Vol. XLll No. 3 Monthly Bulletin of the Bombay East Indian Association March 2017 BOMBAY EAST INDIAN ASSOCIATION The next meeting of the Managing Committee of the Bombay East Indian Association will be held on Tuesday , at 7 p m Members , April 4 . . sharp. Tragedy struck the small fishing village of Vailankanni on the morning of December 28, 1955. Bandra, Bombay too, went into shock. Ever since, the name of Vailankanni and this tragedy have been interlinked to the Catholics of Bombay. None of my folks had ever been to Vailankanni, but they talked about the Shrine and the tragedy. My first visit to this pilgrim town was last month. But after paying homage to Our Lady of Health, curiosity made me go in search of these graves. On that fateful morning of 1955, Royston, Ralph and Loretta, siblings of the late Fr Rodney Esperance and children of Rose & Lewis, lost their lives in the treacherous creek of the Bay of Bengal. This creek is barely 1500 meters away from the Shrine. Today their graves are in a most prominent position on the threshold to the entrance to the rear Shrine where Masses are celebrated. Subsequently, in 2004, the tsunami struck this little town again, taking with it over 600 pilgrims. Vailankanni, is a panchayat town in Nagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu. It lies on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, 350 km south of Chennai (Madras) and 12 km south of Nagapattinam. Once a port that traded with Rome and Greece, the tiny commercial center gradually lost its importance to the larger city of Nagapattinam. The canal built to link this town with Vedaranyam still lies to the west. The Vellayar, a minor branch of the Cauvery River, runs south of the town and discharges into the sea. This is where the Esperance children lost their lives. I have numerous friends in the BEIAlike Vivian, Godfrey, Brian, Clement,Anthony, who are die- hard devotees in organising the September pilgrimages, the trains, the bookings, even the EI Mass, I had to visit this place, and experience their belief in its transformative power. After all, you are not just what you eat, or do, or think. You are what you believe, and have implicit Faith in! After concluding some business in Pondicherry, visiting the Shrine was at variant. In Pondicherry, we had visited the Aurobindo Ashram and experienced its sacredness, holiness, sanctity and solitude. Onwards we spent time in Auroville, where for a time I felt an Aurovilian, where human relationships, which VAILANKANNI Jude H. Gomes The Op-Ed Page are normally based almost exclusively on competition and strife, would be replaced by relationships of emulation in doing well, of collaboration and real brotherhood. And now I was in this dusty, bustling town of Vailankanni. The main Basilica was under renovation, the language strange, but the devotion strong. The Catholic Latin Rite Basilica is devoted to Our Lady of Good Health. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Health of Vailankanni can be traced to the mid-16th century and is attributed to three miracles at sites around where the Basilica stands: the apparition of Mary and the Christ Child to a slumbering shepherd boy, the curing of a lame buttermilk vendor, and the rescue of Portuguese sailors from a violent sea storm. These accounts are based on oral tradition. More than 500 years later, the nine-day festival and celebration is still observed and draws nearly 2 million pilgrims each year. The Shrine of Our Lady of Vailankanni, also known as the "Lourdes of the East," is one of the most- frequented religious sites in India. I was finally here, where numerous friends of mine travel every year. This is a place of pilgrimage, the Basilica where miracles happen. I loved the Church of the Morning Star, but I was most impressed by the Sand Pit where pilgrims walk on their knees the distance to Our Lady's Tank, and the Faith, Devotion and Belief with which those people tortured themselves for their religion. The Basilica is built in the Gothic style of architecture. The southern side was extended in 1928 and the northern in 1933. The Shrine Basilica contains three chapels, and in 1974-75, an extension of the Basilica was built behind the existing central altar to accommodate the multilingual pilgrims. The extension included a two-storied church with 93 feet (28 m) high dome and 82 feet (25 m) high gothic spirals. It was designed to resemble the Basilica in Lourdes, France. The previous week I had been with friends in Nasik for the feast of the Infant Jesus and as in Vailankanni and so, too, in Nasik it never ceased to amaze me at the Faith of these Catholic brethren who weathered all inconveniences be it children, babes in arms, illnesses, parents handicapped, they travelled the hard way to experience and express their Devotion in this stratospheric atmosphere. In exploring the relationship between religious tolerance and religious tourism, Vailankanni is the picture of cross sectional analysis of tolerance, where the interaction in this pilgrimage site that renders this small town to assimilate followers of other religions and thereby foster tolerance. Religious tolerance also has economic overtones, but exactly how much influence they may exert on practice of tolerance is any body’ s guess. What is obvious is that the economy of the whole town of Vailankanni runs practically on the business generated by the pilgrims to this great Shrine. Here Prayer seems to work. One might think that going to Vailankanni was a throw of the dice that was simultaneously a cynosure of optimism and an act of desperation, or by extension, ontological validation. But NO, here Prayer works. Who says Christianity is waning in India?
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Vol. XLll No. 3 Monthly Bulletin of the Bombay East Indian Association March 2017
BOMBAYEAST INDIAN ASSOCIATION
The next meeting of the ManagingCommittee of the Bombay EastIndian Association will be held onTuesday , at 7 p m
Members
, April 4 . . sharp.
Tragedy struck the small fishing village ofVailankanni on the morning of December 28,1955. Bandra, Bombay too, went into shock.Ever since, the name of Vailankanni and thistragedy have been interlinked to the Catholics ofBombay. None of my folks had ever been toVailankanni, but they talked about the Shrineand the tragedy. My first visit to this pilgrimtown was last month. But after paying homageto Our Lady of Health, curiosity made me go insearch of these graves.
On that fateful morning of 1955, Royston, Ralphand Loretta, siblings of the late Fr RodneyEsperance and children of Rose & Lewis, losttheir lives in the treacherous creek of the Bay ofBengal. This creek is barely 1500 meters awayfrom the Shrine. Today their graves are in a mostprominent position on the threshold to theentrance to the rear Shrine where Masses arecelebrated. Subsequently, in 2004, the tsunamistruck this little town again, taking with it over600 pilgrims.
Vailankanni, is a panchayat town inNagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu. It lies onthe Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, 350km south of Chennai (Madras) and 12 km southof Nagapattinam. Once a port that traded withRome and Greece, the tiny commercial centergradually lost its importance to the larger city ofNagapattinam. The canal built to link this townwith Vedaranyam still lies to the west. TheVellayar, a minor branch of the Cauvery River,runs south of the town and discharges into thesea. This is where the Esperance children losttheir lives.
I have numerous friends in the BEIAlike Vivian,Godfrey, Brian, Clement,Anthony, who are die-hard devotees in organising the Septemberpilgrimages, the trains, the bookings, even theEI Mass, I had to visit this place, and experiencetheir belief in its transformative power.After all,you are not just what you eat, or do, or think.Youare what you believe, and have implicit Faith in!
After concluding some business in Pondicherry,visiting the Shrine was at variant. InPondicherry, we had visited the AurobindoAshram and experienced its sacredness,holiness, sanctity and solitude. Onwards wespent time inAuroville, where for a time I felt anAurovilian, where human relationships, which
VAILANKANNI
Jude H. Gomes
The Op-Ed Page
are normally based almost exclusively oncompetition and strife, would be replaced byrelationships of emulation in doing well, ofcollaboration and real brotherhood.
And now I was in this dusty, bustling town ofVailankanni. The main Basilica was underrenovation, the language strange, but thedevotion strong. The Catholic Latin RiteBasilica is devoted to Our Lady of GoodHealth. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Healthof Vailankanni can be traced to the mid-16thcentury and is attributed to three miracles atsites around where the Basilica stands: theapparition of Mary and the Christ Child to aslumbering shepherd boy, the curing of a lamebuttermilk vendor, and the rescue ofPortuguese sailors from a violent sea storm.These accounts are based on oral tradition.More than 500 years later, the nine-day festivaland celebration is still observed and drawsnearly 2 million pilgrims each year. The Shrineof Our Lady of Vailankanni, also known as the"Lourdes of the East," is one of the most-frequented religious sites in India.
I was finally here, where numerous friends ofmine travel every year. This is a place of
pilgrimage, the Basilica where miracles happen.I loved the Church of the Morning Star, but I wasmost impressed by the Sand Pit where pilgrimswalk on their knees the distance to Our Lady'sTank, and the Faith, Devotion and Belief withwhich those people tortured themselves for theirreligion.
The Basilica is built in the Gothic style ofarchitecture. The southern side was extended in1928 and the northern in 1933. The ShrineBasilica contains three chapels, and in 1974-75,an extension of the Basilica was built behind theexisting central altar to accommodate themultilingual pilgrims. The extension included atwo-storied church with 93 feet (28 m) highdome and 82 feet (25 m) high gothic spirals. Itwas designed to resemble the Basilica inLourdes, France.
The previous week I had been with friends inNasik for the feast of the Infant Jesus and as inVailankanni and so, too, in Nasik it never ceasedto amaze me at the Faith of these Catholicbrethren who weathered all inconveniences be itchildren, babes in arms, illnesses, parentshandicapped, they travelled the hard way toexperience and express their Devotion in thisstratospheric atmosphere.
In exploring the relationship between religioustolerance and religious tourism, Vailankanni isthe picture of cross sectional analysis oftolerance, where the interaction in thispilgrimage site that renders this small town toassimilate followers of other religions andthereby foster tolerance. Religious tolerancealso has economic overtones, but exactly howmuch influence they may exert on practice oftolerance is any body’s guess. What is obvious isthat the economy of the whole town ofVailankanni runs practically on the businessgenerated by the pilgrims to this great Shrine.Here Prayer seems to work. One might thinkthat going to Vailankanni was a throw of the dicethat was simultaneously a cynosure of optimismand an act of desperation, or by extension,ontological validation. But NO, here Prayerworks.
Who says Christianity is waning in India?
E. I. JOURNAL MARCH 201702
JUDE H GOMES - 9619169150
Adv. VIVIAN D’SOUZA - 9821148712
MS. THERESA AGUIAR - 9820791231
LANCY FERREIRA - 8097474482
PREM MORAES - 9867368669
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The Editor/ ManagerEast Indian JournalBEIA DeskSt Andrew's Road,Bandra West, Mumbai 400050
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Please visit the website for information on East Indian issues, news and
happenings. You may report any such happening to , Editor
of Bandra on Mobile : of Kirol on
Mobile :
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Editor : Mr. Jude H. Gomes
Christine : 9821007588
Mr. Terance D’Mello
The BEIA & the EIJ congratulate Bishops Allwyn
D'Silva and Barthol Barretto on their appointment by
His Holiness, Pope Francis , as Auxiliary Bishops of
theArchdiocese of Bombay.
We assure you of our prayerful support as you
shepherd the people of theArchdiocese, and offer our
blessings to you in your new ministry.
God be with you.
The BEIA & the EIJ CONGRATULATES Mrs. Tulip Brian
Miranda, Kalina and Ms. Steffie Morris Kinny, Manori on their
victories in the Municipal Elections 2017. We are proud of you. Do
make our community proud. God Bless you abundantly.
Congratulations Bishop ALLWYN D'SILVA.
PRAYERFUL CONGRATULATIONS TO
OSWALD CARDINAL GRACIAS, Archbishop of
Bombay on his prestigious appointment to the ROMAN
ROTAby the Holy Father FRANCIS. - B.E.I.A.
Mrs. Tulip Brian Miranda Ms. Steffie Morris Kinny
E. I. JOURNAL03
MARCH 2017
HAPPENINGS:
BOOK REVIEWS
Compiled by Tyronnne Concescio.
Families gathered at the village center on Thursday evening, 23rd February 2017. Dennis Baptista, Vice President of the Matharpacady
Residents Welfare Association ALM welcomed the resident families requesting them to participate joyfully in the short prayer and
worship session followed by entertainment and refreshments. After an opening hymn, Canute led the people in prayer. Then, each
melodious hymn was followed by intercessory prayers by Prayer Leaders from different areas of the village. A round of light
refreshments was served. Groovy music by DJ set the mood and kept feet tapping during the games and at the dance session. Managing
Committee Members Charmaine, Stan, Canute, Renie, Judith, Joe, Gerry, Martin, Percy, Dennis and others ensured that all the 85
family members present were served delicious snacks like samosas, pattice, wafers, cake and mixed fruit juice. On behalf of all
residents and families who were present, Tyronne gave a “Vote Of Thanks” expressing their heartfelt gratitude to the Managing
Committee Members of the Welfare Association for organizing such a wonderful Family Get-Together completely free of cost. He
made special mention and thanked Percy D’Souza, President, for always being most generous in sponsoring gifts for prizes,
refreshments, etc. As Secretary of the Holy Cross Committee, Tyronne requested the village folk to participate devoutly in the ‘Way Of
The Cross” Lenten Services that would be organized around the bylanes of Matharpacady Village and the Novena Services scheduled to
begin on 22nd April and in the 142nd Feast Day Celebrations on 1st May 2017. On behalf of the Managing Committee, he bade all
families a memorable goodnight.
Measures for Healthy Living : For a Healthy Body, Mind and Soul — Think Preventive Health published by the Health Promotion
Trust of the Archdiocese of Bombay, 21 N. Parekh Marg, Mumbai 400 001 (pp. 194, illustrated) no price given, but donations are
gratefully accepted. For private circulation only.
…………………………………………………………….
The Health Promotion Trust (HPT) is an organization of the Archdiocese of Bombay geared to promote healthy habits and attitudes
through prevention rather than cure. HPT promotes naturopathic means of healing, cautions against the artificial ingredients found in so
many foods today, and recommends regular, moderate exercise. The trust is presently headed by Fr. Rocky Banz (St Joseph’s Church,
Vikhroli), and engages the services of a trained and dedicated team of animators to spread its message of “health for all” by the year
2020 (a UN campaign goal).
The Catholic Church is concerned about both the spiritual health and the physical well-being of its members. In many places the Church
runs hospitals and clinics, and lobbies in public whenever governments enact laws which impinge against the rights of the poor,
specially poor women. This is only natural, considering that the Gospels present Jesus as a healer, who spent so much of his public
ministry “preaching and healing”, and reached out to the poor, specially. But the aim of HPT is not merely curative, it is preventive. It
aims to reach out as a priority to marginalized groups, whether in the city or in rural areas, and inform them, not just about not falling
sick, but how to live a healthy and productive life. So ‘holistic health’ – that is, of body and soul – is HPT’s goal and challenge. This
specially relevant considering how impoverished we are in India regarding even the very basic conditions of well-being.
How does HPT set about doing this ? It has a three-fold methodology. Firstly, by training groups of ‘health workers’or ‘para-medics’and
setting up clusters of centres from where they can operate. Presently fifty such centres exist, and Father Rocky’s ambition is to double the
number within three years. The key to HPT’s approach therefore is not technology but interpersonal contact.And it is women who make
the best teachers and health workers, so it’s . no surprise then that women are the mainstay of the HPT system.
Second, the health worker undergoes a training to help her diagnose the ailment, and prescribe the necessary medication. They are
taught the many potent secrets of ordinary herbs and plants, and how these may be used beneficially in times of illness. The local centre
acts as the focal point for this, much as a pharmacy or dispensary does. Which brings us to the third aspect of the programme:
prescription. Most of the centres stock of herbal medications in the form of pills, oils and ointments, which are cheap and easily
available. Naturopathic and herbal medicines are therefore a godsend to the poor in an age which has seen the cost of patent medicines
simply shoot through the roof.
FAMILY GET-TOGETHER IN MATHARPACADY HERITAGE VILLAGE
Health for All - Fr. Myron J. Pereira S.J.
E. I. JOURNAL04
MARCH 2017
The book, Measures for Healthy Living is therefore a compendium of practical information. Not only does it describe the medicinal
values of well-known fruits and vegetables, it also prescribes rituals for healthy living, like exercise, yoga, meditation, acupressure,
sexual hygiene, conscious dieting, etc. Every family should possess a copy and refer to it regularly.
When we look around everywhere we see the health traditions of so many different cultures being re-discovered and re-vitalized. So it is
a matter of pride that the Bombay’s Health Promotion Trust has given new life and wide publicity to our own local treatments. Today as
we increasingly realize the limitations of allopathic medication, we’ re also becoming aware that good health lies in our hands, and are
grateful to Health Promotion Trust for showing us how.
For copies contact Fr Rocky Banz, Health Promotion Trust, St Joseph’s Church, Station Road, Vikhroli (W) 400 079. Tel (022)2579