The opportunity to venerate a relic of perhaps the greatest evangelist to have ever lived after St Paul is something of a rarity in Perth but for Christians in Goa, India where St Francis Xavier missioned, it is an ever present reality.
The Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa is over 400 years old and open to the public every day; the devoted arrive in overwhelming numbers to pray before most of the remains of St Francis Xavier.
“For the Indians and the people of Goa, St Francis is called the Lord of Goa,” Father Fabio Barreto, rector of the Basilica of Bom Jesus told The Record in a telephone interview.
“The feeling here is that with St Francis Xavier, nothing can go wrong.”
St Francis arrived in India on May 6, 1542. He was a Jesuit priest sent by Ignatius Loyola to help improve the feelings of ill will between the Indians and the Portuguese.
He did more than just improve relations between the two communities; the first thing he did on his arrival in Goa was to make the hospital his home, sleeping on the floor by a dangerously ill man so as to help him at a moment’s notice.
“His concern and love for the poor and his burning desire to bring God to others is seen as a big inspiration for people here,” Fr Barreto said.
St Francis’ devotion to the poor holds a special meaning for the people of Goa and throughout India where poverty is common.
He gave himself to the sick, assisted the dying, heard confessions and gave countless catecheses.
“Thousands come here every day,” Fr Barreto said of the Basilica.
“The people come here to ask St Francis to intercede for them, protect them and heal them. The faith we have is very strong; any problems they have they bring it to St Francis.”
Francis Xavier’s dream was to bring Christ to the East; by the time of his death in 1552 when he succumbed to a fever, he brought the faith to many – and many back to the faith.
Pope Gregory XV canonised him on March 12, 1662 and his feast day is celebrated on December 3.
“It’s a public holiday and a huge event,” Fr Barreto said.
“The feast day is used by the Church to send a message to the people of Goa and the world; last year we prayed for the ecological imbalance in Goa, when you defy nature you deface the Face of God. This year we are concentrating on faith as it is the Year of Faith.”
In Goa, St Francis’ feast day is celebrated by thousands – and not just by Catholics – and people arrive from the neighbouring states to worship at the Basilica.
“There is a novena preceding the feast day,” Fr Barreto said.
“Every day during the novena we have about ten Masses and each Mass there are about 8,000-10,000 people attending.”
The arm of St Francis, which is currently touring Australia, is not with the rest of the saint’s body in Goa but has its home at the Jesuit’s main church in Rome, the Gesu.
St Francis Xavier’s arm was due to arrive in Perth on October 25 and to visit several parishes in the Archdiocese.