Sasthan parishioners handover St Lawrence Statue to Attur
Udupi: The parishioners of St Antony’s Church Sasthan handed over the statue of St. Lawrence that was found on July 5 in the Seetha river near Hangarcutta to the Attur Shrine here, on Thursday, July 14 .
The parishioners took the statue in a procession of vehicles after the morning mass from Sasthan Church to St Lawrence Shrine, which has been recently elevated as a minor basilica by Pope Francis. The parishioners took part in the weekly novena and handed over the statue to the Rector of the shrine Fr George D’Souza.
On July 5, locals who had noticed the statue of St. Lawrence floating in the Seetha river near Hangarcutta, contacted the parish priest of St. Anthony’s Church (Sasthan), Fr John Walter Mendonca. The priest rushed to the spot and with the help of locals, lifted the statue from the river, took it to the church and installed it at the ICYM Stage. The statue weighs about 40 kg. On July 10 during the Sunday mass, the statue was blessed and brought inside the church in a procession. The church administration decided to donate the statue to St Lawrence Minor Basilica Karkala, Attur.
Fr Mendonca also received a call by Vasudeva Karvy on July 5, claiming that there was another statue found floating near the Kodi beach. Fr Mendonca sent the parishioners to enquire about the matter. The parishioners, Kishore Dias and Lucas D’Souza, identified the statue as that of Fr Roque Zephrin Noronha and called the trustee of St Thomas Orthodox Syrian Church, Sastan. Parish priest Fr Noel Lewis along with others rushed to the spot and made arrangements to take the statue to St Mary’s Orthodox Syrian Cathedral, Brahmavar.
