Nativity Celebrations - 8 September, 8 AM
The Nativity Feast on September 8th was celebrated with religious fervor at the Holy Redeemers Church, Derebail. All parishioners, especially children carrying flower baskets of all sizes gathered at the church grounds at 8 AM. The devotion to Mother Mary was shown by singing of hymns in her praise and showering of flowers in her honor by the children and the youth. This was followed by a grand procession to the church for the liturgical celebrations.
In the introduction and later in his homily, the Assistant Parish Priest Fr. Vinod explained the three fold significance and celebration of the day. Firstly, the celebration of the festival of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, secondly the Festival of Harvest or the new corn which is a family festival for all Mangaloreans throughout the world and lastly, the celebration of the Girl Child by the church. He explained the virtues of Mary as our Mother, the sacrifices she made as mother of our Lord Jesus Christ and how she is a perfect role model for all women and especially for mothers to emulate. He urged the gathering to pray to the Almighty God to bless our farmers who toil day in and day out to bring in a bountiful harvest and thereby strive to make a good living. He also prayed that the farmers be granted wisdom in order to avoid the use of chemicals and pesticides in the greed for profits leading to harmful effects on the health of human beings. Fr. Vinod emphasized the rights of the Girl Child and urged all faithful especially the youth and the girls in particular to remain united in the fight against any injustice done to the Girl Child.
The New Corn was then blessed which the Gurkars had brought earlier in a procession. The Parish Priest, Fr. Peter Dsouza requested the Gurkars who are the leaders in the modern church to distribute the New Corn to all the parishioners. The melodious choir by the children added to the solemnity of the celebrations. The Mass ended with the distribution of sugar cane to all the parishioners - children and old alike. The parishioners of Derebail Church came together as one flock and family of the church to celebrate the Nativity of our Mother in great pomp and gaiety.
In pictures
