FRIDAY, 18 SEPTEMBER 2026

Listen to people, respond to their agonies: Archbishop to priests

Listen to people, respond to their agonies: Archbishop to priests
Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao and Bishop Emeritus Alex Dias bless the Holy Oils during the Chrism Mass in Old Goa on Thursday.

PANAJI

Advising priests to be ready to listen to people, to respond positively to the sufferings and agonies of people, Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao on Thursday also reminded them to motivate more people to get involved in the life and ministry of the Church.
Archbishop Ferrao was addressing priests at the annual Chrism Mass of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman at the Se Cathedral Church in Old Goa. Bishop Emeritus of Port Blair Alex Dias and priests from all over the Archdiocese participated in the Chrism Mass.
During this Mass, the Archbishop also blessed the Oil of the Catechumens (Oleum Catechumenorum), the Oil of the Sick (Oleum Infirmorum) and consecrated the Holy Chrism Oil (Sacrum Chrisma).
In the course of the celebration, Archbishop Ferrao reminded the priests to be faithful to their priesthood and invited them to renew their priestly promises publicly.
He also reminded the priests to keep Christ as their model and they were called to live in communion with God, to be available and reach out to people, especially the marginalised and the outcast of society, to be ready to listen to people, to respond positively to the cries, sufferings and agonies of the people.
He also advised the priests to motivate more and more people to get involved in the life and ministry of the church.
Archbishop Ferrao also appealed to the people to pray not only for their priests but also for himself in the faithful discharge of the apostolic office entrusted to him, as a Good Shepherd, a teacher and a servant of all.
The Chrism Mass is important because the Bishop expresses his bond with the Priests and all the faithful. The priests in their turn resolve to work under the fatherly care and guidance of their Bishop, who in turn asks for prayers from priests and faithful to help him reflect the life of Christ.
Highlighting two recent experiences in his homily, Archbishop Ferrao said the first was the Covid-19 pandemic where the fragility of life was experienced and everyone felt the need for the company and support of each other and God.
The second experience for Catholics, he said, was the Synodal experience wherein the Pope calls the faithful to a journey involving communion, participation and mission.
The Chrism Mass ended with the release of the Pastoral Diary for the coming year by Archbishop Ferrao and Bishop Dias.
The Pastoral Diary, which has the schedule for major events in the Archdiocese, has been prepared under the direction of the Pastoral Secretariat of the Archdiocese and was presented to the archbishop by Fr Leo Fernandes, Executive Secretary of the Pastoral Secretariat.   

SHARE ON

Digambar slams media over rumours of him joining BJP

THE GOAN NETWORK
Published Apr 9, 2022, 12:09 AM IST
SHARE ON

MARGAOMargao MLA Digambar Kamat on Friday lost his cool when media sought to know his comments on his recent Delhi visit and reports by national media over his imminent exit from the Congress to join the BJP.In fact, Kamat said he is not going to clarify again and again, and went to the extent of reminding the media that he does not win elections on the support of media.That’s not all. The Margao MLA said he is not a small leader to comment every now and then. “I don’t want…

READ MORE

Keep Reading — More from GOA NEWS

2 more related stories queued · tap to continue reading

Home HOME News GOA NEWS Global GLOBAL GOENKAR Search SEARCH