CM to launch 450yr celebrations of Rosario Cathedral

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy will inaugurate the celebration of 450 years of Holy Rosario Cathedral in Mangaluru, on November 18.

Addressing a press meet here on Monday, rector of Rosario Cathedral Rev Fr J B Crasta said that Mangalore Diocese Bishop Most Rev Dr Peter Paul Saldanha will preside over the programme. Minister U T Khader, MPs Nalin Kumar Kateel and Oscar Fernandes will be the chief guests.

Prior to the formal inaugural ceremony, the Eucharistic celebrations will be held at Rosario Cathedral grounds at 5 pm, which will be presided over by Archbishop of Bengaluru Most Rev Dr Peter Machado. Mangalore Bishop Rev Peter Saldanha will deliver the homily.

Fr Crasta said that as a part of the historic celebration of 450 years of the Holy Rosario Cathedral, a three-day retreat (praise and worship) will be held at Rosario Cathedral from November 15 to 17 from 5 pm to 8 pm.

Social projects

As a part of the celebration, the Holy Rosario Cathedral will earmark Rs 4.50 lakh for helping the release of poor undertrials who have been languishing in prison.

The initiative will be taken up in association with Prison Ministry India, an NGO.

He further said that title deeds will be issued to 10 families and financial assistance will be given for the repair of 10 houses. A health fund will also be raised to help the poor.

About the church

The church was built by the Portuguese when they landed in Mangaluru in 1568. The Portuguese under Diego de Silveira won the battle at Mangaluru on January 5, 1568, and occupied the town.

The cathedral now stands where the Portuguese church had stood once. The royal stone emblem of the Portuguese King marking their landing in Mangaluru lies at the entrance of the Cathedral.

Rosario Church was desecrated and destroyed by Tipu Sultan’s forces in 1784. The work to rebuild the church began in 1813. The British government had given a grant of Rs 4,000 to rebuild both the churches – Rosario and St Milagres.

On April 16, 1850, the church was raised to the rank of a cathedral. Fr Urban Stein, a German, was the first parish priest on the arrival of the Jesuits (1879-1888).

The first Episcopal Ordination witnessed in the old church was of Mgr Nicolas Marie Pagani on October 25, 1885.

It was in 1910 that Fr Henry I Buzzoni, Parish priest, demolished the entire structure of the old cathedral and commenced work on the present day spacious cathedral.