>From the Joseph Naik Vaz Institute: Pope Francis canonized the Goan and Konkani Saint, St. Joseph Vaz,and declared him an universal Saint on January 14, 2015 during his State visit to Sri Lanka at a beautiful open air ceremony at Colombo's sea front, Galle Face Green. He thus made him Goa and Sri Lanka's first canonized Saint.
He was born in Benaulim, Goa on April 21, 1651 His father's ancestral village was Sancoale. He was a member of one of the founding "gauncar" families, the Naiks, of Sancoale. St. Joseph Vaz was no ordinary Goan. He is founder of Asia's first native Catholic religious Congregation. He is known as the "Apostle of Kanara and Sri Lanka" because he rescued Catholic Missions around Mangalore and also re-founded the Church in Sri Lanka during the Dutch persecution of Catholics. He was protected by the Buddhist King of Kandy, Vimaladharma Surya II of Kandy, from the Dutch. During a small pox epidemic in Kandy, he took care of the abandoned victims and founded the first hospital in Kandy. He was well versed in both local Indian medicine and western medicine. He translated a Portuguese book of medicine into Sinhala for the King of Kandy. He founded clinics and underground schools. He studied and was fluent in both Tamil and Sinhala. He founded a Catholic Literature and Para-Liturgy in both these languages. Our Mass of Celebration for his Canonization is being held at Cathedral of Christ the Light, in Oakland on Sunday, March 15, 2015. It will start at 9:30 a,m, with a Prelude of Hindu and Buddhist Chants and sacred songs by the Hindustani choir of Smt. Rita Sahai, the Bay Area's renowned classical Indian vocalist. Another choral group will perform a new composition, The Beatitudes (Jesus' Sermon on the Mount) in Raga Pahadi, by Bay area composer John Giese. The Prelude will be followed by Mass with Bishop Michael Barber S.J., of Oakland, assisted by Rev. Fr. Thomas Massaro, S.J. Dean of the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University, and a festive Lunch. For more information, please email [email protected] Joseph Naik Vaz Institute www.josephnaikvaz.org #yiv6203979658 #yiv6203979658 -- #yiv6203979658 .yiv6203979658ygrp-photo-title{clear:both;font-size:smaller;height:15px;overflow:hidden;text-align:center;width:75px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-photo{background-position:center;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-color:white;border:1px solid black;height:62px;width:62px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:active, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:hover, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:visited {text-decoration:none;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row {clear:both;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div {float:left;}#yiv6203979658 p {clear:both;padding:15px 0 3px 0;overflow:hidden;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-file {width:30px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div div a {text-decoration:none;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div div span {font-weight:normal;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-file-title {font-weight:bold;}#yiv6203979658 #yiv6203979658 #yiv6203979658 -- .yiv6203979658ygrp-photo-title{clear:both;font-size:smaller;height:15px;overflow:hidden;text-align:center;width:75px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-photo{background-position:center;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-color:white;border:1px solid black;height:62px;width:62px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:active, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:hover, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:visited {text-decoration:none;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row {clear:both;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div {float:left;}#yiv6203979658 p {clear:both;padding:15px 0 3px 0;overflow:hidden;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-file {width:30px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div div a {text-decoration:none;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div div span {font-weight:normal;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-file-title {font-weight:bold;}#yiv6203979658 #yiv6203979658 -- .yiv6203979658ygrp-photo-title{clear:both;font-size:smaller;height:15px;overflow:hidden;text-align:center;width:75px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-photo{background-position:center;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-color:white;border:1px solid black;height:62px;width:62px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:active, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:hover, #yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658photo-title a:visited {text-decoration:none;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row {clear:both;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div {float:left;}#yiv6203979658 p {clear:both;padding:15px 0 3px 0;overflow:hidden;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-file {width:30px;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div div a {text-decoration:none;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658attach-table div.yiv6203979658attach-row div div span {font-weight:normal;}#yiv6203979658 div.yiv6203979658ygrp-file-title {font-weight:bold;}#yiv6203979658
