Goa–Daman Archdiocese Trains More Than 750 Pastoral Leaders for The Chosen Encounter Initiative

OLD GOA, July 11, 2026: More than 750 priests, religious, seminarians and lay leaders from across the Archdiocese of Goa–Daman participated in a two-day The Chosen Encounter training programme held at the Pastoral Institute of St. Pius X, Old Goa, on July 9 and 10, bringing together pastoral leaders to discover new ways of helping communities encounter Jesus through story.

Hosted under the leadership of Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrao, Archbishop-Patriarch of Goa–Daman and President of both the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) and the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC), the programme invited Church leaders to carry the story of Jesus into their parishes and ministries through The Chosen Encounter.

The training was conducted in four sessions over two days. More than 280 priests attended the opening session, followed by over 100 women and men religious. The second day brought together more than 100 seminarians and concluded with over 250 lay faithful representing various archdiocesan commissions and the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council.

The formation was led by Fr. Christopher Vimalraj, Associate Deputy Secretary General of the CCBI, Ashish Nag, Asia Lead for The Chosen, and Ajin Joseph, CCBI's Catholic Engagement Manager for The Chosen and Associate Secretary of the CCBI Family Commission. The sessions were prayerfully supported by NYZ Music, comprising Nyzel D'Lima, Gwen D'Lima and Rylan D'Souza, whose sacred music created an atmosphere of worship, reflection and encounter.

Participants were introduced to the vision of The Chosen Encounter and prepared to facilitate similar sessions in their parishes and ministries. Through selected scenes from the television series, guided reflection and the method of Conversation in the Spirit, the programme showed how the story of Jesus can bring people together in parish faith formation, small Christian communities, youth and family ministry, and in sharing the story of Jesus within the life of the Church.

Addressing the participants, Cardinal Ferrao urged priests, religious, seminarians and lay leaders to bring The Chosen Encounter to every parish in the archdiocese so that more people could deepen their relationship with Christ through the story of the Gospel. He also expressed the archdiocese's full support for the theatrical release of The Chosen: Crucifixion, scheduled for March 2027.

Bishop Simião Purificação Fernandes, who was present throughout the programme, encouraged participants to become faithful witnesses by introducing The Chosen Encounter in their parishes and ministries, inviting communities to encounter Christ through the power of storytelling.

The training marked one of the largest formation gatherings of its kind in the archdiocese, equipping hundreds of pastoral leaders to carry The Chosen Encounter into parishes and ministries across Goa and Daman. As they return to their communities, the story of Jesus will continue to be shared through prayer, reflection and encounter.

By Catholic Connect Reporter