Mangaluru: The annual feast of Infant Jesus was celebrated with piety at 6 pm at the Infant Jesus Shrine, Carmel Hill, Bikarnakatte here, on January 14.
The feast witnessed more than fifteen thousand devotees at the shrine, who offered prayers to seek His divine intervention and blessings. Masses were held throughout the day in different languages, the devotees flocking the church since morning.
The solemn Eucharistic mass was celebrated by Bishop Dr Ignatius D’Souza of the Diocese of Bareilly along with a number of other priests.
In his homily Bishop Ignatius told a story about a teacher who taught her class about the seven wonders of the world. A girl in the class was waiting for the chance to speak. When the teacher finally finished teaching and gave the girl the opportunity to speak, she said that the seven wonders of the world are not the Pyramids or the Taj Mahal or China’s Great Wall, rather they are the power to see, hear, touch, taste, feel, love and laugh.
“A family is God’s plan. In family life, trust among the family members is very important for the welfare of the family. What do we see in our families today? The commandments tell us to respect our parents. But today, there is no respect for the aged. It has become easy to give monetary help to our aged but taking care of them has become very tough. Many families today have been shattered, and children in the family do not get proper guidance. People have become more materialistic. Avarice has taken over devotion. Our homes, our apartments are beautiful and colourful, but the life among the people who reside in them has become dull. Our families must be families of confession. We shouldn’t bend laws/rules according to our conveniences.”
The Bishop further said, “Unconditional love of God is shown to us in Jesus Christ. And to show that love, Jesus sacrificed himself. From today, let us try to put more love, confession and tolerance in our families. Let our families be shrines of peace and love.”
The Bishop was felicitated on this occasion. The winners of ‘Star Wars’ were awarded prizes by the Bishop. Fr Stephen Alwyn Pereira OCD delivered the vote of thanks.
