A two day conference for seminary educators was held at the Pilar Pilgrim Centre, Pilar, Goa on 26-27 May 2025.
Around fifty seminary educators, provincials and members of the General Administration of the Society of Pilar came together for their annual deliberations and updates related to the training of young men to the priesthood. The seminary educators are based in different parts of India and are involved in nurturing vocation to the priesthood of young people coming from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
Rev. Dr. Konrad Noronha, a member of the Society of Jesus, was the resource person. He dealt extensively on the topic safeguarding vis-à-vis Formation, Formees and Formators.
He said that clergy are public persons therefore they need to be educated on the various aspects of safeguarding. He further said that religious leaders need to understand the dynamics of professional relationships and ministry to serve effectively and ethically.
At the beginning Rev. Fr. Steevan D’Souza, sfx the chairperson of the Central Formation Commission (CFC) of the Society of Pilar welcomed the gathering which was followed by the keynote address given by Rev. Fr. Nazareth Fernandes, sfx, the superior General of the Society of Pilar. The sessions were moderated by Rev. Fr. Norman Almeida, sfx, the Rector of the Mission Seminary, Pilar. The two-day conference concluded with the vote of thanks by Rev. Fr. Richard Couto, sfx, the secretary to the CFC.
The Society of Pilar, an indigenous Missionary Society, was founded by Father Bento Martins in 1887. The society now has 388 priests and 7 lay brothers serving in 42 Dioceses in India and abroad. The Society serves all people towards their integral development without discrimination of caste, class or creed. It has units in Jammu, Haryana, Punjab, Delhi, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Daman, Diu, Nagar-Haveli. It has opened missions and parishes in foreign countries such as Nepal, England, USA, Germany, Italy, Mauritania and Senegal.
