The church of Reis Magos, the first church constructed inBardez after the Portuguese occupation stands majestically atop a hill on thebanks of river Mandovi in the village of Verem. It was founded in 1555 by theFranciscan priests. “The church was called Monsterinho de St Francisco and wasdedicated to the three Mages of the East” says Francis D’Souza, a history loverfrom Verem. Some years later, a school and a two-storey college were built onthe eastern side of the church. The college had many rooms and was namedColégio Real (Royal College). The Church also came to be referred to as theIgreja Real (Royal Church), the reason being, 25 Portuguese officials including21 viceroys took their oaths in the church and three of them are buried withinit.
In front of the church stands the small chapel of Our Ladyof Health. “Many years ago, when the bubonic plague struck Mumbai, the Goans inMumbai fled here. They were kept in quarantine in two little houses inside thefort of Reis Magos,” says D’Souza. The plague was uncontrollable. People diedin large numbers and graves for their burial fell short. “Some graves containedeven six dead bodies. Then the statue of Our Lady of Health was brought toVerem from the catacombs of Betim and the plague immediately stopped. It isbelieved that the sacred statue also protected Verem from the small pox outoutbreak in the neighbouring village of Nerul,” continues D’Souza. “Newlymarried women offer the cluster of glass bangles which they receive beforemarriage at the feet of this statue,” he adds.
There is also a spring next to the church called Mãe dasFontes which is believed to have medicinal value. Its waters contain highlevels of calcium. “Perhaps the calcium content of the water is derived fromthe bones of the numerous people who were buried in the church courtyard duringthe plague,” says D’Souza.
“A tunnel runs under the church up to Sinquerim, although itis not in use now,” says Fr José Ubaldo D’Cunha, the former parish priest ofthe church. With a Catholic population of 942 and nine small Christiancommunities, the church sees a good attendance for masses on weekdays andSundays.
