Dear Ivo,
In your original article you quoted some interesting tid-bits of information.
For starters, from SFX's own writings, we get a glimpse that (Old) Goa of his
period was, "a city entirely of Christians," which gives us some idea of the
population thirty years after the Portuguese conquered it. Of course we know
from other sources that Albuquerque slaughtered the male Muslim population
after his victory in 1510, and his soldiers married the Muslim women.
So Tiswadi a generation later was mainly Firangi (White) and Mestizos (mixed)
with some indigenous population (Muslim and Hindu) in some outlying villages of
the taluka. So SFX could not have requested the Inquisition to punish the
Hindus and Muslims as some allege. They were already persecuted before SFX
arrived.
From SFX's account and retold by you in your original post, SFX noticed,
"Unfortunately several Portuguese in Goa had concubines and slaves at their
disposal. There was a lot of injustice in the courts, corruption, and usury."
To address these and other vices of the (White) population who "lived in the
forts" (i.e. Portuguese soldiers), including abuse of the indigenous
population, SFX suggested the Inquisition to replace the benign attitude and
inaction of the military and civilian colonial govt.
Some smart Goans of today have a bigger problem with SFX's suggested solution
to solve the problems that existed; rather than to the existing problem which
are described. Amazing! .... Just Amazing! But seriously what would their
solution be to these social issues?
Regards GL
-------------- Ivo wrote
It was an article which I wrote several years back, basing myself on the
biographies and documents available to me at that time. At that time I did not
even remember about Inquisition in Goa, since it came later.
--------- From prior post
His Apostolic Method:
After his arrival to Goa, Francis wrote so enthusiatically to Rome: "After four
months and more (of voyage from Mozambique) we reached India, Goa (I mean), a
city entirely of Christians, cosa para ver, (Epistulae Xavierii, I, 124, n.5),
a most remarkable thing--a thing to be seen". ......
The Governor Martim Afonso de Sousa requested him to reside in his Palace, but
Francis preferred to stay in the Royal Hospital ("Hospital Real"), where he
dedicated himself to the sick and lepers of the Hospital of St.Lazarus. He was
preaching and catechizing in the church of the Rosary. Penitents crowded to
Francis for confession in the chapel of the hospital. In the old Cathedral of
the Bishop, Francis baptized his neophytes. On weekdays, in the afternoon,
Francis visited prisoners of the Prison ("Cadeia", situated in a place in front
of the Cathedral and the Palace of the Vice-Roys), taught them how to confess,
and ordinarily heard them afterwards in general confession.
The town was cosmopolitan, with about two lakhs of inhabitants. There were
people from many lands: Europe, Africa, Ceylon, Malaya and China. Many of them
were Christians, mostly ill instructed in their faith and shallow in its
practice. Unfortunately several Portuguese in Goa had concubines and slaves at
their disposal. There was a lot of injustice in the courts, corruption, and
usury.
