Bathinda is a big, bustling town situated about 360 Kms north west of Delhi. From the Baptismal records and from the scarce correspondence that is available, one can conclude that Christianity existed in Bathinda as early as 1900. The town did not have residential priests but spiritual help came from visiting priests, mainly from religious orders like the Oblates and Franciscans. They probably were based in Ambala or Sirsa. The Oblates contributed to a great extent towards the maintenance and growth of Christianity in this area outstanding among them was Fr. Albano Swarbrick, the first residential priest. In his long years of service (1921-37) he worked like a zealous missionary to maintain, strengthen and to spread the faith. He also worked hard to acquire a place for religious services for the Catholics, mainly railway employees in Bathinda. The prayer room under the water tank can be said to be the fruit of his toil.
Ecclesiastically Bathinda was part of Agra diocese and later on of Delhi-shimla Archdiocese. In 1959 shimla was created a separate diocese as ‘shimla Chandigarh’ and Rev. John Burke was its first Bishop.
From 1960-62, diocesan priests took charge of Bathinda Parish but due to some reason the diocese withdrew its priests and asked the Pilar Fathers from Sirsa to look after the parish. Initially Fr. Mariano Pereira and Fr. Peter Mathias visited Bathinda and gave services occasionally. In 1961 the Bethany Sisters opened a Convent in Bathinda. A priest to look after their spiritual needs was an urgency. The bishop again requested the Society to take over the Bathinda parish. The request was accepted and Fr. Anselmo D’Sa was sent in 1963. Thus a permanent residential station began in Bathinda, though in a rented house.
The Fathers worked with great enthusiasm and zeal and in a few years time bought a piece of land and built a hostel cum presbytery on the Power House Road. They also started a Bal Niketan and a Dispensary to cater to the needs of the poor children and people. They also visited villages and established contacts as far as Ganga in the West (Dabwali), Gidda in the North, Sangrur in the East and Moll-Mandi in the South. Bathinda had 26 villages to look after. The Missionary apostolate suffered a set back with the sudden departure of Fr. Anselmo and the constant transfer of members thereafter. As the Christian community grew, the need was felt for a church, and in 1986 a beautiful Church was built on the plot of the Power House Road. It was blessed and inaugurated on 2nd October by Bishop Gilbert Rego when Fr. Anacleto Fernandes was the Parish Priest.
Besides services at the Church, The Fathers help out in other areas like the Convent of the Bethany Sisters, Air Force Chapel, Army Cantonment, etc. A major section of the parishioners live in the villages. Regular contacts are established with them. Besides the Eucharistic celebrations, Sangats (a form of prayer service) are also conducted by the Fathers in the villages.
The Society of Pilar had purchased 20 bighas and 10.5 biswas of land on the Power House Road in 1966 on which they built a hostel for boys and the Priests’ Residence. The hostel was blessed by Bishop Alfred on 17th March 1972. It provided some financial support to the unit. In 1984 the hostel had to be closed down due to militancy that plagued the State. Many of the boys emerged from the hostel as self-reliant and responsible citizens. Later on when peace prevailed, the activity of Bal Niketan was resumed. Boys from the poor villages were given shelter and education. Some of the Bal Niketan boys even became catechists, youth leaders and one even a lay Brother (Bro. David).
In 1984, when militancy was at its peak, the Fathers offered a ray of hope by starting an English medium School for boys. It was a pilot project of Fr. Anthony D’Silva. In 1990, the International Year of the Girl Child, the School also admitted girl students. The School had a humble beginning. In 1987 a plot measuring 4.32 acres was purchased in the Model Town, Phase II, and a new School building was put up which is one of the best Schools in the town today. It was inaugurated on 30th April 1989 by the eminent Julio Ribeiro, the then Advisor to the Governor of Punjab. The Senior Secondary Block was inaugurated on 19th November 2005 at the hands of the Deputy Commissioner of Bathinda Shri Rahul Bhandari. It was blessed by Bishop Gerald J. Mathias. The School is affiliated to the C.B.S.E. and has around 2500 students.
Besides the formal education in the School, the educational activity is also extended to the villages in the form of Coaching Centres. Here children of the village schools gather in a place and a teacher is employed to help them with their lessons. The Fathers monitor the working of the Coaching Centres from time to time.
Rampuraphul is one of the 3 divisions of Bathinda District. It is a fast growing township situated 30 Kms from Bathinda town, on the way to Chandigarh. The Rampuraphul Education Society persistently requested the Pilar Fathers to take over and develop a small School run by them. Seeing the good prospects for the Evangelization, the Society accepted the gift of the School and started a residential unit there with Fr. Menino Gomes and Fr. Agnelo Gomes on 15th September 1994. They had to go through a lot of odds with no proper living facilities and strived to inject confidence into the skeptic residents. They persuaded them to send their children to the School. Their efforts paid and more and more students sought admissions. Meanwhile an additional wing was built to cater to the growing strength of the students. The School attracted more residential houses in the vicinity. The School has been consistently getting 100% results in the CSSE Board Examinations since 1998. During the tenure of Principal, Fr. Anthony Rosario Fernandes and Fr. Eulaio Fernandes, a new Kindergarten Block and Priests’ Residence was blessed by Fr. Tony Lopes, the Superior General and inaugurated by Sardar H. Jassi, Chairman of Markfed, Punjab on 2nd August 2005. The School has around 2000 students on its roll.
Situated in the western border of Haryana and 39 Kms from Bathinda, lies the Mandi Dabwali mission. It had a long tradition of Christian presence. As early as 1953, Fr. Arsenio Favrin the pastor at Sirsa in his correspondence to the Bishop, states that a large group of Protestants living in Dabwali, expressed their desire to become Catholics. Because of the bright prospects, the Dabwali mission station was started in 1970. It was pioneered by Fr. Filomeno Almeida and Fr. Agnelo Pinto. They arrived there on 6th January 1970. On 5th February 1971 they started the St. Joseph’s School in a rental house with just 6 students on its roll. Today the School which is affiliated to ICSE has about 1000 students. The Church was built in 1983 by Fr. Joseph Vaz. In recent years with the organization of theme-based Sangats under the dynamic leadership of Bro. David Masih and Fr. Dominic Dias, Dabwali becomes a hub of activity on Sundays. Villagers from far away villages congregate for the Sunday Mass and take active part in the healing service that follows. Sangats are regularly organized in the villages. There is a great scope for evangelization in the near future.
Besides the Church, Dabwali campus also has a dispensary, Bal Niketan Boys’ Home, residential staff quarter, Priests’ residence and a new School block. The size of the land is 4.5 acres. The Dabwali unit has two out stations, i.e. Godika and Dessu Jodha where community halls exist for the purpose of liturgical and social activities.
In 1994, the Presentation Sisters were brought in, and the sub-station Dessu Jodha was handed over to them. Their charism being empowerment of women, they began their social work in right earnest in 15 villages, 8 of which are directly under their care, where they run 2 primary schools for 140 students from the backward classes who are rag pickers. The Sisters have also formed 8 self-help groups who work for development through Government loans. Adult literacy and tailoring classes are conducted in the Centre. The Sisters also render services to 16 handicapped children from PTCB, Sirsa. They get the funding from NGOs like the Red Cross, Disha, etc.
Sirsa is a big, bustling town situated about 260 Kms north west of Delhi. It is also a district of Haryana. The place seems to have had a long-standing tradition of being the hub of active Christian apostolate. From the dawn of the twentieth century, religious orders like the Oblates and the Franciscan Capuchins nurtured the faith of the Christian communities.
The Society of Pilar arrived on the scene in 1950, when two of its missionaries were sent to the then Delhi Diocese. Fr. Assuncao D’Souza was stationed at Sirsa and traversed on land covering a radius of nearly 250 Kms from Hisar in Haryana to Ferozepur in Punjab. Fr. Gustavo Alvares was at St. Edward’s, shimla. In 1960 the District of Hisar was entrusted to Pilar Fathers. Fr. Ovidio D’Cunha and Fr. Mariano Pereira were the pioneering duo. In 1962 a small hostel/orphanage was opened. One of its first student was a teacher in our Rania School. A flourishing farm, in the able hands of Bro. Lawrence Fernandes was the source of income to the mission. In 1965 a Hindi Medium School was opened with about 15 boys. In 1974 St. Xavier’s English Medium School was opened. A new Church named after Holy Rosary was built in 1984 when Fr. Cristo Rei Rodrigues was the Parish Priest. In 1994 a group of sisters of Holy Family of Nazareth, Sancoale joined the Fathers in their apostolate. A Bal Niketan for village children was opened in 1995 and new home for them was inaugurated on October 16, 2005 during the tenure of Fr. Anthony Pinto and Fr. Albert Fernandes. On December 18, 2005, the Senior Secondary Block of St. Xavier’s was inaugurated.
Fr. Francis Diniz, one of the members who worked in Sirsa during the crucial phase of the birth and early growth of the School recalls the wonderful co-operation he received from the other units: “As the green signal for the starting of the new project was given by the Centre, all our energies were geared to make it a success. The good nuns of St. Joseph’s High School Bathinda came forward with important and much needed advice, and our Fathers from St. Joseph’s Dabwali gave us good advice and also their spare furniture. Our Fathers from Xaverian Niketan of Bathinda assured us of their financial support in case of need. Strengthened with such brotherly and sisterly love and support, we immediately launched the project and a modest beginning was made on 2nd April 1974, just with one batch of Nursery Class.” (St. Xavier’s, Sirsa, Souvenir 1989-90)
Even the members of the Sirsa unit made personal sacrifices for the School project. Fr. Marden Pereira volunteered to vacate his own private room to make place for the classroom. Fr. Vincent Fernandes offered the small dispensary room that he was running to accommodate the teachers recruited from Bombay and Goa. Fr. Anselm D’Sa, Superior of the Bathinda unit gave timely financial assistance. Fr. Alcantra Gracias’ timely assistance in Sirsa helped in bringing funds from abroad.
Today, Sirsa has well established buildings to run the pastoral and social activities. Having sufficient financial stability, the ministry in the villages is also vibrant. The Priests still reside in the bungalow No. L.63 belonging to the Railways. The existing buildings of the Schools, Church, Orphanage are located in the diocesan property measuring 12 acres.
Rania is a tehsil of the district of Sirsa and located 20 Kms from Sirsa town. According to folklore, Rania was named by Bhairo Singh in memory of his beloved wives who had committed sati mistaken him to be dead. Today Rania has its own block development office, land revenue office and a civil hospital. The people are mainly valmiki and majbi Sikhs. Valmikis are said to be migrants from Rajasthan. The dominant religions are Hinduism and Sikhism.
The Presence of Christianity in Rania dates from 1936 – 1939. Missionaries from Sirsa used to visit it occasionally to provide material help to the marginalized. When the Pilar Fathers arrived in Sirsa in March 1961, they continued the same strategy of their predecessors. Fr. Inacinho Dourado, one of the early missionary to Rania purchased a small plot of land in the village of Pratapnagar and built a chapel there. After some years, the Fathers felt that it was time that Rania should become a residential unit. Thus in 1972, Fr. M. T. Anthony (Devanand) was the first residential priest. He lived in a katcha house of two rooms attached to the old dilapidated chapel. He did pioneering work in this place and toured the villages on a cycle. He started a Hindi Medium School in a humble way under the shade of a huge neem tree in the compound which came to be known as Jagat Jyoti Vidhyala. After 10 years of committed service, Fr. Devanand was transferred to the Andaman Island. In 1982, a plot measuring 1.5 acres was purchased where the School was shifted in a new building. Construction of a Church and residence was started by Fr. Vincent Fernandes in 1988 and completed by Fr. Diogo D’Souza in 1994.
Today, Rania unit caters to 60 Catholic families spread over 16 villages. Coaching centres are being run in 3 villages. Chapels are built in Banni and Pratapnagar.
The Rania unit which was once a quiet place is now in the centre of a thickly populated and commercial area. The Sisters of Franciscan Missionaries of Christ the King (FMCK) joined the Pilar Fathers in 1992. Besides the School and Church building, the campus has a Girls’ Hostel named Mariam Niketan providing care and shelter to 40 girls from the villages. It was opened in 1996. The FMCK Sisters look after the children. To house more children the Mariam Niketan building was further extended and formally blessed by the Local Superior of Sirsa, Fr. Albert Fernandes and inaugurated by Fr. Stephen Dias on 14th January 2006.
The district of Hisar was regularly visited by the Pilar Fathers since 1961. A residential mission station was opened in the city of Hisar on 18th March 1990 and Fr. Cristo Rei Rodrigues was appointed as its first Parish Priest. The parish was dedicated to St. Francis Xavier but the Catholic community did not have a Church of their own. Religious services were held in the old CNI Church. The same Church was a house of worship for Christians of other denominations. In December of 1991, Fr. Menino Gomes, Fr. Peter D’Mello and Bro. Peter D’Souza were posted in Hisar with the task of opening an English Medium School and bringing up a Mission Complex. They lived in rented quarters and from there, looked after the spiritual needs of the faithful even in Hansi and Ganga village. They were also looking out for a piece of land to establish a firm footing. Their search was rewarded when the Society bought a land of 15 acres in the village of Talwandi Rana, situated about 8 Kms from the city. In July 1994 the first block of St. Francis Xavier School was completed and inaugurated and the School and residence from Urban Estate II were shifted to the new place in Talwandi Rana.
Today, the land that was once barren and contained saline water is now an oasis. The School has prospered since after facing many odds. It is affiliated to CBSE. It has entered the Senior Secondary phase in the year 2004. Thanks to the tireless efforts put in by Fr. Albert Fernandes and Fr. Ivo Dias. 90% of the students commute to the school in the private school buses.
The unit has a rural ambience in the midst of cultivated fields. But recently some development for residence have taken place in the land surrounding the unit with plots divided and a network of roads built.
The community of Hisar is a conglomeration of communities residing under the same roof of the first Block that also houses the Nursery Section. Besides the priest members, there are three other communities: the FMCK Sister, Hostel for Boys and the residential staff members. The FMCK Sisters landed in Hisar in 2003. They collaborate in the School and mission apostolate.
On 3rd December 2007, the long awaited dream of Hisar was fulfilled when a new Church was built when Fr. Anthony Marian Fernandes was the Parish Priest. The Church was built in the 1 acre of land contributed by the Society of Pilar and dedicated to St. Francis Xavier. It was blessed by the Bishop of shimla – Chandigarh, Rt. Rev. Gerald John Mathias and inaugurated by Fr. Menino Gomes, the Provincial Superior. The Church also houses the Presbytery whose inauguration was done by Fr. Max Gonsalves, the Local Superior of Hisar House.
Hisar Church has an active Parish Council. It has two Mass Centres: one at the Army Cantonment and the other at the spacious Godda Farm owned by the Military. Camps are held for the children of the Farm in the Hisar Campus every summer.
1. Historical Data: Narnaul is the headquarters of the district of Mahindragarh in Haryana. This was the only district where there was no Christian presence. Hence, Archbishop Agnelo took the initiative to start some activity there. Narnaul is a town of 70,000 people, majority of them being Hindus and 5000 Sikhs. According to local statistics, Muslims where majority until the partition of 1947. Old buildings still have the architecture of Muslim homes.
This mission station was accepted by our Society in 1990. Fr. Jesuino Almeida with Bro. Felix Baptista arrived in Narnaul on 9th March 1990 and stayed for few days in the Vikas Hotel. Then they rented a small house, first near the Civil Hospital and after some months at the Mahindragarh Road. In April 1992 the Mata Mariam Jan Seva Vidyalaya (Hindi/English Medium School) was started. In 1993 Fr. Eusebio Gomes joined Fr. Jesuino as the Principal of the School. The Regents also contributed a lot towards the growth of the unit. In 1994 the Archdiocese of Delhi acquired land in Nasibpur for the school building. Three Sisters of Our Lady of Graces, Meerut also joined the Narnaul unit in June 1994. They helped in the School and social work. The Archdiocese financed the construction of the School building worth 1.5 crore. It was the brain child of Archbishop Alan de Lastic. It must be noted that Narnaul is totally non-Christian area. Keeping the thrust of evangelization in mind, education and social work is stressed a lot. The Mata Mariam Jan Seva Vidyalaya is a co-ed bilingual school catering to all classes of people. It imparts moral values to the children. The School has around 900 students on its rolls.
Besides education, the Fathers and Sisters of Narnaul implement the projects of Carita India in more than 10 villages. They conduct the following activities: Adult literacy, Balwadis, Stitching classes, Youth animation, Street plays, Health awareness programmes, self-help groups and remedial classes. Social work is given a priority being pre-dominantly non-Christian area.
Dholpur is a developing small town located in the eastern part of Rajasthan. It is sandwiched between the great historical cities of Agra in Uttar Pradesh and Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh. The town is a home to about 90,000 people comprising Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and few Christians. The Capuchin Fathers were the first to set foot in this little town and opened a mission station in 1970. Fr. Ivan did the pioneering work followed by his confrere Fr. John Joseph. They began an English medium School. As the school flourished, it aroused the hostility of certain powerful vested interests which led to an attack on Fr. Joseph. The mission had to be abandoned in 1976.
The Society stepped into the Archdiocese of Agra in June 1993. Fr. Shivaji Henriques was appointed the Parish Priest of St. Mary’s, Agra on 27th June 1993. He was also asked to extend his missionary work in Dholpur. In the year 2001, with the concern of concentrating on evangelization, and developing the mission of Dholpur, the Pilar Fathers were relieved of St. Mary’s, Agra and given the charge of the small flock at Dholpur in Rajasthan. Fr. Eusebio Gomes and Fr. Rosario Antao explored the area to obtain a plot of land for the Society of Pilar. A centre for English Speaking Course for school and college students was opened which helped to interact with the people of all walks of life. The catholic community was very small with just 45 families. Three sub-stations were opened at Bari (35 kms away), Baseri (46 kms) and Raja Khera (40 kms away). Fr. Marden Pereira explored the nearby villages and identified areas for the implementation of Caritas sponsored projects. After residing for three years in four different rented houses, the ‘Pilar Niwas’ residence was blessed by Archbishop Oswald Gracias and inaugurated by late Archbishop Emeritus Cecil D’Sa. Fr. Paixao, the parish priest along with Fr. Marden Pereira undertook the arduous task of the construction the new Church building which was blessed and inaugurated on 5th February 2005 by the Archbishop Oswald Gracias of Agra.
The Parish of Bakshinagar was born when in 1958, 9 families from Punjab migrated in Jammu to earn their daily bread. These families had come by the order of then Chief Minister Mr. Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed. They worked for the Jammu Municipal Corporation as sweepers. When the foreign missionaries who were working in Jammu began visiting them, they were touched by their care and concern and embraced the Catholic faith. Prior to that they belonged to various Christian sects like the Assembly of God, Pentecostals, etc. In those days St. Peter’s Church 3 Kms away from Bakshinagar was the only Church where the people could fulfill their Sunday obligation. As the years rolled by, these families grew and they felt the need to have their own Church. With the incentives given by the foreign missionaries, the people built their own Church dedicated to St. John the Evangelist, in the very heart of their basthi symbolizing that God was the centre of their life. The land on which the Church was built belongs to the J. M. Corporation. Thus the Church of Bakshinagar has been into existence since 1958. It was raised into a parish in 1991 with Fr. T. S. Jacob as the first resident Parish Priest. The parish of Bakshinagar was given to the Pilar Fathers in the year 2000, a Millennium gift. Fr. Amaro Martins was appointed the Parish Priest in 2001. The Fathers cater to the spiritual needs of 800 odd people who are basically municipality workers. The parish is blessed with many associations such as Society of Vincent de Paul, Alter Servers, Mahila Samaj, etc.
The construction of the new Church and the presbytery was the need of the hour to accommodate the growing number of Catholic families. Fr. Amaro Martins, the parish priest along with his assistant Fr. John Fernandes took upon themselves the responsibility of constructing a new Church. They personally supervised the construction work. The Church was blessed and inaugurated on 19th December 2004 by Bishop Peter Celestine, OFM. Cap.
Bakshinagar ha been elevated to the status of a Local House. Members residing here have the facility of doing their B.Ed or M.A Studies in Jammu or IGNOU University. A little before establishing the Local House, a contract was signed with the Diocese of Jammu-Srinagar for 10 years. The Bishop has handed over the mission station of Battoo for further development.
Battoo is 135 Kms from Jammu. Plans are on to construct the Church, School, Convent and Retreat Centre at Battoo. There are Christian people in the area though they are spread far and wide.
The Bishop has also proposed to give Mandal mission parish, which is 15 Kms from Jammu.
There are 12 villages and only in 6 Villages there are Catholics numbering 35 families i.e. around 200 odd people
who are basically farmers. In this mission place there is a convent, school and a handicapped hostel for girls run by the Sisters.
The diocese is also building a hostel for handicapped boys and mentally challenged people. The Pilar Fathers’ missionary work will be
to cater to the spiritual needs of the parish and to do social work with Sisters and then to build a school within the 15 Kms stretch.
The parish and school will belong to Province. Once the base is established, the missionary work will expand further Jammu unit.