The Professed House
Immediately to the south of the main road is the Professed House, a two-storeyed
laterite building covered with lime plaster. Despite the opposition, which the Jesuits
faced, the building was completed in 1585. A part of the building was accidentally burnt
down in 1663 and was rebuilt in 1783.
The Church Of Bom Jesus
The Church of Bom Jesus is also of laterite; its exterior, excepting the fa�ade, was lime
plastered, which was subsequently removed. The roof was originally tiled. The church is
cruciform on plan. The flying buttresses on the northern side of the church are |
A projecting gallery, which was intended for
the use of dignitaries on solemn occasions, runs along the two longer sides. Excepting the
richly gilded altars, the interior of the church is remarkable for its simplicity. While
the fa�ade has the classical orders of the Renaissance, the altars are in Baroque style.
The church is called "Bom Jesus" meaning 'good Jesus' or 'infant Jesus' to whom
it is dedicated. The fa�ade has on it, at the top, the letters, "HIS" which are
the first three letters of Jesus in Greek. The two columns supporting the choir bear slabs
inscribed in Portuguese and Latin recording that the construction of this Church of Jesus
was commenced on 24 November 1594 and Fr. Alexia de Menezes, the Archbishop of Goa and
Primate of India consecrated it on 15 May 1605, when it was completed.
Within The Church's Domicile
As one enters, beneath the choir, to the right is an altar of St. Anthony and to the left
is an exceedingly well-carved wooden statue of St. Francis Xavier. In the middle of the
nave on the northern wall is the cenotaph of the benefactor of this church, Dom Jeronimo
Mascarenhas, the Captain of Cochin, who died in 1593, bequeathing the resources out of
which this church was built.
Opposite the cenotaph, projecting on the southern wall is a profusely carved wooden pulpit
with a canopy on top. The pulpit has on its three sides the figures of Jesus, the four
evangelists and four doctors of the church. The bottom of the pulpit depicts seven figures
as though supporting it.
The Main Altar
The main altar at the end of the nave is flanked by two decorated altars in the transept,
one dedicated to Our Lady of Hope and the other to St. Michael. The richly gilded main
altar has the figure of infant Jesus and above it is a large statue of St. Ignatius
Loyola, founder of the order of Jesuits, gazing with fervour at a medallion on which is
inscribed "HIS". Above the medallion, the Holy trinity - the Father, the Son and
the Holy Ghost are depicted. In the transept on the northern side is the Chapel of the
Blessed Sacrament.
The Chapel
On the southern side in the transept is a chapel with gilded twisted columns and floral
decorations of wood, where the sacred relics of the body of St. Francis Xavier are kept.
The interior of this chapel is richly adorned with wooden carvings and paintings,
depicting the scenes from the life of the Saint.
Depicting The Life Of St. Xavier Through Paintings
On the southern wall are paintings in Italian School arranged in three rows. In the bottom
row are two paintings showing St. Francis Xavier being received by certain Portuguese
noblemen and his interview with the King of Bango in Japan. In the middle row are three
paintings respectively showing Xavier praying with fervour for cessation of plague that
broke out in Manas Island, kissing the repulsive ulcer wound of a patient in a hospital at
Venice and the Pope Paul III pronouncing his apostolic benediction on the eve of his
departure to India.
In the top row are, three paintings of Xavier as a servant of a knight, his sad demise at
Sancian, an island off the coast of China and the saint in ecstasy. There are also other
paintings on the remaining three sides of the chapel, fixed in decorated wooden frames
depicting the scenes from his life and the miracles performed by him. A painting, in oil
on canvas, of ST. Francis Xavier is mounted on the top of the wooden door at the back of
the chapel.
The Ornate Grandeur
The rectangular base of the tomb is of jasper of reddish and purple colours decorated with
carvings in white marble. Above the basement is another rectangular mass of slightly
lesser dimensions having a plaque in bronze on each of its four sides depicting the scenes
from the life of the saint, and two cherubs holding scrolls.
The four bronze plaques on the four sides show respectively, Xavier preaching to the
people of Moluccas, holding aloft the Crucifix and baptizing the natives, swimming away to
safety escaping from the wild natives of the island of Morro and dying in the island of
Sancian off the coast of China. A beautiful silver statue is kept in front of the casket.
The silver casket, which serves as a reliquary containing the sacred relics of the body of
St. Francis Xavier, is exquisitely carved, and was once studded with precious stones. The
casket is divided on each side into seven panels, each of which has two plates
representing in relief important incidents in the life of the saint.
The Duke of Tuscany, Cosmas III, gifted the tomb. A famous sculptor from Florence,
Giovanni Batista Foggini, completed the tomb in ten years, and was brought to Goa where it
was assembled in 1698.
The Altar
Adjoining the Chapel of St. Francis Xavier is a corridor that leads to the sacristy,
entered through an exquisitely carved wooden door. It is an oblong vaulted structure with
an apse at the end. Alongside the walls are kept the portraits of various saints above
delicately carved chest of drawers. In the altar at the apse in an iron chest containing a
golden rose blessed by the Pope Pius XII and gifted to this city in 1953. At the foot of
the altar is the grave of the founder of the vestry, Balthazar da Veiga who died in 1659.
A painting giving a fair idea as to the state of the body of St. Xavier about a hundred
years ago is displayed near the altar.
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