SPLIT PE. VIGAR'S JOB FROM THAT OF SCHOOL PRINCIPAL.

Monsg. Filipe Neri  Mendonca popularly known as Fr. Mendonca was the 3^rd principal of the fist English High School of Goa, St. Joseph’s High School, Arpora.  About 35 years he worked as principal of that school. He was the great educationist of Goa having obtained first class in MA degree in Latin and acquiring second rank.  He died in August 1966 and interred at Arpora/Nagoa.  During Portuguese time he enjoyed highest respect from the Portuguese government for promoting English education in Goa.  During the critical time of the relationship between Indian government and Portuguese government in mid fifties, he acted as a peacemaker between the two governments with respect to educational matters concerning Goan students appearing for SSC thru Poona Board.  Regarding English education in Goa, the Portuguese Governador of Goa used to consult him on important decisions on education.  Many times he calmed down the Portuguese authority in favour of Goans in the matter of education and his voice had great respect before the Portuguese authority. 

Immediately after the ouster of Portuguese from Goa, some Goan “goondas” from that locality came with Guns and Revolvers to kill Fr. Mendonca for being Portuguese government’s “chamcha” but a few minutes before  the final operation his personal driver sensed something serious would happen and immediately took him away from Arpora school to Bastora Nun’s School without anybody’s notice and thus the faithful driver saved the life of his boss.  This driver’s faithfulness towards his boss was an example of past century’s faithfulness. Though Supreme Court of India in its landmark judgment on Goa said that on 19^th December 1961 Goa was not liberated but conquered yet Fr. Mendonca went a step forward and remarked openly in his school saying that Goa on that fateful date was not liberated but in fact was Invaded by Bahrat.

Fr. Mendonca was the first Goan educationist to receive the national award for being the best educationist of Goa after the ouster of colonial rule in Goa and this award was presented to him in New Delhi at Rastrapati Bhawan by the renowned philosopher educationist president of India Dr. Radakrishnan.  After the presentation of the award the president requested Fr. Mendonca to delay his return to Goa since he wanted to discuss some private matters with Fr. Mendonca concerning Portuguese administration in Goa.  Not satisfied with the discussion, the president again invited Fr. Mendonca to Delhi after 3 months to get more information of the subject about which nobody in Goa knew except Fr. Mendonca since his relationship with Portuguese government was very friendly especially with the last Portuguese Governador of Goa,  Vassalo e Silva.

After a few days from 19th December 1961 when the situation became normal in Goa, Fr. Mendonca returned from hiding at Bastora to his school at Arpora and resumed his school work.  Then immediately Goa Bishop Rebello appointed him as an adviser on Diocesan schools.  Candolim St. Theresa’s School was just shifted to the new location in the Church premises under the principalship of the Church Pe. Vigar, Pe.  Nicholau Noronha and Fr. Mendonca was advising Pe. Noronha on this school matters.  One day during his discussion with Pe. Noronha, Fr. Mendonca as a representative of the Bishop advised Pe. Noronha to stick up to only one job, either of Principal of the school or of Pe. Vigar of the Church because he said both the jobs are independent,  each needing  full time devotion and concentration.  However, in the end, Fr. Mendonca suggested to give priority to Pe. Vigar’s job which is the pastoral job for which Pe. Noronha became priest  and not to become school principal. Priest’s job is to do full time pastoral work and not of educational.

Fr. Freddy J. D’Costa when he first time came to Kuwait to stage his Tiatro in the Church hall, he approached the Kuwait Bishop Monsg. Frances Mechallef for permission for hall.  Mong. Mechallef refused his permission and immediately fired a letter to Goa Bishop Raul Gonsalves asking him “Why did you send Fr. Freddy to Kuwait?  To stage Tiatro? Is it a job of a priest to stage Tiatros by ignoring his pastoral duties?  Is he a priest to stage Tiatro or to perform his pastoral duties?  And what pastoral significance his visit to Kuwait is having?”

Bishop Gonsalves nor Fr. Freddy had any  appropriate answer and they both kept silence admitting their mistake.  Today Catholic community is in much trouble needing pastoral help from the priests many of whom have no time to devote their time and energy for this job because they have to devote their precious time for something else for which they did not become priests. Pastoral job is a full time job of a priest without any interference of any other job. 

During his first visit to India, the late Pope Paul John advised the clergy to refrain from taking active part in activities other than Pastoral which are yours and nothing else.

Hence, Bishop of Goa will be doing a great service to the Catholic community by splitting the job of Pe. Vigar from the job of the school principal.  Entrusting both the jobs into one priest will damage the efficiency of both the jobs.

A.      Veronica Fernandes,

 Candolim,

       Goa.

        Tel: 7507394349.

ON DISCRIMINATORY PE. VIGAR OF CANDOLIM.

John Mendes <russmendes@gmail.com>	Apr 16 (3 days ago)

 

Dear Concerned,

Kindly publish my below comment is context to the blog posted by A. Veronica Fernandes on the 13th of April subjected as "Pe. Vigar Buckled Down".

 

Very well accumulated facts. Never the less, it is the dear people of Candolim that need to recognize the fact and act accordingly. Such priests, who favor a certain section of society by providing them special status for parking etc are anti social and can spell danger to the community at large. Insulting remarks made by the priests at the holy alter should be condemned by all specially by the active members of the church.

 

Tolerating sin is much sinful than the actual committed sin. Christ has taught us to be humble in what ever we do and our priests should help us to follow Christ teachings instead of dividing the community on the basis of power in society.

"BEIMAN" GOA CHURCH & "BEIMAN" GOA PRIESTS.

God created the world and enriched it with enormous amount of natural resources for the benefit of human beings.  In the Gulf region God gave plenty of Oil that brought lot of wealth for the Gulf countries, Kuwait being one  of the Gulf countries it is enriched with vast quantity of oil and by selling it Kuwait generates lot of funds which it invests in its development projects.  For this development Kuwait hires manpower from all around the globe, India being one of the global countries supplying manpower to Kuwait.  Since Goa is a part of India from 1961 yet from 1950 Kuwait started hiring manpower from Goa by paying them lucrative remuneration. Thru this remuneration Goans working in Kuwait developed their economies in Goa thereby providing good education to their children, constructing good houses and bungalows and other such rich amenities. 

After the last Arab-Israeli war in early seventies, the Oil producing countries including Kuwait increased the oil prices very high thereby fattening their wealth which they invested in increased amount of investment.  The immediate beneficiaries of this bonanza were the manpower whose remuneration was increased to very high level compared to the previous level.  When money started flowing more into the hands of Kuwait Goans they started doing social work and charitable work as well.  It was during this period I entered in Kuwait and embarked more forcefully in helping financially the important movements in Goa thru donations collected from likeminded Goans. One of the movements we Kuwait Goans undertook was giving  the donations in lakhs of rupees to Goa Church and to Goa priests to construct and to repair Churches, to construct Church Schools, Chappels and other such ventures undertaken by the Church authorities and priests.

Goa Church and its priests and nuns were the recipients of our financial doles from Kuwait in huge amount.  I was instrumental in helping such Church ventures in Goa very much being on forefront to collect donations for the work undertaken by the priests in Goa.  We brought so many priests to Kuwait, so many of them stayed at my residence and returned back with huge amount of donation collected from my friends, colleagues and well wishers.  Candolim Church was one of the beneficiaries of our donations to erect the upper floor of the Church school.  To collect funds as donation for this project the priest principal of this School came to Kuwait and thru my personal efforts he got a visit visa to come to Kuwait from where by contacting Candoicars in Kuwait he collected a huge amount which helped him to complete the upper floor of the school.  Besides me, the late Messias Barreto and Joaquim Dias also rendered enormous assistance to the visiting school principal in his fund collecting mission in Kuwait.  Additionally Mr. Sebastian Dias the brother of Joaquim Dias also gave lot of financial help for school and to the Church.

Similarly many Goans in Kuwait helped priests and nuns to collect funds for the projects they undertook in Goa on behalf of the Church. But did these Goa priests, nuns and Goa Church show any gratitude to us during the invasion of Kuwait and later on?  When we Kuwait Goan evacuees organized our movement  by holding public meetings and rallies in Panjim  Goa to raise our voice against this invasion,  to our regret not a single priest nor a single nun nor a single representative of the Church  associated with us to lend their support to our movement.  What ingratitude oh priests  when you preach from the Altar and Pulpit the virtue of gratitude!!  Gratitude for whom?  Not to those who helped you?  You are traitors and disgrace on Christianity.  Where was the priest from Candolim who came to Kuwait begging for the donation to complete the upper floor of the school?  Where was Fr. Freddy J. D’Costa who was one of the biggest beneficiaries of our doles?  On top of it he applauded the invasion of Kuwait.  We gave donation and Church built the School but we did not get any financial benefit of this school.  Because of this school the money coffers of the Church is filled and not of ours. At our cost the Church became rich thereby enriching the priest Principal whose purchasing power of  expensive things increased from the money generated from the school.

Recently on 26^th February this year we Kuwait Goans in Panjim at Menezes Braganza Hall organized a public meeting to mark the 23^rd anniversary of the liberation of Kuwait and as a chief guest one top Kuwaiti especially came to Goa. On Goa TV, media and on internet it was announced the schedule of this meet but again to our regret none of the priests attended this meet thus again showing ingratitude to Kuwait.  There was no  principal of Candolim School in attendance nor Pe. Vigar when this school and Church received so much of donation from Kuwait.  This shows how our priests, Church Pe. Vigars and school principals are ungrateful and such ungrateful are not fit to be the priests. Ingratitude and Christianity cannot go together.  If the Principal of the Candolim Church school had any gratitude for Kuwait he would surely be present for the meeting but he is ungrateful like many such priests. They want Kuwait and Kuwaitkars only for money. They are like Judases in Christ’s Robes. Even the Kuwaiti chief guest was surprised to see no priest in the hall attending the meet when we helped them so much.

As a matter of interest, after the liberation of Kuwait almost every country and every diocese sent its Catholic  emissary to Kuwait to find out how their respective people working in Kuwait are doing and how they are coping up with the situation in liberated Kuwait putting stress on their spiritual aspects.  South Korea sent its Bishop even though there were hardly one hundred South Koreans in Kuwait. Unfortunately Goa Church sent none even though there were thousands of Goans in Kuwait needing moral and spiritual solace.  But to our surprise, following the liberation of Kuwait there was a flood of Goa priests who came to Kuwait to collect funds for their Churches and schools and also to meet their concubines.  This is the quality of “Beiman” Goan Priests and “Beiman” Goa Church.          

 A.      Veronica Fernandes,
Candolim,
Goa.