Goa, and particularly its Catholic community, rejoices as another of its illustrious sons, Fr Simiao Purificacao Fernandes, receives his Episcopal Ordination at the Se Cathedral in Old Goa on Monday, June 17, at the hands of Archbishop-Patriarch Filipe Neri Cardinal Ferrao in the presence of over a dozen other bishops, hundreds of priests and thousands of Christians and people of other faiths.
Bishop Simiao was born on December 21, 1967 to late Victor Fernandes and late Ana Santana Costa, at Guirdolim, Chandor. He is the last of the four siblings and lost his only brother, a few years back. He was ordained priest in 1993, did his Licenciate in Sacred Scriptures in Rome and his Doctorate in Biblical Theology in Pune. He exercised his pastoral ministry in the parishes of Aldona. Taleigao, Marcela and San Pedro and has occupied several important positions and given his valued contribution in various committees of the Goan Archdiocese. He was a professor at the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol and is presently the director of the St Pius X Pastoral Institute and the convener of the committee for ongoing Formation
of Clergy.
Bishop Simiao’s appointment as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman fulfills a long felt need of the Archdiocese, for an assistant to the Metropolitan Archbishop Filipe Neri, who, besides having been elevated as Cardinal, two years back, holds other important posts as president of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences and president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, which is the national episcopal conference of the Latin Rite in the country. These prominent positions obviously take much of his time and energies and the appointment of an Auxiliary surely brings great relief to him, though he still carries out his duties with great diligence, responsibility and endurance
Until 2006, when the Diocese of Sindhudurg was attached to The Archdiocese of Goa & Daman, it did not have any suffragans. Generally, Archdioceses have suffragan Dioceses, but Goa was one of the few exceptions perhaps due to its importance and prominent role it played in the spread of Christianity. The Head of the Archdiocese carries also the honorary titles of Primate of the East Indies and Patriarch of East Indies.
Though Goans have headed several dioceses and Archdioceses in India, including those of Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Nagpur, etc and even in Portuguese colonies, the Archdiocese was never headed by one of our own until 1963 when Msgr Francisco Rebello, from Margao became Auxiliary Bishop to Patriarch of Goa, Jose Alvernaz, who then lived in Portugal. He took over as Apostolic Administrator in 1966 and was replaced in 1972 by Msgr Raul Gonsalves, from Bambolim, who in 1967 had become the Auxiliary Bishop. On the resignation of Patriarch Alvernaz, Raul Gonsalves, in1978 became the first Goan Archbishop of Goa & Daman and Patriarch of East Indies. Fr Filipe Neri Ferrao, from Aldona, became Auxiliary Bishop in 1994 and took over from Archbishop Raul Gonsalves in 2004, after the latter’s resignation. Archbishop Filipe Neri became the first Cardinal heading this over four and half centuries old Archdiocese. However, Mumbai & Karachi have had Goans heading their Archdioceses as Cardinals.
The new Bishop is a polyglot and speaks eight languages. His talks and sermons are full of wit and humour. These special traits of his personality are bound to take him a long way in the exercise of his new Ministry.
While congratulating Goa’s new Prelate on this auspicious day of his Ordination on Monday, June 17, we wish and pray that his motto: To serve, not to be served - in the footsteps of Jesus, bear abundant fruit and help him discharge faithfully his new duties in the Lord’s vineyard.
(Jose Maria Miranda had the privilege of working as Secretary of Cruz dos Milagres project (St. Joseph Vaz Retreat Centre), under Fr Simiao Purificacao Fernandes’ able leadership, as the Convenor and was able to appreciate his eye for detail, his sincerity, devotion, humility and simplicity.)