IN GOA, FUNERAL SERVICE IS STRIPPED OF ITS RITES.

In today’s Times of India, Goa edition, on page No.2 under the heading “Grave matter of funeral skip solemnity”, there appeared a very interesting news item by Lisa Monteiro where it is said how due to the current situation the final rites alone are directly performed in the Cemetery  by bypassing even the Mass in the Church.

  

It looks very serious matter of denying the dead  person even the blessing of the Mass.  I don’t think it was made mandatory by the government but it looks to me that the Church leadership to indicate its over enthusiasm of obedience, it  went one step ahead and decided thus: “if we are expected only to bend down, we will go beyond that and to please the authorities concerned we will not only bend down but we will stoop down too”.

  

This stripping of the funeral rites these days in the name of Corona Virus could have been easily settled nicely by performing the rites at home as usual with the family members only and the Mass in the Church also with the family members and  very close relatives.  All these people could be accommodated in the Church by spreading them on the benches far from one another in keeping with the instruction of keeping a safe distance between the two persons.  As an added support to this system, the Priest while offering the Mass can also say a few words in explaining why this method has to be followed by asking the co-operation of everyone  and thereby allowing only the close blood relatives of the dead person in the Cemetery.

          If this procedure is followed, I don’t think it would be an infringement of  professional foul needing the Red Card.  As it is, we are seeing so many people for a short time  gathering near the Grocery Shops in the purchasing spree and yet things are going well. In the name of implementing law and order there should not be any inconvenience to the public however even if by not implementing the law and order situation everything goes normal then those who are responsible for implementing the law and order they should just ignore and look the other side to allow the situation to move on its own. If the Church authorities feel that my suggestion as indicated above is workable then I feel it should be implemented.

In the same news item the writer writes saying how difficult it is now to get the services of regular Grave Diggers and in the absence of them this job is gone into the hands of migrant workers who are also charging heavily.

  

While on this subject let me say something more, traditionally this job of the Grave Diggers was performed by a certain Caste people from Roman Catholic community and traditionally every village of Goa was inhabited by their tribe in one Vaddo, this particular Vaddo was even named after their Caste. During Portuguese rule in Goa with the backing and the silent nod of the Bamon Bhattkarshahi that was very close to the Portuguese Royalty and also to the Church, this particular Caste of Grave Diggers was purposely kept at the lowest ebb without affording them any opportunity to  develop and move beyond their own area of Caste and they were given most menial work that was rejected by the others.  However, when the last Portugues Governador came to Goa somewhere in 1958, he opened their File and silently studied their problems and thru his own officials started helping them first by encouraging their children to go to schools and one from their Caste got qualified the Governador himself made his efforts and got him the job of a Postmaster – Chef of Post Office – in one particular village in Bardez.

 

Our Caste system was based on the profession that we performed and also to keep the availability of their work unhindered for the requirement of the high grade, high caste and for the society as a whole like that of the grave diggers, caste system was supported by our Church too.  Precisely, because of this I feel, I Goa Church failed to oppose the practice of Caste system even in our Church premises, on the contrary our Goa Church supported and promoted the existence of Caste system in our Churches.  Even the great Padris and Saint of Goa namely Pe. Jose Vaz and Pe. Agnelo remained as silent spectators in front of the Church supported and Church promoted Caste System.  Because of this Caste System so many of our young Seminarians had not suffered the persecution and even dismissal from the Seminaries?

 When Martin Luther the Civil Rightist and the Baptist denomination Christian in America, one day preaching in his Church at Montgomery, he preached thus pointing his finger to the Whites who by being  White Skinners, by tradition and system of the Church had to occupy  the Benches in the Church to the Right Side and the Blacks to the Left.  Seeing this discriminatory system in the house of God, Martin Luther preached thus pointing out to the White Skinners: "My dear brothers and sisters, if you cannot integrate with the masses - pointing out to the Blacks - you will never integrate with Christ because Christ Himself come from the masses". This one sentence was enough to produce the required effect to create revolutionary effect against apartheid in USA.  Did any Padri of ours in Goa during about 500 years of our Roman Catholicism said anything like what Martin Luther said from the Pulpit? Our Church was full of Casteism and most of our Brahmins promoted it in their daily routine, even the great Ghaum Bhau of mine Abade Faria (l'Abbe Faria) firmly believed in his Brahmin Caste and after his death when one of his books was published the author's name was indicated as " l'Abbe Faria, Brahmin, Doctor in Theology".

A.Veronica Fernandes.                                                                                                                                                                            

                                                                                                                                                                          

IS GOA GOVERNMENT FAILING US?

It is now a few days back that the Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant giving the Press briefing to media personnel informing how things are moving and steps his government has taken so far to minimize or to eradicate completely the effects of the Corona Virus on Goan population. Since he started his briefing, I have been watching him carefully and marking his body language too.  Yesterday, when I watched him briefing the media personnel, I found him very dejectedlike person and as if  he is rejected from his circle of Ministers and MLA’s. His face looks like that of a baby who has been scolded by the mother for playing mischief with other colleagues.

So much so, it looks to me that in  Delhi he is isolated and our contact there was almost lost, it is no more what it was during the CMship of Parricar who not only established his contact well but also maintained it well.  This Sawant cannot do  because he is just a raw  and being so how  could attain that much of maturity?  Because he is not well matured and not well advanced his level is that of a youth fit for playing the games, Parricar while on his death bed selected Sawant to take over from him which he did.  Parricar it seems knew very well Sawant is unfit to sit on the Chair which he already occupied thru rightly and wrongly.  Parricar wanted to be remembered very well even in his death and because it is so, he pushed Sawant’s candidature for the post of CM.  The greater the weakness of Sawant the  greater is the efficiency of Parricar and hence the greater is the popularity of Parricar.

 

Pramod Sawant is not maintaining the track  of his arguments, he jumps from “Maddar to Peddar” and thus loses his track.  He is losing his logic of talking.  Take one incident of the supply of some necessary items from the shops and grocery shops.  He said grocery shops will be kept opened that means when groceries  are opened then there is an open invitation for the public to go to these groceries and buy their requirements.  But on the other hand after a few seconds Sawant instructs the same people, he not only instructs but pleads with them in his folded hands not to move  out of your houses.  In this case, who will supply the necessities without going yourself personally to the shop? The CM failed miserably in organising the home delivery system because Sawant is unfit to cope up with vigours of this critical job.  

Sawant must know one thing that there is one proverb in our Goan language Konkani saying “Karveank nhoi khuim ghorvam ani Rendrank nhoi khuim Tarvam”.

It looks to me that Sawant is having lot of opposition for his CM’ship and if all is not going well  he may face rough weather.  He is indicating lot of weaknesses in dealing with this Corona Virus, the crisis that we are facing now are very bad and such dangers have to be averted with utmost care, knowledge and patience by taking the people towards you.   

Meantime, why cannot help in doing something for the delivery system by all the political parties by joining together? As things are moving now, nothing is organized that means are we facing the disaster? Why there is silence from Goa-Goykar-Goykarpon?

A.Veronica Fernandes.       

It is now so many days our Chief Minister is briefing the Media persons on the latest development of Corona Virus and what actions his government has taken so far to

GOA CM MUST DISCIPLINE POLICEMEN.

Once again the BJP government has failed in its duty towards its people almost during the last one whole week by shutting down all the food item selling outlets, the government without creating alternative arrangement given the brute power to the brute Policemen to act just like wild animals in handling cases even on humanitarian basis, not allowing the genuine persons to move freely even to go out to purchase their necessary things? Everybody is aware how 2 days back in front of Candolim Church, one Policeman has mercilessly with his Dando assaulted one local,  Damiao by name as declared by him. Later on as informed, he was examined by the Health Centre proving the correctness of this assault on the handicapped  Damiao.

What is wrong with our Policemen and why they act as Salazarist Police force in a very harsh manner? Is there no one to see this?  Where is our local MLA gone now?  As a people’s representative was it not his duty to enquire personally and give his verdict?  Where are all our contestants for ZP election gone now?  Why they have not, not a single of them, issued a statement on this  police action?            If they don’t involve now then after the election they will never bother to support the Damiaos.

Voters from my constituency now only do your assessment  on your candidates and move forward. We must campaign hard on this topic for people to know who is for us and who is not. 

CM Sawant  must give full confidence to the people that they will not encounter any hindrance from any authority especially from police force for those people who are going out to purchase their necessities.  Those who are supposed to protect law and order they must act decent and not like barbarians  during Salazar regime in Goa, a policeman cannot use filthy bad words nor use his danda, it is given to him to defend himself and not to use it wildly against  non-belligerent civilians. When policemen act “abuzad” unnecessarily then he brings bad name for  him & for his force.

A.Veronica Fernandes.