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Mangalore, Jan 4: Around ten thousand faithful Christians took part in the Eucharistic procession that commenced from the Milagres Church and ended at the Rosario Cathedral . The procession was a part of the Mangalore Diocesan Convention of the Faithful , held on Sunday January 4.
Bishop Aloysius Paul D'souza led the procession . The event was held under the banner 'Witnessing to Christ through a Peaceful Community and Balanced Nature'. Fr Joseph Martis, professor, St Joseph’s Seminary, Jeppu ,delivered a spiritual message.
In the Cathedral, the Bishop together with 15 Vicar Forances of 15 Deaneries inaugurated the Convention year. The Bishop handed over 15 huge lighted candles to the Vicar Forances. He also handed over the 12 month programme of the convention of the year and presented some copies of the same to the 15 lay leaders of the 15 Deaneries. The Eucharistic year will end on January 3, 2010.
In his concluding message, the Bishop said, 'we need to grow again in faith and we need to live our faith'.
A mime programme, giving the message of the convention year of the faithful was performed by the students of the Sandesh institution.
Earlier:
Mangalore: Diocesan Convention Year Inaugurated in City
Pics: Prascilla D'souza Panja
Input: Fr Francis Rodrigues
Mangalore, Jan 4: Bishop Aloysius Paul D'souza inaugurated the Mangalore diocesan convention of the faithful at the Blessed Joseph Vaz Stage at the Milagres Junior College ground here on Sunday January 4.
Addressing the gathering comprising of representatives from all the 158 parishes of the coastal districts, Bishop said, "We need to grow in our faith, understanding and devotion. And through you this growth need to flow into every corner of the diocese. Today we need to introspect as to whether our faith is strong enough or not. We need o take up the mission of the Christ so as to live the Christian identity of ours in its fullness. The spirit of Christ needs to flow into every nerve of ours and also our hearts and minds".
The whole gathering was divided into seven age-wise groups and the input sessions were held in different groups by different resource persons. The reflection was held on the themes- 'I call you friends' and 'Who is my neighbour'.
In the afternoon session, the theme 'Let us be united in love and service' was animated by Fr Francis Serrao, rector of St Aloysius College. In his message, he said 'we have fallen short of our life in every aspect of it, ie, physical, mental, spiritual and social. We need to set right these fallen aspects of our life and relationships'.
During the inauguration, 15 leaders representing 15 deaneries of the diocese came to the dais with flags of 15 different colours. The 12 pages special souvenir brought out on the occasion titled, 'MISSANV' (mission) was released by the Bishop. The vicar general Fr Denis Prabhu explained the socio-spiritual programmes to be conducted throughout the year of the convention 2009.
Sessions were conducted with the support of a variety of skits, anecdotes and power point presentations. A large number of youths participated in the event.
The theme of the convention is 'Let us build a peaceful community; let us preserve the balance in the nature; let us give witness to Christ'.
The Bishop celebrated the Solemn Mass with all the priests of the diocese and a good number of faithful inclusive of the representatives. After the mass the Bishop led the Eucharistic procession taken out from Milagres Church to the Rosario Cathedral. In the Cathedral, the Bishop together with 15 Vicar
Foranes of 15 Deaneries inaugurated the convention year. The Convention of the Faithful will end on the 3rd of January, 2010.
Fr Stany Goveas, secretary, Council of Priests, Steven Quadras, secretary, Pastoral Concil, Fr Vincent Monterio, coordinator of the convention, Fr J B Crasta, Convener, Content committee, Sr Shalini AC, president, CRI, were present. Fr Vincent Monterio welcomed the gathering. Fr J B Crasta explained the details of the programme,.