Programmes held

Karnataka Jesuit Province celebrated the jubilees of seven eminent Jesuits at Fatima Retreat House (FRH), Mangalore on August 20, 2022. The seven Jesuits were: Frs Maxim Rasquinha and Denis Rasquinha (70 years in the Society); Fr Pradeep Sequeira (60 years in the Society) and Frs Frs Santosh Kamath, Rossi Rego, Terence Farias and John Gomes (50 years as a priest).

At the concelebrated mass officiated by Fr Maxim Rasquinha, Jesuits from across the province took part, while scholastics from Asha Kiran led the choir. In his meaningful homily, jubilarian Fr Terence Farias enumerated the mission of a priest quoting Pope Francis’ address to the priests in Rome. “A priest must be close to God, to his superiors, to his fellow priests and to the people of God,” Fr Farias said.

At the felicitation that followed, Fr Melwin Pinto SJ, Rector of St Aloysius institutions, raised the toast for the jubilarians. Through anecdotes from his personal experience with the jubilarians, Fr Pinto brought out the unique characteristics of each of the jubilarians. “These seven men have been real role models to all of us. There is much to learn from their life examples. We thank God for the generous Jesuits they were to the Society of Jesus,” he said.