Diploma Day at Carmelite Monastery, Margao Commissions New Biblical Animators

Margao, Goa, March 1, 2026: In a prayerful culmination of study and formation, participants of the Bible Course on the Parables of Jesus were awarded diplomas and formally commissioned as Biblical Animators during a solemn Eucharistic celebration at the Carmelite Monastery, Margao. The course was organised by the Diocesan Centre for Biblical Apostolate of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman.

The Eucharist was presided over by Fr. Silvestre D’Souza, Provincial Superior of the Karnataka-Goa Province of the Carmelites, with concelebrants including Fr. Mariano D’Costa, Director of the Diocesan Centre for Biblical Apostolate, and Fr. Marlon Rodrigues, Superior of the Carmelite Monastery, along with other priests.

Following the Mass, the Rite of Commissioning formally entrusted the newly trained animators with the mission of carrying the Word of God into families and parish communities. The Diploma Day, organisers noted, signified not only academic completion but a pastoral mandate to witness to Scripture in daily life.

Addressing the faithful, Fr. Silvestre underscored the Church’s enduring commitment to Sacred Scripture. Recalling the vision of Pope Pius XII in promoting vernacular translations rooted in the original biblical texts, and the initiative of Pope Francis in instituting the Sunday of the Word of God, he urged participants to deepen their personal encounter with Christ through Scripture, prayer and the Eucharist. Echoing the teaching of St. Jerome, he reminded the assembly that “ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”

In his homily, Fr. Silvestre reflected on the Lenten journey, linking the temptations of Jesus with human struggle and the Transfiguration with the believer’s ultimate destiny in God. Emphasising interior transformation through Eucharistic participation, he invited the faithful to seek a living experience of Christ in Word and sacrament.

Biblical Animator Antonio X Fernandes also addressed the gathering, while Fr. Mariano D’Costa expressed gratitude to all collaborators. Fr. Marlon Rodrigues extended a vote of thanks to the organisers and participants whose commitment shaped the programme.

The celebration in Margao stood as a renewed call to discipleship—sending forth lay faithful formed in Scripture to proclaim the transforming power of God’s Word in Church and society.

Diploma Day at Carmelite Monastery, Margao Commissions New Biblical Animators

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