A GREAT DAY FOR ALL GOANS

A great day tomorrow for all Goans, Sri Lankans, Indians, and for all the people in the whole world.

BELLS TO PEAL IN GOA AT CANONIZATION

OF BLESSED JOSEPH VAZ.

Catholic churches in the Indian state of Goa will ring their bells in celebration on Wednesday when Pope Francis declares Blessed Joseph Vaz, a Catholic priest of Goan origin, a saint in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo. "The canonization of Blessed Joseph Vaz, Jan 14, is the culmination of over three centuries of expectation and supplication on the part of his devotees from Goa, Mangalore, Sri Lanka and elsewhere," Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao of Goa and Daman said on Friday.

Fr. Vaz was born on April 21, 1651, in Goa, in what is India today. The Oratorian priest arrived in Sri Lanka as a missionary in April 1687 at a time of Dutch presence in Sri Lanka, then known as Ceylon. He travelled throughout the island bringing the Eucharist and the sacraments to clandestine groups of Catholics. He died on January 16, 1711 in Kandy. He was declared Blessed by Pope John Paul II in 1995 at a ceremony in Colombo.

Fr. Vaz will be Sri Lanka's first saint and the third of Indian origin to be conferred sainthood by the Vatican. Archbishop Ferrao said Goans across the globe were "spiritually and eagerly" awaiting Wednesday’s canonization "as a sign of our deep spiritual communion with the Church gathered in Colombo, bells be pealed at 9 a.m. Jan 14 in all the churches and chapels of our Archdiocese". (Source: UCAN)

And yay! finally we have a Goan Saint after a long wait. My father and our Seniors of Cumbiem Morod, Guirim, would have been proud. God bless Pope Francis. A proud moment for all Goans in Goa and around the world!