27th January 2019 was a ‘golden day’ for Christha Prabhalaya Church,
Jayanagar, which celebrated 50 years since its inauguration (1969 - 2019). The
newly painted Church sparkled with beautiful gold decorations. The parishioners
and invitees turned up in large numbers for the celebrations, which commenced
with a solemn Eucharistic Celebration concelebrated by thirty priests along with
the main celebrant, Most Rev. Dr. Peter Machado, Archbishop of Bangalore.
The Archbishop was given a warm welcome by the school band of Carmel
Convent School, Jayanagar. The catechism students, all dressed in white,
showered flowers as the celebrants made their way to the altar through the
congregation. The Holy Mass was celebrated in three languages – Kannada,
Tamil and English.
The Introductory message was read by Mr. Vimal Ignatius in English, Sr. Leera
Pinto in Kannada and Mr. Joseph Ashok in Tamil. They all expressed the joy and
happiness of the parishioners on this special occasion and the need to thank
Almighty God for the many blessings, spiritual and material, which He has
poured out on the parish during the last fifty years.
27th January 2019 was a ‘golden day’ for Christha Prabhalaya Church,
Jayanagar, which celebrated 50 years since its inauguration (1969 - 2019). The
newly painted Church sparkled with beautiful gold decorations. The parishioners and invitees turned up in large numbers for the celebrations, which commenced with a solemn Eucharistic Celebration concelebrated by thirty priests along with the main celebrant, Most Rev. Dr. Peter Machado, Archbishop of Bangalore. The Archbishop was given a warm welcome by the school band of Carmel Convent School, Jayanagar. The catechism students, all dressed in white, showered flowers as the celebrants made their way to the altar through the congregation. The Holy Mass was celebrated in three languages – Kannada, Tamil and English.
The Introductory message was read by Mr. Vimal Ignatius in English, Sr. Leera Pinto in Kannada and Mr. Joseph Ashok in Tamil. They all expressed the joy and happiness of the parishioners on this special occasion and the need to thank Almighty God for the many blessings, spiritual and material, which He has poured out on the parish during the last fifty years. In his homily, the Archbishop stressed the importance of the Church in Jayanagar and thanked God for the growth that the Parish has witnessed during the last fifty years. He appreciated the unity of people coming from different backgrounds and diverse cultures that make up the Parish. He urged the people to be united in their efforts, to become ‘the salt of the earth and the light to the world’.
During the felicitations that followed the Eucharistic celebration, Fr. Lourdu Baskar, the Assistant Parish Priest, welcomed the dignitaries in the gathering consisting of Mr. Ramalinga Reddy, Ex-Home Minister; Ms. Soumya Reddy, MLA for Jayanagar Constituency; Mr. U.B. Venkatesh, MLC; Mr. Nagaraj, BBMP Councillor; and Mrs. Nagarathna Ramamoorthy, BBMP Councillor. Sr. Mabilia, the Assistant Superior General of the Congregation of the Apostolic Carmel; Mr. S. Vincent Dhanabalan and Mr. Antony Das, representatives of the Parish Council, were also present. Rev. Fr. Sagayanathan, in his address to the gathering, traced the history of Christha Prabhalaya Epiphany Church, Jayanagar, from its humble beginnings in 1969 to its present status as one of the largest parishes in the Archdiocese of Bangalore. He acknowledged the contribution of the previous Parish Priests and their Assistants, who had served the Parish and thanked all those who had worked tirelessly to make this Parish what it is today.
Two couples of our Parish, who were married in 1969 and celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary in 2019 - Mr. Trevor and Mrs. Phyllis Brooks and Mr. R.S. David and Mrs. Anthony Mary - were felicitated by the Archbishop.
The highlight of the celebrations was the recognition of fifty BBMP workers (pourakarmikas), who help to keep clean the streets of Jayanagar, and fifty
dialysis patients, who are beneficiaries of Snehahasta. The dignitaries presented
the BBMP workers with sarees and the dialysis patients with a cheque for their
dialysis expenses. Mr. Paul Raj, the Sacristan of Christha Prabhalaya, who serves the parish 24x7, was also felicitated by the Archbishop for his selfless service.
The Archbishop then formally released the Souvenir that was brought out on this
special occasion. It will serve as a wonderful memory for all who attended the grand celebrations and provide a glimpse of the same to those who could not. The celebrations concluded with a festive lunch for approximately 3,000 people. The delicious meal was served on traditional banana leaves and everyone had their fill – a fitting end to a wonderful and happy day! Special thanks to Mr. Jesu Prabhalan and Ms. Kathleen, who compered the event; the Parish Council Members, the Golden Jubilee Souvenir Committee and the Volunteer Teams that all worked hard to make this event a grand success!
- Julius Pinto