Holy Trinity Church

Shot with Arrows, Crowned with Glory:

St Sebastian, a beacon of faith

Mrs. Sarita Mendes

From time to time, God sends holy men and women to guide, protect and strengthen His Church. These individuals, through their faith, courage and unwavering commitment to God, become instruments of His grace and light in the world.
St Sebastian was one such shining example. At a time when Christians faced severe persecution, God called him to be a source of strength, hope and encouragement. As a Roman soldier, Sebastian used his position to secretly support and care for imprisoned Christians.
Sebastian’s dedication to his faith was discovered, and he was brought before Emperor Diocletian. The emperor ordered him to be executed. He was tied to a tree and shot with arrows. Thought to be dead, he was left for dead, but miraculously he survived. A Christian widow found him, nursed him back to health and restored his strength.
Instead of running for safety, Sebastian boldly confronted Emperor Diocletian again, urging him to stop persecuting Christians. This angered Diocletian, and he ordered Sebastian to be beaten to death. This time, Sebastian’s life came to an end, and his body was thrown into a sewer. Devout Christians later recovered his body and buried him in the catacombs of Rome, where his tomb became a place of pilgrimage.
Like St Sebastian, let us be powerful examples of courage, perseverance and unwavering faith in God.
Reflection: St. Sebastian’s story reminds us of the power of faith and the courage to stand up for our beliefs, even in the face of extreme adversity. His example teaches us the importance of compassion and support for those suffering and persecuted. Following his example, we can strengthen our faith and become beacons of hope for others.
Faith is the strength that carries us through the darkest of times. – St Sebastian

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Saint Sebastian

Sr. Jovita Mendonca FDCC

Sebastian was born at Narbonne, Gaul. He became a soldier in the Roman army at Rome in about 283, and encouraged Marcellian and Marcus, under sentence of death, to remain firm in their faith. Sebastian made numerous converts: among them were the master of the rolls, Nicostratus, who was in charge of prisoners and his wife, Zoe, a deaf mute whom he cured; the jailer Claudius; Chromatius, Prefect of Rome, whom he cured of gout; and Chromatius’ son, Tiburtius. Chromatius set the prisoners free, freed his slaves, and resigned as prefect.
Sebastian distinguished himself and for his excellent service, he was promoted to serve in the Praetorian Guard to protect Emperor Diocletian. Neither knew that Sebastian was a Christian. While serving as a Praetorian Guard, Marcus and Marcellian, twin brothers, were imprisoned for refusing to make public sacrifices to the Roman gods. The brothers were deacons of the Christian Church. During their imprisonment, their parents visited them to implore them to renounce Christianity. However, St. Sebastian convinced both parents to convert to Christianity.
St. Sebastian was venerated at Milan as early as the time of St. Ambrose and was buried on the Appian Way. He is patron of archers, athletes, and soldiers, and is appealed to for protection against plagues. Archers riddled his body with arrows, his body was described as, “full of arrows as an urchin.” Believed to be dead, the archers left his body for retrieval and burial. He was recovered by Irene of Rome, whose Christian husband was a servant to Diocletian and also martyred. Irene discovered that Sebastian was still living and she hid him and nursed him back to health.
He is patron saint of athletes because of his physical endurance and his energetic way of spreading and defending the Faith. His efforts kept the Faith of Marcus and Marcellian firm during their persecutions, right up to the time of their martyrdom.

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An Insight into St. Sebastian’s Chapel, Arpora

Mr. Sebastiao Pinto

Clara Pinto, belonging the family Pinto’s in Candolim was married in Chorao and had a son by the name of Sebastiao diagnosed with serious illness and was about to die. She made a vow that if the child survived, she would build a chapel dedicated to St. Sebastian on the property in Arpora that she had received as a dowry gift where existed a small farmhouse built by her. And in this Chapel, she would install a statue of the size of the child. At the age of 20 the child died. After the child’s death she took under her care her nephew also supposed to be the great grandfather of Sebastiao Pinto. They applied to the Archbishop for permission to celebrate the Eucharist in the Chapel. A decree was issued on March 11th, 1716, granting permission that the mass celebrated therein would be valid for the Pinto family and their staff. The family refused to accept this. They wanted the mass to be valid for the family and the villagers of Arpora and as such the second decree issued April 12th, 1793, which granted the requested permission.

Another family, the D’Cunha family are related to the The D’Cunha family employed as a professor in the Lisbon, became Atheist. The family in Arpora was disturbed and prayed to St. Sebastian to bring him back to Catholic faith. After some time, he wrote to them that he had given up Atheism and joined back to the Catholic Church. He told them that he would be coming to Goa. They wrote to him that on his way back to Goa he should come via Rome and bring a relic, of St. Sebastian. This relic we venerate to this day on the feast we celebrate on January 20th.