06 December 2024
Pilar, Goa State – The 2nd of December proved to be a memorable day for Filipinos in Goa as they engaged His Eminence Luis Antonio G. Cardinal Tagle and Philippine Ambassador to India Josel F. Ignacio in a joint meet-and-greet event.
The gathering took place at Goa’s iconic hilltop All India Mission Seminary (Pilar Seminary), headquarters of the Society of the Missionaries of St. Francis Xavier (SFX), with the kind support of the SFX administration.
Cardinal Tagle, currently Pro-Prefect for the Section of Evangelization of Dicastery for Evangelization, was in Goa as the Vatican’s representative to the decadal exposition of the relics of the Roman Catholic Church’s Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552), in repose and venerated there since 1553.Ambassador Ignacio, meanwhile, was on his first visit to Goa and interaction with the state’s sizeable Filipino diaspora. The Ambassador was accompanied by Vice Consul Mark Anthony G. Articulo, Attaché Bernard O. Cabal, and Philippine Honorary Consul (Mumbai) Retnasamy Swaminathan. Cardinal Tagle and Ambassador Ignacio addressed the gathering in succession. The Filipino Cardinal, the highest-ranking Filipino in the Vatican, delivered an inspiring message, before giving the Filipinos present a blessing.
There are an estimated 1,356 Filipinos in India, according to India’s Foreign Regional Registration Office (FRRO), virtually all of whom are spouses of Indian nationals. Around 200 Filipinos are based in Goa state. Apart from the Embassy in New Delhi, they are served by the Honorary Philippine Consulate General based in Mumbai.To date, the Ambassador has led service missions and visited Filipinos in Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and, outside India, in Kathmandu (Nepal). END
