Photo Credits: Fr Nuno Da Cruz: A diamond in the archdiocese
Fr Nuno Da Cruz: A diamond in the archdiocese
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Services in Archdiocese:
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1956: Our Lady of Snows Parish Church, Raia
1956: Prefect at the Saligão Seminary
1957-1961: Assistant to Parish Priest of at Saligão church
1961-1968: Director of discipline at Rachol Seminary
1968-1971: Chaplain of Our Lady of Consolation of Persecuted Chapel at Tropa-Siolim
1971-1973: First parish priest of Tropa church, which was elevated from chapel
1973-1978: Parish Priest of St Francis Xavier Church, Corgão-Pernem.
1978-1986: Parish Priest of St Bartholomeo's Church at Chorão
1986: Additional charge as Parochial Administrator of Church of Bom Jesus, Nachinola
1986-1993: Parish Priest of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception Church, Moira and manager of St Francis Xavier High School, Moira
1993-2000: Parish Priest at St Anne’s Parish Church, Parra.
2000-2008: Priest on the Staff at Holy Cross Church at Kalapur, Tiswaddi
2008-2012: Priest on the Staff at Holy Cross Church at Verna.
2012: Parish of Sts. Philip and James Parish Church in Cortalim.
2012-2015: Clergy Home in Porvorim
2015- : Clergy Home in Margão
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BY REV DR SOCORRO MENDES
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Fr Nuno da Cruz (86), a diocesan priest of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, will celebrate the diamond jubilee of his ordination on October 2.
Hailing from Chandor, his father Napoleao da Cruz was lieutenant and chief of the forest zone of Sanguem, while his mother, Dona Amelia Lobo e Cruz, was a housewife.
On October 2, 1955, he was ordained by then patriarch Dom José Alvernáz in the Bom Jesus Basilica, Old Goa.
INTER RELIGIOUS DIALOGUE:
Fr Nuno was a pioneer in preparing grounds for interreligious dialogue in his own humble way. He invited a young Pilar priest Fr Peter Cardozo, who had been trained in Indian Music.
Fr Cardozo taught parishioners of Corgão the Indian melody Mass, composed by Rev Maestro Lourdino Barreto and trained Catholics to play Tabla, Petti and Gumott in the liturgical celebration.
People felt that Indian music and socio-cultural links brought them together and they established bonds to work together in the village.
BUILDING UNITY IN CORGÃO:
As Parish Priest of St Francis Xavier’s Parish Church in Corgão, he was an innovator, a promotor of vocations to priesthood and religious life, patronizer of Indian music in the liturgy, an excellent pastor and pioneer of social activities in Pernem Taluka.
The Corgão Church was situated in one corner and people found it taxing to frequent the Church. As a result, they were attached to their own ward-chapels and consequently, were not ready to remain united as one parish community.
It was Fr Nuno’s pastoral visits to the people, where he motivated and persuaded them and changed the whole senario of the Parish.
Fr Nuno also visited the Hindus and Muslims during their festivals, commanding great respect from them.
One of his greatest achievements was to construct a new cemetery close to the Corgão church, as the then existing cemetery was quite far away. At his request, a Hindu landlord Gurunath Dessai willingly donated the necessary land to construct the cemetery.
Fr Nuno then offered people of Corgão various social schemes to earn their livelihood. He established the Sant Francis Samajik Kendr (St Francis Social Welfare Centre) in the Church premises and women benefited from these schemes. He introduced tailoring, stitching, sewing, needlework and embroidery classes, bags manufacturing classes, cooking classes and even first aid classes. Every week, a physician would visit the Centre and address them on health issues.
In the Sant Francis Samajik Kendr, all were treated equally irrespective of their cast and creed. Those participating in these schemes were not only from Corgão, but even from the neighbouring villages.
CREATING HISTORY IN CORGÃO:
Since Fr Nuno had introduced developmental and social changes and at the same time, promoted interreligious dialogue, people of all faiths were attached to him. After five years, when the archbishop proposed his transfer from Corgão, some representatives of the Hindu community got together and with their Sarpanch, who was also a Hindu, requested the Archbishop to retain Fr Nuno for some more years. Their request was not heeded to. Therefore, they took him to their temple in Corgão and honoured him with an official farewell. This was a historical move because no parish priest has ever been loved by the Hindu community so much and honoured as was Fr Nuno.
A PHILANTHROPIST:
One major work he accomplished as a philanthrophist was to build a high school building in Moira for students of St Xavier’s High School. As manager of the high school, he along with then headmaster, Tomazinho Cardozo, worked tirelessly to bring up the overall growth of the School. Fr Nuno was interested in sports activities of the students. In St Joseph’s Educational Institute, Chandor, his birth place, he has left several scholarships for meritorious students.
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