Shirva: Hectic preparations to accord a grand welcome to Don Bosco’s Relic
By Eugene DSouza, Moodubelle
Bellevision Media Network
Shirva, 24 August 2011: The historical church of Our Lady of Health, Shirva is fully geared up to welcome the relic of Don Bosco on Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 9 am. Along with the priests of the parish, Salesian community of priests and brothers and the faithful from Shirva and other parishes, Bishop of Mangalore, Most Rev. Dr. Aloysius Paul D’Souza will be present to receive the relic of Don Bosco. Around ten to fifteen thousand people are expected throughout the day to attend Masses and venerate the relic of Don Bosco. This information was given by Rev. Fr. Stany Tauro-Parish Priest of Our Lady of Health Church, Shirva while speaking to reporters from the media in a Press Conference on Tuesday, August 23, 2011 at 10 am in the parish house.
Besides Rev. Fr. Stany Tauro, the Press Conference was attended by Fr. Maxim D’Souza (sdb), Director of Don Bosco Youth Centre, Shirva, Assistant Parish Priests of Shirva-Fr. Gracian Alvares and Fr. Navin D’Souza, Fr. Augustine Fernandes (sdb) and Irwin D’Souza and Melwyn Aranha- Vice President and Secretary of the Parish Pastoral Council respectively.
Addressing the reporters, Fr. Maxim D’Souza said that on the occasion of the 150 years of the foundation of the Salesian Order by Don Bosco, the relic had started its Worldwide Pilgrimage in 2009 from Italy and reached Dimapur in North Eastern India in April, 2011 and after visiting 129 countries of the world will return to Italy in 2015 on the occasion of the Bicentenary (200th year) of the birth of Don Bosco.
Fr. Maxim D’Souza further said that, the relic of Don Bosco has been on its visit to ten Salesian Provinces in India where the Salesian Order is rendering service. After visiting the Eastern Provinces of Dimapur, Guwahati, Kolkata, the relic made its journey to Delhi and Mumbai and arrived in the Konkan Province comprising of Coastal Maharashtra, Goa and Coastal Karnataka. It arrived at Oros in the Sindhdurg District of Maharashtra on August 17 and thereafter to Panjim on August 18, Vasco on August 21, Fatardo on the same day and Sirsi in Uttara kannada District of Karnataka on August 23, from where it will arrive at Shirva on August 25.
After solemn welcome to the relic of Don Bosco, Most Rev. Dr. Aloysius Paul D’Souza will preside over the Eucharist for Youth at 11 am. Sessions on Don Bosco’s life and teachings will be held for the youth and parish leaders in the afternoon. There will be another Mass for the faithful at 4 pm presided over by Vicar General Msgr. Denis Moras Prabhu. The devotees will have the opportunity to venerate the relic till 6 pm.
From Shirva the relic will proceed to Bangalore in the morning of August 26, and will halt at Beltangady and Hassan on its way and later visit around ten other centres in other parts of Karnataka and later will visit Hyderabad, Kerala, Tirchy and Chennai before proceeding to Sri Lanka in November 2011.
Fr. Maxim D’Souza (sdb)
According to Fr. Maxim D’Souza, the relic comprising of the bones and tissues of the right hand of Don Bosco is enshrined within a wax replica of his body which in turn is enclosed in a large urn. The sculptured face of the statue is made with Don Bosco’s own death mask, the mould made on his face immediately after his death and was designed by sculptor Gianpero Zoncu.
The urn, constructed specially for this pilgrimage is composed of a large glass box in which the wax replica is placed, which could be viewed easily. The large box is mounted on the top of a large wood and metal cart. Among the urn’s decorations are the Latin words: ‘Da mihi animas, caetera tolle’, which means ‘Give me souls, take away the rest’, one of Don Bosco’s many quotes that guided his ministry. Images of young faces also surround the urn as well as maps showing where the Salesian Order is present today. Finally, the years 1815 and 2015 are engraved near the base of the urn reminding the devotees the purpose of this Relic Pilgrimage. In 2015, the Salesian Order and the Church as a whole will celebrate 200th anniversary of Don Bosco’s birth in 1815. The urn weighs 850 kilograms and is transported by two specially designed trucks to its host country driven by Italian chauffeurs.
Don Bosco in his lifetime had established two Salesian Orders-the Salesian Order of priests and brothers and the Salesian Order of nuns. He also set up two lay movements-the Salesian Co-workers and the Don Bosco Alumni Associations. There are around 30,000 members of Salesian Orders of men and women worldwide , 4,000 of them working in India running 350 primary, secondary, technical and higher educational institutions in ten provinces. There are 26 centres in Karnataka including 6 in Konkan Province. In Udupi District the Salesian centres include Trasi, Shirva and Bola near Karkala.
In Shirva, the Salesian Order started Don Bosco Youth Centre in 2007 at Benjith Nagar where they run youth centre and youth hostel. The society has plans to start technical courses for youth below the poverty line so as to enable them to get gainful employment. The Salesian Community at Shirva comprises of three priests-Fr. Maxim D’Souza(sdb), Director of the Don Bosco Youth Centre, Fr. Augustine Fernandes(sdb) and Fr. Joe Fernandes(sdb) and two brothers-Br. Kiran Nazareth and Br. Merwin Fernandes.
According to Rev. Fr. Stany Tauro and Fr. Maxim D’Souza, Shirva is fully geared up to accord a grand welcome to the revered relic of Don Bosco on Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 9 am. All preparations are complete and thousands of devotees are expected to participate in the welcome of the relic and also participate in Eucharistic celebrations and various programmes associated with the arrival of the relic of Don Bosco in Shirva.