Good morning/Good afternoon/Good evening my
friends, wherever you are! 😀
This is 2:00pm. 25th December, 2016, Sunday
in India. After a long time I am able to blog; actually, I’m little busy in
shifting to a new city. I will share about my new resident very soon.
Before I talk more, I want to wish you –
💝 Merry Christmas 💝
Let the spirit of Christmas warm your home with love, joy and peace.
It is a very special day today! Jesus was born on
the day. We all, wherever we live in the World, celebrate the day. In India,
there are so many churches, where people go today. Not only Christian, but all
the religions celebrate together with the same enthusiasm. I’m going to share
about a very old church in West Bengal.
 |
| Bandel Churche |
The Basilica of the Holy Rosary commonly
known as Bandel Church, situated in a small town “Bandel”, in Hoogly
district. It is one of the oldest Christian churches in West Bengal,
India. Bandel Church was dedicated to
Nossa Senhora do Rosario or ‘Our Lady of the Happy Journey’, it is a memorial
to the Portuguese settlement in West Bengal. Considered to be built by Gomez de
Soto, it has the key stone of the old church bearing year 1559 over the gate of
the monastery. It got burned down in 1632 but was rebuilt in 1660.
There are three altars, several tomb stones and a
small organ in the church. It is one of the popular historical churches in West
Bengal and is an ideal place for relaxation and prayer.
The existence of Bandel Church has got a
Portuguese connection. A church was built on the banks of Hooghly almost a
century after Vasco da Gama reached this state. The Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan
attacked the Portuguese in 1632 which resulted in the collapse of many forts
and churches of Portugal settlement. The attacks on the Portuguese witnessed
several miracles which saved lives of many people and impressed the Mughal
Emperor. In one such incident, a Portuguese ship is said to have encountered a
storm and the Captain of the ship promised to provide the main mast of the ship
to the first church he will see. ‘Bandel’ is the Portuguese word for mast and
the old church which the captain had found was named ‘Bandel Church’.
On
November 25, 1988, Pope John Paul II declared the Bandel Church as a minor
Basilica.
Well’ that’s all for today! Hope you like today’s post. Take care of your family and yourself! Have a very good day/ afternoon/evening/night! Namaskar. 👩
