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Church, parish clash over administering chapel in Goa

Should any religious place be controlled only by the all-powerful Church, or can it function independently, without being under direct control of the archbishop?

A clash has arisen in the port town of Vasco over this issue, where over thousand devotees of Our Lady of Vailankani are protesting against the move of Goa Archbishop Raul Gonsalves to take over the chapel, run by the working class from all religions and communities.

The battle is on, with the backing of Fr Michael Fernandes, a local priest, who has joined hands with the devotees to fight the bishop. They are irked over the bishop's sudden intervention in stopping the Saturday evening mass meant for the workers of the Mormugao Port Trust and other factories in the port town.

'Illegitimate structure', is how it has been described by the Bishop's House, while asserting that no religious services would be allowed to run independently. Church authorities also refuse to call it a chapel until it is recognised and the local committee is approved by the archbishop.

Around 15 years ago, a Tamilian Hindu, Kanda Swami, erected a statue of Our Lady of Vailankani, on a mud pedestal at Major Bundar outside the MPT gates, which was later turned into a chapel at the initiative of local workers.

It was blessed in 1984 by Fr Antonio Couto, the Vasco parish priest, allowing Saturday evening mass fulfilling Sunday's obligation. It helped a great deal for the workers, who had hassles getting up early morning on Sundays to go for a mass, after working hard for the whole week.

The mass was attended even by the workers belonging to other religions, who look at Our Lady of Vailankani as their own goddess, besides the Roman Catholics in the port town.

Anthony Fernandes, founder president of the chapel committee, wonders how Archbishop Gonsalves could declare the place unholy and illegal now when he had personally attended the chapel's Vailankani feast nine years ago. He once again visited the chapel on September 8, to bless it.

"Sanctity does not come with the bishop's blessings, but with the devotees coming together to uphold the secular values of society," says Fr Fernandes. He is convinced that the bishop's move is motivated by 'upper caste' Catholics in Goa, who have been controlling the Church institution in the state.

Fr Carmo Martins, spokesperson for the Bishop's House, clarified that the archbishop had not blessed the place but had gone there twice only to celebrate mass. While claiming that the church has not stopped the mass, he also said that the chapel does not become sacred just because religious services were allowed in the past.

Anthony Fernandes, backed by devotees to maintain the chapel's independence, has charged that the bishop has his eye on assets worth Rs 500,000 lying in the chapel. The workers' committee, elected every three years, has refused to function under the newly designated neighbouring Desteiro church.

According to Fr Martins, the parish priest of the Desteiro church, the bishop was within his rights to stop the mass at the disputed place, because it is not recognised as a chapel by the authorities. He also claims that the mass was not stopped but temporarily shifted to the Desteiro church, till the matter was resolved.

"They are free to say and do anything. But our attempt is to regularise it. If they don't, then no priest would be allowed to go there. If anybody goes, then he would suffer for it," he cautions, hinting at Fr Michael Fernandes's open association with the devotees.

"In the name of religion and administration of the sacrament, the Church authorities are trying to control the material assets of the chapel and deprive the laymen from exercising their proper role in the affairs of the Church," Fernandes alleged in turn.

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