Decaying Paintings at Rachol Seminary, Goa

Decaying Paintings at Rachol Seminary, Goa
Archana Verma

Rachol Seminary in the Raia village of Goa stands on the foundations of a fort built by the Islamic rulers who ruled over Goa before the Portuguese rule. In 1576, the Church was built here on the hillock surrounded by the paddy fields and the cashew nut plantations. The Church still owns much of this land which generates a revenue for the Seminary. The Church was dedicated to St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit Order.

For some time, this structure served as a prison. The labyrinths of the building are a testimony to this. In 1762, the seminary was added to the Church and became a prominent centre for theological learning.
Today, this Seminary is still attended by the local villagers from nearby.

Apart from providing them regulars service, this Seminary houses invaluable art treasures from the entire Christian history of Goa, beginning from the 16th century.

I had the occasion to visit this Seminary in December 2008. I was extremely unhappy to see the decaying state of paintings from the 16th century and no incentive or efforts being made to conserve them.

Since then, I have discussed it with some people connected to Goa and in the field of art and cultural studies, but no one seems to know how these invaluable artwork could be saved. I was told Rachol Seminary doesn't have enough funds, but seeing the affluence of Goan Churches, it is hard to believe this. Besides, the Church doesn't seem to have a scarcity of avenues to get funds. There are enough Goans living very affluent lives in india and abroad as well.

They hold hundreds of art works from the historical period and if nothing is done soon, these art works are going to be lost for ever. Being an art historian, it was very painful for me to see this art treasure decaying away, with no one seeming to care about them. [southasianarts.org]

Maurice

On Sun, Oct 31, 2010 at 8:00 AM, Austine J. Crasta wrote:
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> FORTRESS OF FAITH STANDS THE TEST OF TIME
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> Alexandre Moniz Barbosa, TNN, Oct 31, 2010, 01.43am IST
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> RACHOL: The stones of the fort of Rachol are over 600 years old. From within the walls of the fort once emerged armies that conquered lands and defended their king. That changed four centuries ago when the fort became the bulwark of Christianity in Asia and from within its enclosed walls emerged armies, not of soldiers but of priests, conquering not lands but "saving souls", fortifying not the kingdom of an earthly king but of a celestial one.
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> Since November 1, 1610 the fort has housed a Catholic seminary, where over the centuries boys and men have been trained to undertake priestly duties. On Monday the residents of the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol-priests and seminarians-will celebrate 400 years of the seminary's existence on the mound in the village.
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> Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao in a message for the occasion said, "This is not a small milestone. Given, especially, the resilience of this institution to withstand the vagaries of history, this moment should be celebrated as a fitting tribute to those who founded it and carried forward its traditions, responding to the challenges of changing times. The seminary today stands tall in its task of forming diocesan priests, who have offered and continue to offer their services, not only in the territory which comprises today the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman but also beyond it."
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> Rachol seminary, over the years, has produced priests not just for Goa, but those trained at the seminary and subsequently ordained to priesthood have gone to the missions of Karachi, Mozambique, Venezuela, Cape Verde and Timor outside India. They have also served in various dioceses in the country, a few even rising to shepherd their diocese as bishops.
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> "Many of its alumni have brought laurels to Rachol seminary's name across the globe, while others have tirelessly given their life in service of Christ and their brothers and sisters in Goa and India," says Rachol seminary professor Fr Victor Ferrao.
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> Agrees parish priest of Panaji's Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception church, Fr Antimo Gomes. "Priests from this institute have gone as missionaries to most parts of the world, including Europe, from where initially we received our faith in Jesus. This missionary work may now be increased substantially ever since the last Mission Congress after which our archdiocese has set up a missionary animation centre," he said.
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> There are currently 98 students attached to the seminary of which 52 are residents, 29 are in college hostels and the others in various parishes serving as deacons.
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> "The number of seminarians has remained more or less steady over the past few years. This year there have been 19 priests ordained, 18 of them in the month of October," seminary rector Fr Dennis Fernandes told TOI.
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> To many priests who spent their formative years at the seminary, this milestone is time to look back to when they roomed there. "I am joyful that the institution which has been like a first home to me, is completing 400 years. It has made me what I am today," Gomes said. "The atmosphere of silence made us men of meditation and deep spirituality," he added.
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> Like many other colonial institutions, the seminary too has had a chequered history. It originally started as a Jesuit college in Margao, but since the town was prone to attacks, it was decided to shift the college to Rachol. "The fortress of Rachol was the main bastion of Salcete's defence. It was well guarded, and had abundant for the people residing there," explains historian Fr Nascimento Mascarenhas on the choice of Rachol as location.
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> Having been administered at different times by the Jesuits, Oratorians and Vincentians, the seminary has a rich treasure within its walls. The endless corridors are adorned by paintings, and also distinctive statues of European and Indo-Portuguese styles. "One can find copies of celestial paintings of Renaissance masters like Rafael, Ruben and Murillo alongside paintings of Angelo Fonseca, known as the dean of Indian Christian Art," says Ferrao.
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> From within the walls of this seminary too emerged the first Konkani publications in printed form-'Doutrina Krista' (Christian doctrine) and a grammar of Konkani 'Arte de Lingoa Canarim' written by Jesuit Fr Thomas Stephens. It was also at this seminary that in October 1892 Swami Vivekananda spent a few days before proceeding to the Parliament of World Religions in Chicago to wow the rest of the world.
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> In 1835 the archdiocese took up the seminary's administration and has been running it since. The archbishop's message dwells on this, and he says, "This is also a tribute to the diocesan priests who have been holding the reins of this august institution for the last 175 years, guiding hundreds, if not thousands of candidates who offered themselves to the service of their Master. It is a mighty work that has, in a certain way, helped shape society in Goa and beyond."
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> Today, the seminary has, besides its task of priestly formation, ventured into the social arena. "A special study on tourism was conducted with the assistance of alternatives and a book, 'Claiming the right to say no' was published. The study made national and international headlines," said Ferrao.
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> The seminary's rector is also looking at changes in the formation of the priests to meet current exigencies of society. "The main focus now is going to be on human formation. Not that we don't have such a programme here, but we have in the past been stressing on spiritual, intellectual, pastoral formation. I think that in today's work priests should have respect for one another and basic courtesies in them," Fernandes said.
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> In keeping with the strategy of modernization, one of the many programmes to mark the anniversary is an international seminar on the theme "Catholicism in the world of science" scheduled in December, a theme that is surely taking the Church in Goa and the seminary forward. -Times of India