Pics: Jeevan D'Costa
Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (JD)
Udupi, Aug 11: A grand car procession of the statue of Mother Vailankanni was held ahead of the annual feast of the Vailankanni shrine at Stella Maris Church, Kalmady on Sunday, August 11. The event saw the participation of devoted worshippers who gathered to honour Our Lady of Vailankanni.
The procession commenced from Kalmady bridge and proceeded towards Kalmady Church. Dr Aloysius Paul D’Souza, Bishop Emeritus of the Mangalore Diocese, flagged off the procession.
The rector of the shrine, Fr Dr Baptist Menezes, extended a warm welcome to Bishop Emeritus Dr Aloysius Paul D’Souza, as well as to the multitude of devotees who had gathered to express their devotion to Our Lady of Vailankanni.
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Dr Aloysius Paul D'souza, Bishop Emeritus, Diocese of Mangalore celebrated the holy eucharistic celebrations. The sixth day of novena was also held on the occasion.
In his homily he said, "Today we the Indian Church celebrate the national youth day. A lot of people die of hunger in this world. We strive to mitigate our hunger and work towards it. We need to work to mitigate the hunger of others too. The bread we receive from Jesus Christ is not for our physical hunger, it is for our spiritual hunger. Let our spiritual hunger towards Jesus increase rapidly. Today we also celebrate the national youth day. Pope Francis calls the youths to dedicate themselves for the good deeds. Youth life is a precious life, make it a meaningful life. Utilise your talents for the glory of the Lord. There are many organizations in our church for the benefit of youth. The church loves youths. There are very few instances of suicide among Christians, because we are strengthen by the word of lord and believe on it. We train our youths in many ways, but our youths are concentrating on making money and not being beneficial for society by joining civil service. Youths should concentrate and take interest in joining the civil service. Our community can become better by the efforts of youths".
Fr Baptist Menezes, rector of the shrine, thanked all the donors and sponsors for their support in organising the car procession.
On August 15, Bishop of Udupi diocese, Dr Gerald Isaac Lobo, will celebrate the Holy Eucharistic Mass at 10:30 am. Additional Masses will be held at 7:30 am in Konkani, 4 pm in Konkani, and at 6 pm in English.
A fellowship meal will be served following the 10:30 am Mass, fostering community spirit and camaraderie among pilgrims and visitors.