Where Francis Xavier lived

Just click on the forward button and wait for a few moments for buffering to be over... The cave-hut where St. Francis Xavier lived in India in the 16th century. The hut is in a place called Manappadu now in the state of Tamilnadu. It is on the east coast of India. Just click on the forward button and wait for a few moments for buffering to be over... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Manappad point is a high sandy head land jutting into the sea on the south side of the Manappad Bay-along its coast line is situated Manappad fishing village. On the summit of promontory is situated the Holy Cross Church built in 1581. The great apostle St. Francis Xavier visited Manappad in 1542 and again in 1543. Manappad is known as Pearl Fishing harbour. It is about 70 km from Kanniyakumari and 18 Km from Tiruchendur.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ Pilgrimage to Manapad: A Journey into the challenge of Faith and Commitment. Victor Edwin SJ The pilgrimage to the places of Xaverian interest helps him to apprehend the spirit of Mission lived by Saint Francis Xavier. Our pilgrimage started off from the Sacred Heart College, Shembaganur. It was a pleasant journey from the queen of Western Ghats, Kodaikanal to Thoothukudi as it had rained all over Tamil Nadu. It was a great feast for eyes to see fields filled with water and greenery. The farming community all along was preparing their fields for cultivation. One could spot many women on the National Highway waiting with a bundle of paddy seedlings to offer the commuters on the Road and receive small contribution as mark of God’s blessing. I was told that it was a local custom. I found this something wonderful, for simple people understand and experience the profundity of truth; the blessings of others is the way to receive God’s blessings. On reaching Thoothukudi, we went to the shrine Basilica of Our Lady of Snows. This church was built by the Jesuits in 1713. After the suppression of the Society, it was taken over by the Portuguese missionaries. It was handed over to the Jesuits only after the Portuguese went back, and not immediately after the restoration. Later the Jesuits gave the shrine over to the diocese. Immediately after the restoration of the Society, the Jesuits built another church in the vicinity, known as the Sacred Heart church, which is at present the cathedral of the Diocese of Thoothukudi. St Xavier’s Higher Secondary School on the cathedral campus belongs to the Jesuits. The primary school, which is attached to the bishop’s house, was started by St Francis Xavier. Our Lady of Snows is the patroness of the town. There is an interesting story about the statue of our Lady of Snows. While traveling in the East, Francis Xavier found this beautiful statue in a convent of Augustinian Nuns in the Philippines. He wanted to send the statue to his people in Tuticorin. While catechizing the pearl-fishers Francis Xavier observed the great attachment of pearl-fishers towards the Hindu goddesses. He felt the beautiful statue of Our Lady would be a wonderful substitute for the newly catechized fisher folk. However, the nuns were not keen to donate the statue for the people Francis Xavier. Later, when they learnt that Francis Xavier had died a holy death in Sancen islands they thought of honouring the request of Francis Xavier and sent the statue to Thoothukudi by a ship named SANTALENA. The ship arrived the Indian shores on 9th June 1555. The Vicar general of Goa diocese, Fr Michel Vaz received the statue and solemnly installed the statue in the Jesuit church of San Paul at Keracope street Thoothukudi. In the beginning of the seventeenth century the Christians were persecuted by the local king. The Christians had to flee the town. They took away the statue and kept in different makeshift churches and finally brought it back to Thoothukudi. I mentioned above that Our Lady is the patroness of the town. People of the town, Hindus, Muslims and Christians consider her as their own mother. It is said that once the town was battered by a tornado, which blew off many houses in the town. Lightning and thunder scared people. A huge thunderbolt fell on the presbytery. People thought that their pastor Fr Vigilius Mansi was killed. However, they found the statue of our Lady withstood the thunderbolt and consequently saved their pastor and people of the town. They experienced the mercy and protection of our Lady. They decided to honour her and celebrate her protection. Even today, they thank the Lady for protecting everyone without discrimination. Though the legend may lack hard historical evidences, it has brought people together as one family. The religious and social differences melt away in her presence. Often one wonders at the tremendous power the popular devotions have in bringing people together as one family. We had a blessed chance of celebrating the Eucharist at the altar of our Lady of Snows. It was the feast of Saints Simon and Jude that we celebrated with the parishioners of Our Lady of Snows. We proceeded to Palayamkottai to visit the Jesuit brethren there working in St Xavier’s College and take our night’s rest. Fr Pappu Raj SJ, the Rector of the Jesuit community, received us warmly. Our first visit in the campus was to the Folklore Research and Resource Centre (FRRC). Fr Britto Vincent SJ, a specialist in Ethnomusicology informed us of the various ways in which the Center revives the folk culture of the poor. He said that folksongs, koothu, arts, deities of the poor, all remain a powerful medium to instill hope, faith and love in their lives. When we learn and facilitate the resurgence of folk arts we take part in the lives of people in a very substantial way, he continued. Our second visit was to the Center for Biodiversity and Biotechnology (CBB). The Centre functions under the guidance of Fr Manickam SJ. Fr Manickam, a first grade botanical scientist has done a great job of scientifically codifying the ferns of the Trinelveli hills. He also has discovered new varieties of plants and has taxonomically identified their features. Along with his research students he has identified many species which are at the verge of extinction and have taken initiative to use the latest technologies to clone them and plant them in their natural habitats. It is said that India is rich in biodiversity with tropical and temperate rain forests, coastal wetlands and alpine meadows. Two of the twenty-five biodiversity hotspots in the world are located in India – the Eastern Himalayas and Western Ghats. In addition, India has twenty-six regions rich in biodiversity. Plants that grow no where else in the world are found here. The mission of the Centre is to conserve biodiversity in the region (Jivan, September 2006 p.10). I was impressed by the commitment of both FRRC and CBB. Both of them in different ways put into action the grace of the Contemplation to Obtain Love in the Spiritual Exercises (230 – 237). St Ignatius was aware that “God dwells in creatures; in the elements, giving them existence; in the plants, giving them life; in the animals, giving them sensation; in human beings, giving them intelligence.” Moreover, he also experienced that “God labors and works for me in all the creatures on the face of the earth; that is, he acts in the manner of one who is laboring.” God is “working in humans, elements, plants, fruits, cattle and the rest – giving them their existence, conserving them with their vegetative and sensitive activities, and so forth.” This deep awareness helped Ignatius to experience the paschal mystery of our Lord that is being perpetuated in nature. The paschal mystery of our Lord safeguards life in all creatures and render life and dignity to men and women who are created in the image and likeness of God. As disciples of Ignatius we take part in the paschal mystery in two ways: one is to take part in the Eucharistic mystery and the other way is to take part in the lives of peoples and nature. By facilitating the art forms of the poor and preserving nature, Jesuits like Britto Vincent and Manikam consciously put into practice the grace of their Jesuit vocation. I experienced consolation. The next day we went to Manapad a few miles towards east of Palayamkottai to visit the places associated with Saint Francis Xavier. There are two parishes at Manappad, one is Holy Spirit’s parish and the other is St James parish. St Xavier’s shrine is under the jurisdiction of St James church. This shrine is built on a rock, close to the sea. Francis Xavier on his arrival in the month of September 1542, found the pearl-fishers, who were baptized some six years before his arrival, a flock of sheep without a shepherd. He baptized children without delay and catechized the Christians of Manapad and other coastal villages. The pearl-fishers owe their Catholic faith to the mission of Francis Xavier. While ministering to the Christians, Francis Xavier stayed among them in one of the huts. The historical evidences show that often he would retreat into a cave, hewn from a single rock, near the sea to pray alone with the Alone. The plaque fixed at the entrance of the cave tells the visitors that the cave was blessed by the presence of Francis Xavier. It is said that he prayed under the canopy of stars for long hours. At times his catechist found him elevated from the ground while in prayer and his eyes aglow with heavenly bright light while offering Eucharist in the cave. Francis Xavier also found time to write letters to his ‘Father of my soul’ Ignatius and other friends sharing his joys and agonies of the mission in the Indies. His letters overflow with deep love for the society and its mission. This little cave though looks insignificant for a visitor has deep spiritual and heritage value for Jesuits and the people of Manapad. However, today the little cave has fallen into days of sheer negligence. If not maintained well, it would not take much time for the crashing surf to claim it. We will lose something which is very significant to the mission of the Society. In the Triple Jubilee year, with the help and cooperation of the diocesan authorities and the parishioners of Manapad, something could be done to preserve this Xaverian monument as it has universal significance for the Society of Jesus. We celebrated the Eucharist at the Holy Cross chapel next to the cave. A few pilgrims, who came there, attended the Eucharist. It was indeed a great experience. Moreover, St James Parish of Manapad has a letter written by the fifth general of the SJ Fr Claude Aquviva in 1583 to the Jesuits there. This letter, which has a huge archival value, hangs on a flimsy chord in the dining room of the presbytery. Though, rain and moisture has whittled away the sheen of the letter, yet this document could be read fully. It would be good to find a way to retrieve the document for our archives. On our way back we visited the Shrine of Devasagayam Pillai, the first Indian martyr (d. 14 Jan 1754). Devasagayam was born a Hindu and later become a Catholic out of conviction. He was persecuted for three years by the king of Travancore. Finally the King’s soldiers shot Devasagayam dead on this Aralvaimozhi mount. While the animal ate away his flesh his bones were collected by his friends and were buried in the Cathedral of Kottar diocese. His deep commitment to the person of Christ and his tremendous energy to withstand all types of persecution for Christ is a real challenge to Christian life in the modern times. The diocesan authorities have built the Shrine in a very environment-friendly way without harming the nature around. People of all religions, visit the shrine and pray to Devasagayam Pillai who is yet to be raised to the altar. In the beginning of our tertianship, we went to a few Marian shrines praying for the guidance and intercession of Our Lady, as we were about to enter into the journey of love, the Spiritual Exercises. At the end of the third probation again we went on a pilgrimage to places of Xaverian interest to pray for strength to live out the mystery of our call following the footsteps of Francis Xavier. Pilgrimages connect the faith aspect of our vocation to be Jesuits: call to say Yes like Our Lady and say I am your man like Francis Xavier. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ vmalpan@gmail.com