Archdiocesan Chrism mass Celebrated at Old Goa
The annual Chrism Mass of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman was celebrated by Archbishop Filipe Neri Cardinal Ferrao, Bishop Emeritus of Port Blair, Alex Dias and priests representatives from all over the Archdiocese, at Se Cathedral Church, Old Goa at 10am on 21st March, 2024. The main objective of the Chrism Mass is to express more clearly the presbyterian communion of the priests with their Bishop.
During this mass the Bishop also blessed the Holy Oils, namely, the Oil of the Catechumens (Oleum Catechumenorum), the Oil of the Sick (Oleum Infirmorum), and the Holy Chrism Oil (Sacrum Chrisma).
In the course of the celebration the Bishop reminded the priests to be faithful to their priesthood, and invited them to renew their priestly promises publicly.
Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao, in his homily highlighted that Jesus our Lord is a Synodal Shepherd. Jesus invites the priests to be shepherds, stewards in the Kingdom of God guiding the people and being with them in their journey, sometimes in front when they need to be led, sometimes in the middle to motivate and support them and sometimes at the back to promote unity and fellowship. He invited the priests to be caring leaders, living their priesthood in all freedom and to be discerning pastors always seeking to know what God wants of them.
The Chrism mass is important because in this mass the Bishop expresses his bond with the Priests and all the faithful. The priests in their turn resolve to work under the fatherly care and guidance of their Bishop, who in turn asks for prayers from priests and faithful to help him reflect on the life of Christ. This unique celebration unites the Bishop, all the Priests working in the Archdiocese and the faithful they cater to.
At the end his eminence also reminded the faithful about a circular issued by him regarding the National day of fasting and prayer to be held on 22nd March, 2024, to pray for spiritual blessings for our Nation. His eminence also made the sentiments of Pope Francis his own by urging the faithful to pray for Peace in Palestine and Israel.
The Chrism mass ended with the releasing of Pastoral Diary for the coming Year at the hands of Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao and Bishop Alex Dias, Emeritus Bishop of Port Blair Diocese. The Pastoral Diary which has the Schedule for Major events in the Archdiocese has been prepared under the direction of Pastoral Secretariat of the Archdiocese.