Art/ Heritage

On May 2, 1936, the Seminary was formally erected: ‘In conformity with the Canon 1354, We, by these Letters sealed with Our seal, on this day of May 1936, the eighth anniversary of our election, erect and establish the Seminary of Bombay at Parel; and with the best hopes of happy results We declare St. Anthony of Lisbon and St. Francis Xavier to be its Patrons.’                          

– Archbishop Joaquim Lima.

The Bombay Seminary at Parel was inaugurated on June 13, 1936. Aware of the legacy of the moment the Archbishop delivered a resounding and heartfelt speech. Here are a few excerpts:

…Please note, my dear seminarist, that your Archbishop will never be content with the formation of a mediocre clergy in the Seminary of Bombay. He wants the Archdiocese in this matter to hold its place among the most advanced dioceses in the world….

…Be like soldiers. Be always prepared to go wherever you may be sent by your superiors, and if you wish to be more distinguished labourers in the vineyard of the Lord, ask your superiors, when you are priests, to send you to the hardest missions…in this Archdiocese. The signs of the times are very bad! Zeal and more zeal, self-sacrifice, and more self-sacrifice are nowadays more required than they were in previous times. But how to acquire them?

Be it in your mind, my dear seminarist, that they are the delicious fruits of the tree which are always to remain fresh in the garden of your soul-i.e. the grace of God. Try to make your souls the habitual dwelling place of the Holy Ghost. He will teach you; He will guide you in your life; He will take you under his protection when the cross weighs heavily on you; He will finally make you eminent, zealous and self-sacrificing priests according to the ideal of the Church….

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Faith

Consider this for a moment; Jesus has taken on the might of the Jewish establishment in the temple itself and none of what he has to say is remotely easy to stomach. He has already pronounced five of the seven woes against the Scribes and the Pharisees and now before he steps into the fifth discourse, the eschatological discourse, he comes down heavily on the Jewish religious establishment

While our texts today will end at verse 32, it would do well to read the text till verse 36. For all those who thought that Jesus was dangerously out of line when he made a whip and drove the money changers out of the temple, his words in Chapter 23 will be louder than his actions. The words we hear him speak barely reflect the Jesus we have come to know; the one who is mild and meek.

The last two woes deal with all things dead, be they the prophets or their tombs. The very topic of death and all its trappings were linked to Jewish rites of impurity. Touching a dead person or for that matter a tombstone could render you ritually unclean. It was for this reason that the Jews took great pains to white wash their tombs less some hapless Jew stumbles on one of them and is now unclean. The whitewashing of tombs served as a sign board of warning.

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Food

Ingredients
Onions 2 sliced
Garlic 4-5 cloves
Shallots 6-7
Tomatoes 4 chopped
Chana Dal 1 tbsp
Hing/Asafoetida 1/2 tsp
Whole red chillies 4
Pudina leaves 1/2 cup
Salt
Oil

For the tempering
Oil
Mustard seeds 1 tsp
Whole red chillies 2
Curry leaves handful

Method
1. Take a pan with some oil and add the Chana Dal, hing, Onions, shallots and garlic. Stir fry for a few minutes. Add the whole red chillies.
2. Add the chopped tomatoes and salt. Allow the tomatoes to turn mushy. Then add the Pudina/Mint leaves and stir for another 2 minutes. Switch off the flame. Once cooled down, transfer to a blender and blend until smooth.
3. For the tempering, add some oil in a pan and add all the ingredients mentioned above for tempering. Add the ground paste and mix well. Switch off the flame. Serve with Idlis and Dosas.

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Art/ Heritage

The storeys of the Bombay Seminary are engulfed with stories, each marked by perplexing patience, long labyrinths, bewildering events, and unending hopes. Finally, in 1936 the undeterred spirit and apostolic zeal of Archbishop Lima brought to fruition the long nourished faith of the Archdiocese.

The Archbishop called Father Conget, the new Jesuit Superior, and asked him if the Society was willing to run the Seminary. Father Conget in turn consulted his General who heartily agreed but suggested that a formal agreement be drawn between the Archdiocese and the Society.

On the other hand, the Nuns informed the Archbishop that they would be ready to vacate the Parel premises by the end of 1935. The sisters left on December 15, 1935, and handed over the keys to the Archbishop on December 31, 1935.

Next, Fr. Chrysanto Zurbitu S.J. was appointed Chaplain of the Parel Chapel on January 1, 1936. While serving as a visiting priest of King Edward Memorial Hospital, Fr Zurbitu also supervised the structural alterations as required to convert the convent and school into a seminary.

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Art/ Heritage

 In the 1930’s Parel had emerged as the main thorough fare that crossed Bombay from south to north. It was accessible by bus, tram and rail. The ‘Bishop’s Villa’ was located in a charmingly quiet environ sans congestion. Above all the Parel property belonged to the Archdiocese. With a ready – construction, spacious buildings and chapel, Parel appeared as the perfect possibility for the Bombay Seminary.

Nevertheless a problem had yet to be ironed out. Archbishop Joaquim Lima, with good grace, had to get the property back from the nuns. The sisters were not tenants. They had occupied the premises rent-free for nearly seventy years and their attachment to the property was understandable.

However, in perspective, in the 1930’s the situation of the Parel Convent was far different than the 1860’s. In seventy years the Nuns had established other schools in the city with their main residence at Byculla which also included a large boarding. Besides only a portion of the Parel grounds was utilized while a majority seemed to lie barren. Thus it was not unreasonable that Archbishop Lima felt that the Parel Institution be closed and the boarders and pupils moved to other schools conducted by the same congregation in the city.

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