Leon Bent –
Ven. Agnelo was born at Anjuna, Goa on 21st January 1869 in a very pious family. His parents were devout and religious minded people imbued with a true Christian spirit. His father was a strict disciplinarian, while his mother was a paragon of virtues, devotion and zeal. She used to teach Catechism to the children of the neighborhood.
From the very beginning little Agnelo had an ‘crown of light,’ a halo around him: An energy field or luminosity, and since he was spiritually illumined, awakened and enlightened, the young man also developed a spiritual aura. Jesus-Power flowed fountain-like from him. In simple terms it may be referred to as – faith imbued, Spirit-filled, grace in superabundance; the Fruit and Gifts of the Spirit. This is why he was forever a living prayer! Divine electricity oozed out of him!
Without the shadow of a doubt, Fr. Agnelo was a mystic and his life was a mystery. Further, a mystery is always cocooned in the deepest silence and utter solitude. The torch of mysticism burned in Agnelo with sweetness and purity. The sixth beatitude promises: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Mt 5:8). This is why he was led to the “Beatific Vision!” The saint in question, in worldly terms, was like an “upside down” tree: Its roots in heaven, its flowers and fruit, right here on earth. Mystics “Bring Eternity into Time.” In Fr. Agnelo we have a person who achieved completeness of life, which the mystics call “deification”: The ineffable Splendor of God! Agnelo, the mystic, who rose heavenward on the wings of love has much to give to the spiritual life of men. He is a saint: A “Christified human being” – A treasure of timeless spirituality! This is why the Society of Pilar is doing its very best to get the Catholic Church’s center, the Vatican, to get him Canonized.
Pilar Missionary
God had destined Agnelo for a perfect life. He wanted to live the Evangelical counsels in a religious order. After much prayer, reflection and consultation, on 17th July 1897, he joined the Missionary Society of St. Francis Xavier of Pilar, Goa. On 24th Sept. 1898, he was ordained a priest by Dom Antonio Sebastiao Valente. For the next 10 years, he almost lived a hidden life preparing himself for a unique and spiritual and missionary journey.
Jesus was the Center of Agnelo’s Life
Mathew (Mt. 13:44) speaks about a man who by chance, found a hidden treasure. After covering it again, he went to sell all that he had to buy the field, so that, he could own this rare treasure. Paul was soaked with Christ. Paul wanted to vanish entirely in Christ. “For to me life is Christ and death is gain” (Phil. 1:20) “Who will ever separate us from the love of Christ?” (Rom. 8:35).
Fr. Agnelo, too, found in Jesus the only treasure of his life. He relished hours together in Jesus’ “real presence” in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine in the Tabernacle. “There was a rare glow around him, when he prayed before the Blessed Sacrament”, testifies his sacristan who accompanied him even during late hours at night. The Holy Hour or Adoration is not a devotion: It is a sharing in the work of redemption. Jesus said to the three apostles in the garden of Gethsemane: “Could you not watch one hour with me? (Mt.26:40). Not for an hour of activity, did he plead, but for an hour of companionship.” In Adoration before the blessed Sacrament, “heart speaks to heart.” “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (Archbishop Fulton Sheen). Adoration and the Eucharist are powerhouses of grace and blessings from on high. They are like diesel locomotives that, can draw any person, just as it did Venerable Fr. Agnelo, on the path to holiness and sainthood.
Fr. Agnelo was covered with the glory of God and his countenance became sublime and ecstatic when celebrating the Eucharist, and his countenance appeared to be transfigured from the moment of Consecration. Fr. Agnelo had an intense devotion to the Sacred Heart, and it was a delight to hear him speak of Jesus and of His passionate love for us. Indeed, he inflamed the hearts of his seminarians and the people with his devotion to Sacred Heart of Jesus. Yes, the Crucified and Risen Lord belongs to all, the rich and poor, those of different faith persuasions and to countless devotees who have special needs. This explains the proclivity of Agnelo to the poor and marginalized, those hurting and in pain and his gentleness and tenderness for everyone.
The New Paradigm
Ven. Fr. Agnelo rediscovered the theology of the Kingdom of God: The new reign of godliness marked by right relationships, justice, hope, love, peace and joy. This new reign is in the world, but not connected to it; experienced in time, but not time-conditioned; profoundly human, yet cosmic; concerned with physical reality, yet, essential spiritual. The holy member of the Society of Pilar professed a radical and simple lifestyle. The “saint” of Pilar was countercultural. He administrated “Shock Therapy,” the awakening, activation, and ascension of in a person’s psyche – catalyst: Paul describes the profile of a spiritual catalyst: 1) Focus on God’s grace; 2) Live to please God, not people; 3) They get personally involved being accessible, affectionate, empathetic, and vulnerable; and 4) Combine their example with challenges to others. The agenda for a Christian revolutionary is synonymous with drastic, profound and poignant transformation. This kind of liminality was that indefinable, ambiguous space, thrust upon Fr. Agnelo. It is a position of privilege and pain, inviting and frightening. Liminality is a quality of being in between two places or stages, on the verge of transitioning to something new. There’s a liminality to the brief moment between being asleep and being fully awake.
Holy Death
He had a very holy death on 20th November 1927. It was on the vespers of the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Fr. Agnelo was the preacher. Towards the end of his Sermon he collapsed in the pulpit. When his body was brought down, he insisted on being allowed to stay for the Benediction of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Even in his last moments he displayed the tranquility of a saintly man. Upon his death people in the vicinity of the Seminary, people said, “a saint has passed away”. Even before his funeral had taken place, the staff and the students from the seminary began picking up the few possessions of Fr. Agnelo. Latecomers began cutting his nails and even hair to keep as “relics”. At his funeral the then parish priest commented, “I have just laid a saint to rest”.
It was only on January 10, 1939, the remains of Fr. Agnelo were transferred from Rachol Seminary to the monastery of Pilar, on July 2, 1939.
Fr. Agnel’s Shrine and Healings
From then on multitudes began flocking to his burial-place, and even pick up mud from his grave only to mix in water and drink to be cured from various sicknesses. Indeed, Fr. Agnelo’s tomb at Pilar attracts countless devotees from all over the world.
Holistic healing is integral to Christianity. There are 41 cases of Jesus’ healing ministry in the Gospels, and 19 in Acts of the Apostles. Jesus specifically sent his followers to practice such a mission, directing them to expect miracles, to occur as part of being his followers. The apostles’ task was to teach, preach and heal. We have the classic passage in the New Testament about anointing with oil for healing (Cf. James 5:14).
In the context of Venerable Fr. Agnelo’s process of canonization – in the Roman Catholic communion – several miracles of healing, must be confirmed before sainthood is declared.
Every Thursday, and especially from 11th to 20th November, many devotees flock to Pilar to make a Novena in preparation for Fr. Agnelo’s Death Anniversary, to thank God for the favors received through his intercession. This is why shrines and relics are used as healing media. A Shrine is a Catholic or any other sacred place that, houses the remains or relics of a saint or other holy person, which is the object of religious veneration, prayer, pleadings and pilgrimage. In Fr. Agnelo’s case it is his majestic tomb, in the ancient Franciscan Monastery at the summit of Pilar hill, where his remains are kept for veneration, prayer and intercession. This aspect of Catholicism was lost for several centuries, until it was revived by the Second Vatican Council. Whenever the Church has been imbibed with the Spirit of Jesus Christ, the power of the Holy Spirit is a real healing force.
Cause for Canonization
Anyone can strive to live a saintly life on earth. In the Roman Catholic Church, one has to die to be declared a saint! A Seraph or immaculate or ‘white as snow’ or holy person, means someone set aside for the purpose of glorifying God. A canon is simply a list. We have no idea who are in heaven or hell or purgatory. All those souls who are in heaven are saints. However, a “canonized Saint” is one whom the Church believes to have evidence, following a rigorous scientific process, of their presence in heaven. A Canon is a partial list. It doesn’t record all who are in heaven, but only those we believe through evidence are surely in heaven. Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the “canon catalogue of saints”, or in the authorized list of that communion’s recognized saints. Fr. Agnel is almost halfway through this rigorous and arduous follow-up.
Agnelo Gustavo Adolfo de Souza S.F.X. (21 January 1869 – 20 November 1927), was a Goan Roman Catholic priest of the Society of the Missionaries of St. Francis Xavier, Pilar who performed missionary work in the province of Goa, then part of Portuguese India. The cause for his canonization has been accepted for investigation by the Holy See, and has progressed to the point that he has been declared Venerable.
The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints is the Vatican organization that, manages the process of canonization and beatification. However, the process of canonization usually begins five years after a person’s death, but the Pope can waive this waiting period.
Today, even after 97 years of his saintly death, Fr. Agnelo’s tomb at Pilar, attracts countless devotees from all over the world, to give thanks for favors received, to seek his powerful intercession in their needs and to pray for his canonization.
Conclusion
Saints like Venerable Fr. Agnelo, are powerful beacons of the light of Christ to the world. Every situation in their lives is an exemplar of their discernment of God’s will for themselves and for the service of others. They give us courage and assurance. The core of Fr. Agnelo’s spirituality is a sign of hope and vitality for God’s people, on their pilgrim journey to eternal bliss. After all they were men and women like us, frail yet graced, who did what all of us are called to do – to search for God, and to respond to him at every moment of our lives. Religious, like Fr. Agnelo, are intended to be kingdom-spotters; their vocation is to be kingdom people. They belong to, both, Church and world, to the here and hereafter, and yet, they are invited to transcend all these categories, and respond to the supreme prophetic task of advaita: The recreation of life in the depth and unity of the One who holds all things in being. Those who do this to a supreme level are declared saints.
Ven. Agnelo is one such person— the icon of Pilar! Pray that he be raised to the category of a canonized saint!
The Society of Pilar/Missionary Society of St. Francis Xavier are in the process of spreading the fame of Venerable Fr. Agnelo, to accelerate the Cause of his Canonization. Readers are requested to report any extraordinary miracles that take place, so that it can be submitted for Vatican’s scrutiny.