THE BOMBAY SEMINARY: The Invitation Card (1960)
The Inauguration of the Goregaon Seminary on October 5, 1960 was ‘the culmination of many hopes, the fulfilment of many dreams.’ The new Seminary was declared open by His Eminence Gregory Peter Cardinal Agagianian, Pro-Prefect of the Sacred Congregation of Propaganda and Patriarch of Cilicia of the Armenians.
The Cardinal Prefect arrived on October 4, 1960 at Santa Cruz airport to a rousing welcome. As the Souvenir states: ‘Three receptions were given in the Cardinal Prefect’s honour that evening, one by the Governor, Sri Prakasa, at Raj Bhavan another by the Mayor, Mr. V. N. Desai, on behalf of the Municipal Corporation and a third by His Eminence Valerian Cardinal Gracias in the brightly coloured Ball Room of the Taj Mahal Hotel. This last was attended by a distinguished gathering of about five hundred people, including high church dignitaries as well as high ranking State officials.
There were besides the Cardinals and Bishops, the Governor Mr. Sri Prakasa, the Chief Minister, Mr. Y. B. Chavan, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice- Admiral Katari, Mr. K. M. Munshi, Mr. Nayar, Mr. G. L. Mehta, members of the Consular Corps and Papal Knights. His Eminence, the Cardinal Prefect went round talking freely and affably to the guests to whom he was introduced. There seemed to be a happy commingling of everybody present, especially of the church dignitaries and the State officials, a sure sign of the harmonious relations existing between the Church and the State Government.’
The #ObjectoftheDay is the simple yet stately invitation card to this memorable event. It is a treasured artefact of the Archdiocesan Seminary. Not only did it serve to invite the prelates of the past but continues to summon us to explore the intriguing stories that surround the storeys of the Bombay Seminary.
Please feel free to share this story with others and your story of the Seminary with us! You will get regular updates at this blog site on this exhibition.
© – Archdiocesan Heritage Museum
Fr. Warner D'Souza is a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Bombay. He has served in the parishes of St Michael's (Mahim), St Paul's (Dadar East), Our Lady of Mount Carmel, (Bandra), a ten year stint as priest-in-charge at St Jude Church (Malad East) and at present is the Parish Priest at St Stephen's Church (Cumballa Hill). He is also the Director of the Archdiocesan Heritage Museum and is the co-ordinator of the Committee for the Promotion and Preservation of the Artistic and Historic Patrimony of the Church.
