By Lissy Maruthanakuzhy
Panaji, March 13, 2024: Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrao, archbishop of Goa and Daman, has hailed the Catholic religious men and women as a blessing since they rejuvenate the Church.
“You render service to the holiness of the Church. We need your prophetic voice and action. You can teach the entire church to walk the synodal path,” the cardinal told the general body meeting of the Goa unit of the Conference of Religious India.
More than 300 religious attended the March 8 program held at Don Bosco Oratory, Panaji, the state capital.
The prelate, who had participated in the Rome Synod, shared his experience of the October 2023 event.
“The Synod was an experience of the common journey. Everyone in the synod was given equal consideration. There was no hierarchical seating arrangement. We all sat around a round table, irrespective of our status in the Church. And we addressed each one by name,” the cardinal recalled.
He said the synod was held in a deeply religious environment where interreligious prayer service and a three-day retreat prepared the participants to discern what the Holy Spirit was telling them during the event.
Suggesting more collaboration with the Church and laity, the prelate said, “The Holy Spirit is very generous. Our role is to facilitate and share the gifts in our missionary Church. As bishop of the archdiocese I appreciate with deep gratitude your presence and service.”
The assembly felicitated the cardinal for being elected the president of the Federation Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC).
The cardinal said those in consecrated life are the first to sense important historical changes and to heed the promptings of the Spirit. “Today too, the Church needs your prophetic voice and action,” he added.