Mangaluru: Bishop Dr Aloysius Paul D’Souza celebrated the Holy Eucharist in honour of the Relic of Saint Antony at 6 pm at the Milagres Church grounds here on February 15. The Relic (tongue) of Saint Antony is still fresh even after eight centuries of the death of the Saint. The Relic is preserved in the Basilica of Saint Anthony at Padua in Italy.
The Bishop in his message called upon the people to use the gift of speech to encourage and enthuse fellow human beings and not to abuse it by hurtful speech. He also called upon the people present to be kind and merciful towards one another as the Catholic Church observes the year of mercy inaugurated by Pope Francis on December 8, 2015.
48 priests concelebrated the mass. More than 4,000 people participated in the Holy Mass. The sponsors of the feast were honoured at the end of the Holy Mass with a special candle. Saint Anthony’s bread blessed by the Bishop was distributed to all the devotees gathered for the feast.
Earlier during the day at 11:30 am Msgr Denis Moras Prabhu the Vicar General of the diocese celebrated the Holy Mass at the Institutes at Jeppu. The Institutes at Jeppu is a home for 400 destitute and they are looked after free of cost. Once a person joins the Ashram he/she becomes a member of Saint Anthony’s family. Along with the inmates of the Ashram 100 special invitees participated in the celebration followed by lunch.
Happy Feast. Saint Antonio – Pray for us.