WHITEWASH, RED STONE AND THE JESUIT HERITAGE
By
DALE LUIS MENEZES
The Society of Jesus has come a long way from the time the first Jesuit
missionary had landed on the shores of Goa. Taking an initiative into scholarly
work, the Jesuits, right from the start have actively compiled
dictionaries/grammars for Konknni as well as other languages. Involving
themselves actively in the spread of Christianity, among other things, required
the construction of churches and chapels. A new book on the Jesuit-built
churches in Goa (thank you, Francisco “Xik” Dias of Dramapur for gifting me
your copy!) gives one the impression that throughout the five centuries that
the order has been here, the Jesuits have been as busy as the bees.
Most of the magnificent churches – the brilliant white façade against a
lush green background – that we are so used to in any Goan landscape and which
we believe to be our cultural heritage, were built by the Jesuits. One of the
simplest ways to recognize a church built by the Jesuits is to spot the
insignia, IHS, which is displayed in a very prominent place in the church.
Listed in this book are nearly 80 churches (and some chapels too) that were
built by the Jesuits. Jesuit Heritage in Goa by Savio Rodrigues SJ is a
coffee-table book with photographs by Rinald D’Souza SJ and Shannon Pereira SJ.
This book is dedicated to Fr. Moreno de Souza who had immersed himself in
researching about Goan churches and whose four volumes in Konknni (Bardezcheo,
Saxtticheo (2 Vols.) and Tiswaddecheo Igorzo) are a testament to his scholarly
work. In his dedication Savio Rodrigues says, “Fr. Moreno could not wait to see
the publication of this book, which has now seen the light of the day, thanks
to the insights he shared with us. We gratefully acknowledge his willingness to
accompany us on a tour of the churches of Ilhas, just three months before God
called him to Himself. His long hours of research, revealing interviews, and
finally his books on the churches in Goa have contributed immensely to the
publication of this book.”
This book briefly tries to acquaint the reader with each of the
churches that the Jesuits built using history (not exactly the hardcore one),
anecdotes and traditional lore. The pages of this book are full of photographs
and anybody who needs quick and concise information about a particular church
can profitably refer to this book. Though informative, the prose sometimes
lacks the delightfulness of a coffee-table book. More revisions could have been
certainly welcome. Interesting traditions associated with a particular church
could have been woven in the text to make the overall prose more delightful.
One just needs to browse through a Mario Cabral e Sa authored coffee-table book
on Goa to understand what I am talking about.
The layout and printing of this book is neatly and artistically done. I
must give it to the two photographers who provided the images for this book.
There are some stunning pictures in this book and credit should be given to
Rinald and Shannon for their dedicated effort. But some of the photos did not
capture the beauty and detail of the churches. Like the photos of the detail of
the façade of the College of St. Paul bearing the Jesuit monogram (p. 17) and
the sanctuary of the Church of Our Lady of Hope (p. 119).
This book did raise a question in my mind: why did the Jesuits of today
feel the need to publish a book about their own heritage? The answer is that,
maybe, they want to reclaim their heritage and remind us of their legacy. Due
to the Pombaline reforms the Jesuits, along with other religious orders, were
driven out of Goa. The Jesuits were the most affected because they possessed
enormous amount of property and, as this book has shown, some of the biggest
churches were built by them. Though they have lost control over their material
property, their intellectual heritage and legacy cannot be forgotten. Perhaps,
the Jesuits are trying to assert this point. “Suppressed and expelled centuries
ago, some Jesuit legacies refuse to remain repressed. They remain alive in the
people. Probably prior to the rock-strong foundations of stone, the Jesuits
first built faith-foundations among the people themselves,” Savio Rodrigues
says in the opening few lines on the Colva Church.
One of the most interesting vignettes in this book is the one on the
Ponte de Linhares, the bridge that connects Panjim to Ribandar. This is a
Jesuit contribution to a secular building. “The Ponte de Linhares was built by
the Portuguese Viceroy, Count of Linhares, Dom Miguel de Noronha, between
1632-1633. It was meant to link Panjim with Ribandar and the City of Goa. The
Portuguese sought the technical expertise of the Jesuits of the College of
Saint Paul (Paulistas) in 1632 to build the massive bridge that was to be the
longest in the whole East. The 3,026 metres long bridge was built on alluvial
soils after stabilising it with solid trunks of local timber known as zambo,”
Savio Rodrigues informs. All this while I was always under the impression that
the Portuguese were responsible for the construction of this bridge. A couple
of days after reading the book and while travelling on this very bridge, I
recall thinking, “Hey, the Jesuits helped!”
Another interesting piece of information comes from the Our Lady of
Pilar Church, Seraulim: “The Church of Our Lady of Pilar at Seraulim contains a
huge side altar dedicated to Saint Sebastian, the patron of soldiers. The
Portuguese royal insignia that rules the altar appears quite striking at first
sight. The altar subtly illustrates the rule of the Crown even over the Church.”
Because the text of this book is very brief and simple, perhaps the
same could be used to make small video clips and made accessible to the public
on the internet. A tech-savvy person like Fr. Rinald D’Souza could use his
expertise.
Comments/feedback @ www.daleluismenezes.blogspot.com
Jesuit Heritage in Goa, by Savio Rodrigues SJ (Panjim: Goa Jesuits), 2009; pp.
184, Price not mentioned [ISBN: 978-81-906554-0-8]
Web: www.goajesuits.in
(A version of this article appeared on Gomantak Times, dt: February 6, 2012)
Find my writings @ www.daleluismenezes.blogspot.com
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