Part II Last Friday in tasic Message was *Did SFX torture and force Hindus, Early Christians and Moslem to became Catholics? Was he the *Grand Inquisitor. NO! NO ! Perhaps the Dominicans
SFX preached the Gospel, cared for the sick. He was a linguist. He suffered a lot during his travels. During one trip when the boat sunk and he lost his cross, the crab dropped the cross near him. (Talk of Goans & Crab Mentality) He spent only 10 months in India but he was more impressed by the Far East. Malaysia, Japan and China. The reality in today's world from Trump to Modi, Brazil to Philippines is that there is the mixing of Politics and Religion ....it causes Greed and substitutes Gods I PART II A Focus On Kilwa Kilwa is a name of a district in present day Tanzania, It is also the name of a port and a settlement. In 1489 / 90 A Portuguese scout named Pero da Covilha disguised as an Arab merchant, did a lot of intelligence gathering and after visiting Malindi, Sofala and eventually landed in Lisbon where he presented his report, In 1496 Vasco da Gama armed with Covilha’s report left Lisbon with his flotilla of ships on his epic journey to India and the East. The following year, in 1497 he reached the Sultanate of Kilwa where he tried to make contact with Kilwa vassals in Mozambique. Mombasa and Malindi seeking their cooperation as staging posts for the Portugese fleets on trading missions. In 1500, the second Armada under Pedro Alvares Cabral arrived in Kilwa but failed to negotiate with the sultanate. For the next decade or so there were intrigues, double crossing and counter coups and assassinations by and within family members of the local leaders and the Portuguese slowly succeeded in establishing footholds in Eastern Africa and even erected the fortress of Santiago on Kilwa and left a garrison behind, under the command of Pedro Ferreira Fogaça. Meanwhile Goa was a mosquito ridden swamp, with Hindus. Muslims clashing with each other and intrigues and alliances enacted all over again. Portuguese rule was not very welcome by the various vassals . Particularly grating was the mposition of Portuguese Mercantilist laws on the sultanate, forbidding all but Portuguese ships to carry trade in the principal coastal towns. The majority of traders and merchants from Kilwa were thrown out of business.including the lucrative trade in gold, ivory, gum etc. Eventually trading companies from England, the Netherlands, France would dominate . Those responsible for inquisition were lustful (yes ) psychopaths, greedy to the core, more interested in acquiring land and wealth of those they enjoyed torturing, burning etc. Was SFX disgusted with what he saw in Goa.? Jesuits, like SFX converted people by making them understand.so language, customs were important/ Soon the Jesuits would earn the wrath of the conservative Bishops and Popes ! Some time ago, I picked the book “ Slaves And Sultans” Alan Machado Prabhu who comes from Aldona, where my maternal Grandfather and Grandmother built their home. Most of Machado’s family were lost. After numerous examples of heroism, for instance Mendes who sacrificed his life by pretending he was Tippu, Pinto who organized an escape route Pascal Gonsalves who defied authorities to visit his aged mother. Peter Rego who defied the authorities and built a chapel in Manglore. Therefore in his conclusion he states: *These and many ordinary men and women, boy and girls mainly unsung and unknown are and will continue to be, the real heroes” * Nelson who raised the whole issue of being a Christian, came to the conclusion that following the Beatitudes was more important than merely following rituals. I agree. Christ himself did not live in the temple, he preached, he cured, he asked the Samaritan woman for water, Finally there are more than a millionCatholics all over the world. Are they all stupid to believe that there is a Higher Being, that we humans. While the vast majority profess a belief be it Hinduism, Moslems or Buddhist , there is no war between the Gods. Therefore . Pray can anyone explain why SFX did not impose the Inquisition in Japan or Malaysia etc
