Media Release
Adelaide, Mar 31: The Konkani speaking community of Adelaide gathered at the Sacred Heart Church, Hindmarsh, South Australia on March 18 to celebrate the first anniversary of official Konkani Masses in Adelaide.
This was also the first Konkani mass of 2023 after four Konkani Masses including the Monthi Fest in 2022. It was attended by not only Konkani speaking Christians from Goa, Mangaluru and surrounding areas but also by some members of the Marathi community.
The theme of the Mass was expounded in a short pre-Mass video on the arrival of the faith on Indian shores. It highlighted the Anjediv Island Nossa Senhora de Brotas church which has the status of a Mother Church. The church which celebrates its feast on February 2, was Goa’s first parish to be established but is now out of bounds for regular worship as it falls in the naval Sea Bird Project area. Being significant to the faithful from Goa and coastal Karnataka, its commemoration assumes considerable importance, especially to the people of Binaga and Karwar.
The Masses are normally celebrated by Fr Lancy D'Silva CSC and Fr Santosh Pereira MSFS who happens to be the youngest Indian priest serving in the Archdiocese of Adelaide but this time, Fr Santhosh Nazareth CSC who recently arrived in Adelaide, was the main celebrant. Fr Santhosh who hails from Byndoor in Karnataka, is fluent in English, Hindi, Kannada and Konkani. Before joining the Congregation of Holy Cross, he studied at Christ College Bengaluru and was ordained a priest in 2012. He was principal, Holy Cross School, Kerala and was earlier school administrator of the Holy Cross High School, Ghanpur, Telangana. He was then appointed as parish priest of St Anthony’s Church Magadi, Bangalore. He has also had exposure to the missions in North East India. While Fr Santhosh has been appointed as assistant priest to the Sacred Heart Hindmarsh/Findon parish, his experience with schools serves him well in his pastoral ministry with the students of the Catholic schools in Adelaide. His experience and commitment places him in a key position to serve the Indian Catholic Community but particularly to the faithful from the Konkan region.
The mass was his first celebration of a Konkani Mass on foreign soil and he was given a rousing welcome. His authentic Mangalorean Konkani thrilled those from Mangaluru and surrounding areas. In his homily, he focussed on the various types of blindness present besides physical blindness, across sections of people. It was based on the account of Jesus healing the blind man besides the pool of Siloam (which means ‘sent’) in the Gospel of John. He said that like the healed blind man, every Christian is sent, being anointed with baptismal common priesthood, prophesy and kingship. He emphasized on the need to be pure and holy in a world of changing morals. He also pointed out that God does not see as man does but sees the heart.
Members of the community joyfully participated in the liturgy. Some of the readers who were reading Konkani passages for the first time were hesitant, but later expressed gladness at the opportunity to read the liturgy in the mother tongue. Derrick Nazareth from Nachinola, Goa, read from the Book of Samuel in fluent Konkani while Adelina Fernandes proclaimed the Psalms. Simona Lobo from Mangalore read the second reading. Paul D’Souza, a septuagenarian from Bangalore but originally from Morjim, Goa who is on a visit to Australia devoutly led one of the universal prayers along with Savio Fernandes, a Goan from Bombay and Anthony Fernandes from Curtorim, Goa. Lester D’Souza from Kulshekar, and Ashwith D’Souza and Priyanka Mascarenhas both from Kinniholi were the other petitioners of the universal prayers.
The choir sang a mix of both Goan and Mangalurean hymns and was given a resounding applause at the end of the mass. It was led by Blaise Fernandes who also composed a new hymn ‘Khursacher Tyag’ with Konkani lyrics, set to the tune of the classic ‘The Old Rugged Cross’. It elicited a deep Lenten feel to the celebration. It will be available on YouTube shortly. Newlywed couple Pearl from and Clinton Pinto were also felicitated for coming all the way from Melbourne to attend the mass.
These Konkani Masses were initiated with the Archdiocese of Adelaide by Ancilla Dias and Blaise Fernandes representing the Mangalorean Catholic community and Goan Catholic community respectively.
The mass was followed by a fellowship with vegetarian finger food, keeping with the Lenten spirit of abstinence. Fr Lancy D'Silva CSC, who has been serving the Archdiocese of Adelaide from 2019, prayed the grace before the meal. He was very glad to have Fr Santhosh who is from his same CSC congregation, as his assistant. There was a sense of vernacular conviviality with many getting an opportunity to meet for the first time. All were looking forward to attend and participate in the next Mass to be held in the month of June.