Bishop Emeritus Alex Dias, Superior General of the Society of Pilar Fr Sebastiao Mascarenhas and the 19 newly ordained deacons.
PANAJI
Nineteen Scholastics belonging to the Society of the Missionaries of St Francis Xavier (Society of Pilar) were ordained deacons by Bishop Emeritus of Port Blair Aleixo Dias on Sunday.
The rite of the diaconate ordination was held in the chapel of the Mission Seminary, Pilar, with all Covid safety protocols.
“Diaconia or Service should be your watchword throughout your lives. Whether you are going to be deacons, priests or bishops, you are called to serve,” said Bishop Dias, the first prelate from the Society of Pilar and of the Diocese of Port Blair, in his address to the newly ordained deacons
He further said, “having reached the diaconate, you brothers will have this impression that you have reached the end of your rowing, and that you are getting close to the goal that you have set for yourself, and the Lord Jesus have set for you - the goal of your priesthood. However, you are not to stop rowing, you are not to rest on the oars, you are to keep on rowing.”
Bishop Dias admitted that there are, unfortunately, deacons, priests and bishops who do not serve the Lord and his people, but serve themselves. He exhorted them to have service as the foremost word in their mind.
The Society of the Missionaries of St Francis Xavier, popularly known as Society of Pilar, was founded in 1887 in Goa and is an Indigenous Society working in 31 dioceses in India and 9 dioceses abroad.
The 19 deacons come from 18 different parishes belonging to 9 different dioceses/archdioceses of India of Goa and Daman, Udupi, Karwar, Mangalore, Gumla, Port Blair, Dharmapuri, Palayamkottai and Ranchi.
Speaking on the occasion, Superior General of the Society of Pilar Fr Sebastiao Mascarenhas sfx said the Society of Pilar is spread all over and it is not just a Goan society. It is the society of the church.
He expressed gratitude to the parents and family, to the Archdiocese/diocese in which each of the deacons were brought up, to the seminary educators who guided and cared for the seminarians. He called upon the Deacons to be true and genuine, self-sacrificing and compassionate Servants in the mission of Christ.
