervised the JDV's transfer and relocation to Pune in 1955. The JDV offers graduate and postgraduate courses in religion, philosophy, spirituality, science and religion, and management. At present, clergy and nuns from 65 dioceses and 68 religious congregations of South Asia and abroad are studying at the JDV. The Jesuit Provincial of South Asia is ex-officio vice-chancellor of JDV and the chairperson of its trust. The institute is now open to all students, irrespective of creed or gender, who fulfil its admission requirements. JDV Jnana Deep Vidyapeeth (JDV) name was given in 1972 to the Pontifical Athenaeum which was founded by Pope Leo XIII as a Papal Seminary in Kandy. The Vatican had then entrusted the institution's administration to the Society of Jesus. The then Jesuit Superior of Pune Fr Pius Geisel had supervised the JDV's transfer and relocation to Pune in 1955. 0 0