CHRONICLES OF GOAN CHURCHES
THE ORIGIN
There are different theories regarding the year of the construction of the first church here. According to Fr Sebastiao Gonsalves, a Jesuit historian and a writer, who lived in Goa between 1593 and 1619, the construction of the church goes back to 1590. The chapel was raised to the status of the Church later. It was dedicated to Our Lady, Queen of Martyrs.
According to Mitras Lusitanas, it was already built in 1595. According to the Anuario da Arquidiocese de Goa e Damao (1955), it was founded in 1616 on the ruins of a fortress on the banks of the river Sal.
The first Jesuit parish priest of Assolna Church was Fr Antonio Viegas in 1594 and the last was Joao Xavier (1759); in between, there were 30 Jesuits pastors. After the suppression of all the religious orders in Goa by the Portuguese, the Jesuits handed over the church to the diocese for administration.
THE CHURCH
The church is constructed in the Neo-Roman style having a triangular gabble and a large bell tower to the left with balustrades. The church has a beautiful pulpit.
To the side entrance of the Church are two grottos, one is a grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, which was inaugurated in 1942 by the then patriarch Dom Jose Costa Nunes; the other of Our Lady of Fatima, which was constructed recently. The Church is also surrounded on both sides by two cemeteries with an elaborate Rocco façade.
In the church compound is an imposing monument of Cristo Rei, Christ the King, with hands raised; this was blessed in 1937. The statue is a replica of the 54-feet white marble statue built in front of the St Patrick’s Cathedral in Karachi, Pakistan.
On each side of the monument are angels with a trumpet in the hand, Below it is the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. It is surrounded on all four corners by the marble statues of the four evangelists, with their symbols, St John (the eagle), Mathew (the angel), Mark (the lion) and Luke (the ox). This was blessed on April 26, 1942.
THE ALTARS
The middle altar is dedicated to the patroness, Our Lady Queen of Martyrs, whose image stands elegant high above. Below it are three steps and in the middle is the image of the Crucified Jesus on a cross. On the same altar are the statues of St Joseph to the right and to the left another statue, which is not easy to identity. There are two other altars besides this, the left is dedicated to Bom Marte and below it are the images of St Francis Xavier and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The altar to the right has the image of St Anthony and St Anne and below it are the images of St Rock and Nossa Senhora da Bon Viagem (Borea Poinnachi Saibinn). The parochial house is attached to the church, which was renovated during the tenure of Fr Saude Pereira.
Two chapels that come under the jurisdiction of the Assolna Parish are the Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel, Novo vaddo and St Joseph’s Chapel, Banda.
