Miraculous Fatima Shrine at BONDORIM, Sirlim, Dramapur,Chinchinim NH 17 The Supreme Court has ordered demolition of all illegal monuments,
Religious structures on road sides hampering smooth flow of traffic. They may be encroachments in Govt. land or on private properties. Some sensitive monuments are likely to be relocated. The above shrine is in eminent danger, facing the axe, Such Religious obstructions are surveyed and cataloged for further action under the direction of S.C. order. The present Govt. is no way responsible for this pending action. THE MIRACULOUS SHRINE DEDICATED to pilgrim Virgin Mary, OUR LADY OF FATIMA, MAY NOT BE DESTROYED BUT HOPEFULLY RELOCATED, THE FAITH OF DEVOTEES IS UNASSAILABLE, BUILT AS IT IS ON TRUST AND FIRM BELIEF OVER THE YEARS Practically every day, a large number of grateful devotees throng the area, on a pilgrimage even on foot over distances, offering flowers, singing litanies and lighting candles in gratitude & thanksgiving for the favours received. Faithful and even non Catholics bow in obedience and deep reverence as they cross the site in buses and vehicles and halt to pay their homage. Generous donations/offerings from grateful believers continuously pour from far and wide The place bursts into public festivities, devotion, Eucharistic celebrations on 13 October , 13 May,and 9 December every year in large numbers. The monument and the surroundings have been tastefully conceived and artistically executed to perfections and modified occasionally There is no denying the fact that the shrine is a confirmed pilgrimage centre, attributed to healing and miraculous cures by the faithful believers A STEP BACK INT THE PAST The statue of pilgrim virgin Our Lady of Fatima from Cave ofIria Portugal, at the end 1949 was on a visit to Goa for 3 days, one day each in the jurisdiction of Municipalities ofPanjim, Margao, Mapusa. Dr Alvaro de Loyola Furtado was then the President of Margao Municipality Corporation,and being a devout and pious Catholic made special arrangement for adoration at ChinchinimChurch during the night at 9.p.m. The pilgrim statue was to return next morning by 8.a.m. After the schedule halt atNavelim, the vehicle carrying the statue was speeding towardsChinchinim, delayed way beyond time .Large groups of devotees on the way were waiting to pay their homage in a an atmosphere of prayer and singing but were disappointed as the vehicle did not halt en route. The villagers of Bondorim had assembled in hundreds at the site of Holy Cross , Mocidade de Bondorim. A large pandal was erected at the site, faithful prayed fervently and hoped that vehicle wouldl halt at least for a minute. To their great surprise and astonishment the vehicle stopped right at the unscheduled spot right in front of the cross and the statue was placed on special throne jeep. Faithful believed and considered it to be a miraculous occurrence by divine providence and an opportunity to venerate the pilgrim virgin. There is also another version that the vehicle carrying the statue broke down at Bondorim until it was repaired. The faithful for 17 minutes paid their homage by singing “cantemos cheios de alegria & OVirgem sacro santa. The statue finally reached Chinchinim well beyond expected 9 p.m.as there were massive prayerful crowds of the faithful waiting anxiously to receive .O.L.Fatima and pay their obeisance for the time at their disposal. Ever since then, the elders of the Village of Bondorim in commemoration of this miraculous event on 9 Dec 1949 has led to the wide spread devotion to O.L.Fatima in the vicinity. The raising of the lasting monument began with extraordinary enthusiasm with trust in the miraculous Holy Cross invoking “INHOC SIGNO VINCES” (He curien ami vencer zatelaum), under the guidance of Fr Napoleao Diniz, Vicar of Chinchinim. This magnificent shrine with a spacious chapel and has undergone several changes On 9-12-1950, the statue was blessed at 5 p.m in the presence of large number of devotees, priests from far and wide. It was followed by litany, whole night adoration by village wards. On the next day, the statue was shifted and placed on the main altar of Chinchinim Church, where it remained till the completion of the monument. On 11-5-1951 the statue was brought in a solemn procession from the Church and placed on, altar and a decorated pandal erected on the site. Vicar ofPanjim Rev, Fr Edmund Braulio Fernandes preached the sermon and enumerated the miraculous halt of our lady on amplified system, followed by blessing and kissing of the statue. Litany and whole night adoration ward wise continued. On 12-5 -1951, the break of dawn was announced by melodious music, waking up the faithful with joy to get ready for the mass at 7.a.m. Rev. Fr Elias DeSouza, Vicar in red vestments celebrated the first mass (MissaCampal) at Bondorim .He preached the homily with blessing of Holy sacrament and kissing of the statue. The statue of O.L.Fatima was then placed in the specially constructed shrine The site 2o ft x -ft awas donated by Teofilio Ferrao is not legally transferred At the time of liberation of Goa the statue was shattered to smithereens. Instead of installing a new statue, painstakingly the pieces were glued, restoring the statue to its original glory, without missing a single piece. The statue has been vandalized by miscreants several times due to its isolated location. Once earlier the statue and bell was robbed. Recently only one accident at the site resulted in fatality and damage to boundary of shrine and which was restored immediately. Once earlier in a severe accident all the occupants were miraculously saved though resulting in a substantial damage In all apparitions of B.V.M throughout the world the message is same Pray regularly the family Rosary. B- do penance and sacrifice C- change your hearts and minds by your behavior and actions Thanksgiving Nelson Lopes Chinchinim 13.October 2016 Memoirs; Dr Alvaro de Loyola Furtado,, Elizabeth Afonso & Antonio Afonso N.B An Exhaustive, meticulous details of income and expenditure are on record. Income was Rs 1893-02-45, Expenditure Rs1611-08-03, Balance Rs281-10-15.(13-9-1951) Income was from members subscriptions in cash and kind, wellwishers donations in kind, collection by circulation of lists, lotteries, auction, collection of faithful, collection boxes and miscellaneous, Expenditure under heads of blessing of the image, plan of the structure, printing, labour for the monument, publicity,fireworks,pandal, expenditure on 11-5-1951 &12-5-1951 and miscellaneous Executive Committee and Members, Antonio B T FerraoPresident,Bernado Afonso,Secretary, Victor Ferrao Jose PedroAfonso Treasurer Michael Fernandes, Camilo Lourenco, Members Vincente Rebello, Rosario C Rodrigues,Fanchu Fernandes,Santorlino Rodrigues, Aniceto Afonso, Leao Ferrao,FerdinandAfonso, David Fernandes, Elizabeth afonso [image: https://ci6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/RnNZfQn2o2xpggJQqefCOervMbPIci5mujDPJnvl43kv6Rtxjyh5gHN_JKVzeU-aaGz3pePFgxfoAAtZJZNx8mveVTc-11j98EfuAJVcumUenA=s0-d-e1-ft#https://ssl.gstatic.com/ui/v1/icons/mail/images/cleardot.gif] Click here to Reply, Reply to all, or Forward 6.25 GB (41%) of 15 GB used Manage <https://www.google.com/settings/u/0/storage?hl=en> Terms <https://www.google.com/intl/en/policies/terms/> - Privacy <https://www.google.com/intl/en/policies/privacy/> Last account activity: 49 minutes ago Details