St. Xavier’s Province. Rajkot

St. Chavara Sayings:

A good Christian family resembles heavenly abode. The members in the family shall regard the elders in high esteem and live together in unity and solidarity. Every person shall maintain highest dignity and aim for salvation in all his words and deeds. If you wish that others forgive your defects, should you not forgive the evils done to you by others? Each one forgives the short –comings of others. The country that is divided against itself cannot survive, says our lord himself. Those families where there is discord will soon perish. If you won’t forgive among yourselves, how will outsiders forgive you? If tomorrow they should forgive you, today should you not forgive them? If you love only that is good to you, what more do you do than those outside the faith? We have inherited from our great father Adam enough trials and difficulties. Should you add to them voluntarily? The blessing and honour of a family consist its peaceful existence without any quarrel. Do not hold family festivals, and other celebrations on Sundays and holy days of obligation. Sunday is the Lord’s day, do not make it devil’s day. Do not borrow money except when it is absolutely necessary. Try to clear all debts as quickly as possible. If there are outstanding obligations of mass or debt left by parents, hasten to discharge them zealously. To ignore outstanding obligations of mass or debt is dangerous, it brings down divine wrath on the family. Do not show off your wealth and power. The one who styles himself as rich will soon have to beg. He who shows off all that he has, is really of a low standard. Do not spend more than what you can on festivals and celebrations. it is better to light a small lamp and keep it longer, than blaze a haystack and light up for short time . If you did not burn away your lamp at day time, you could have lighted it at night. Do not go round the houses of others and collect informations about them. Do not contract relationships with families that despise order or have no fear of god. It is orderly and God-fearing members that would be helpful to you. Do not let all sorts of people freely move about your house. Only let courteous, God fearing people be free in your house. Tell me who your friends are, I will tell you who you are. Make it clear that your house is not the place for indecent talk, unchristian behaviour, and uncharitable criticism of your neighbours or other people. If the crime of another is being discussed in your house, the punishment for that crime will fall on your house. The wealth of the family is not in the quantity of the possessions but in their quality. Work according to your status of life. Doing no work is not a good habit of a respectable person Laziness is mother to all other vices. Laziness leads to drink. Refuse to work, fits people who have no home and kith and kin. Drunkenness s disgraceful before the world and guilty before god. Riches amassed through deceit and fraud will melt away soon like snow. Trade involves risk of both soul and wealth. Days on which you have not rendered any good to others will not be reckoned among the days of your life. Be more zealous about other people loving you than fearing you. Do not let beggars leave your home empty handed. Do not refrain from giving alms whenever you can. God had commanded men to help each other. Extravagance and miserliness are both sinful. The wealth of the miser will be devoured by worms. The luxuries of the extravagance will disappear like smoke. Do not have many friends. Choose one carefully from among a thousand. one who does not love God will not love you either truly. Do not let stolen things remain in your house even for a short while. Do not mix with people who steal other people’s property, because you share their guilt and sin. The Holy Ghost warns us that houses harbouring stolen goods will be consumed by fire. Pay just wages to labourers. Do not deny or delay payment of just wages to labourers. Deny just wages to labourers is a sin which cries up to the throne of God for retribution. Do not belittle or humiliate the poor. God will demand you an account of tears of the poor. The essential worth of a family consists in its holiness and fear of God. The family with fear of God will enjoy divine blessings both in this world and the next. Slander and foul talk in homes, darken the light in good families. Try to participate in the Mass daily. If all cannot attend daily mass, at least one can attend the mass every day. Go to confession and communion at least once a month. Be exceedingly chaste, modest and careful, in all your movements, whether sitting or walking, or lying or playing. Immodesty is disgraceful before God ang man. When diseases, trials and difficulties, face you, resign yourselves to the will of God. One who is patient only when everything goes well with him, is a weak man. Disease and grief are sign of God’s love. Pagan books spread error and ignorance. Keeping of bad books is like hiding fire in straw. Books of wisdom and philosophical knowledge help us to increase our devotion and form the treasure parents should earn and lay by for the children. Buy good books according to your capacity. Days of obligation should be spent as the days of God. On days of obligation spend most of the day in listening to sermons, reading, visiting the poor and in exercising charity in general. Engage only God-fearing servants. Let the masters be always alive to their responsibility for the moral conduct of their dependants and servants and watch over all their activities. Many homes are under the sway of the devil who uses servants as his agents. Be careful to go to sleep in correct time. Be careful be to wake up early in time and rise also punctually. Those who do not obey their parents, they will have God’s punishment in this life and life after death. Your prayers shall be a witness to others. Every morning say the morning prayers. In the evening, after angelus, say the family prayers in common. You shall not default your family prayer at any cost. Do not interrupt the family prayer because of some important person being in your house at that time. Parents remember that it is your primary duty and responsibility to bring up your children. Children you are god’s investment in the hand of your parents. Know you that these children have been entrusted to you to be purified with the most precious blood of the lord, to be trained up in his service and to be returned to him on the judgement day. If any of the children is fall to hell, because of your fault, what a big hindrance will it be for your salvation. If you desire your children to be good and helpful to you in your old age, take care that you give them training as good Christians when they are young . When they are young, they do not fear and love God, later they will not respect or love their parents. Parents should frequently commit their children to God. Parents should commit their children to the protection of Holy family. Parents should always pray for their children. Trust your mother; God will hear the mother’s request like the baby’s request. Teach the children to call on Jesus, Mary and Joseph as soon as they are grown up enough. Show the children the pictures of saints and teach them to honour and love them. Teach the children ,our Father ,Hail Mary, and the Angelus and other small prayers as soon as they can lisp these prayers. How commendable it is to nourish the souls of your children also as you bring them up in the physical plane. Do not let your children run about naked even inside the house. Do not engage in unbecoming conversations in the presence of the children, thinking that they are too young to understand what you say. Out of respect for the parents, do not let children sleep in the same room with parents. Do not let little boys and little girls sleep in the same room. For the devil will teach them what they may not know naturally. Do not let your little children go out of your sight to play with others. Do not trust careless servants, often they are the ones who spoil the little ones. When they are grown up send them to school. Parents shall keep a close watch in the educational pursuits of their children. Enquire the children about their progress from time to time. Parents must be ensured frequently that their children .do not be trapped into undesirable friendships. Every Sunday check-up what the children have studied . Do not send your children to stay with your relatives. Children who stay with the relatives, very often they leave your house as angels and return as devils. When they are about seven years old, instruct them on confession and prepare them for it . Teach the children to be especially devout to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Do not be very stiff or very lenient towards your children. Too much affection will make the children proud, excessive stiffness, anger, and punishment will make them desperate, dejected and even unashamed. Before inflicting corporal punishment, advise them prudently ,reduce food supplies ,get them to kneel on the floor etc. Parents must also be very moderate in blaming and punishing their children. Children shall be brought up in the best way possibly and you shall extend them all kinds of protection. The mother should set an example to the children in honouring and loving the father. The father should show love and respect for the mother. If the parents do not respect each other, neither will their children respect them. Do not train the children in the worldly habits of lying, or cheating, or playing tricks for the sake of expediency, telling them that it is the way of world. When you find faults in children, reprove them and punish them. Gentle words to children carry more weight than high-sounding outcries. Develop in them a regard for truth and justice. See that all the children are at home by the time the angelus bells ring. Teach the children to greet the parents after family prayers. Let them kiss the hands of the parents. When the children grow up to be about twelve years of age, take particular care of them. Keep the children busily engaged at home in occupation after twelve years old. Dressing up girls and sending them to festivals and as maids of honour to brides are customs and tricks devised by the devil. Parents proudly dress up and embellish their daughters with costly clothes and ornaments to show off their aristocracy or riches or vanity. God only knows how many souls are drawn to hellfire because of it . The most desirable ornaments for a girl are her modesty, devotion, silence and the control of her eyes. Your children have been slighted or insulated should not provoke you to bitterness. It is childish to be thus excited. Give children due freedom to choose their vocation when they come of age. Their consent must be ascertained before marriages are arranged. Look more for qualities of conduct in your relations rather than of wealth or status. Giving more importance to wealth will cause both parents and children deep grief. Parents should not show weakness or indecision before their children even when the latter grow up to be wiser and more efficient. Parents should take steps to establish their children in homesteads of their own. Parents should affect partition of properties before they grow too old. They will be held accountable for dissensions between children arising on account of their failure to do so in time. Children, respect your parents. Children, you are bound before god, to respect your parents and never to occasion them any grief. Worms would eat the wealth of a miser. Good friends will make you good. Attain punctuality by means of a regular time-table. Let your ability be in piety regulating your life and controlling your senses. Let not the insult and quarrels of others because of hatred and enmity. The humble man is the greatest among men. Do not hate your own brethren. Try to improve what holdings you have before trying to acquire more. Life shall not become a loose bounded book. Let there be no day in your life in which you did no good to others. Satisfy with what you have. Try to increase the wealth by sincere work. God will not become one with a heart in sin. Wealth must be spent for the wellbeing of man or it is not moral. Your daily routine shall be punctual. There is a panacea for maintaining the divine light in your homes. That is the Holy Mass conducted in the church. You must find time to visit the poor and sick on Sundays and the days of obligation. No merchant lacking in justice has ever attained respectability. Among the helps do for men from men great is the help at their death time. Surrender yourself to god’s will in hardships or diseases. Be kind and loving towards one another. Each one should forgive the short –comings of others. Do not make alliance with families without fear of god and order. Meditation is the conversation with god. By duly respecting and obeying the parents, the unity of the family must be constituted. Children are God’s investments in the hand of parents. It is most distressing to live in a family where the members are unconcerned with the service of God and their own salvation. Let not the children to fall in to the hell because of your fault. Faithfull friend is the precious wealth. Wealth not becomes a cause of breaking of friendship. Parents must seek the full consent of the children before their marriage. Even animals can retaliate. But to ignore wrong is possible only for the prudent, strong and dignified man. Doing is hundred percent stronger than saying. Slander and foul talk in homes, darken the light in good families. Giving alms is the best way to earn heavenly wealth. The one sign of a monk is a complete surrender of self and practice of obedience, as if he had no eyes and ears. To all hardships and sufferings you should surrender the will of God. God almighty will keep you. God’s grace be with all of you. May God will bless you. May the Holy child smiles at you and bless you with his little hands. One who is patient only when everything goes well with him, is a weak person. How commendable it is to nourish the souls of your children also as you bring them up in the physical plane. When you find faults in children reprove them and punish them. Develop in them a regard for truth and justice. When the children are grown up a little, send them to school. After sending the children to school the parents must enquire their progress from time to time. Children shall be given good books worth reading. May you live in mutual charity and love. Let the children grow up in a strong faith of god. The only sweet consolation for a person experiencing trials and difficulties in this valley of tears is the membership and life in a family where love, order and peace reign. Our Holy Mother realizing our weakness took us into her special love. Please remember that as your houses grow in number, you must develop a cordiality and affection as between brothers born of and bred by the same mother. Oh! Holy Mary Mother of Jesus we pray to you to become your servants and be faithful to you. Oh! Jesus doesn’t look to our sins please look towards your Mother Holy Mary. To keep bad books in your house is like fire that you hide beneath a heap of straw. Your children are big treasures that the good God has entrusted to you. Don’t try to establish relations which are indiscipline and which are not founded on fear of God. Teach the children to be specially devoted to our Blessed Mother. If the parents do not love and respect each other their children will neither love nor respect them. Here is a proverb: Tell me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are. God does not dwell in the hearts loaded by sin. Meditation is a conversation with God, just as friends communicate to each other. Consumption of alcoholic drinks is most odious before the world and very sinful before the Lord. May you live in mutual charity and love. Amidst the tribulations and sorrows of this world, it is most consoling to live in a family in which there is peace and order founded on charity. Forget and forgive mutually the defects and shortcomings of others. Our Lord himself has said that a kingdom where there is discord among the citizen will not survive: so also, a quarrelsome family will surely perish. Don’t deny just wage to the labourer, nor delay the wages due to the labourer, because it is a sin before the Lord. Don’t humiliate a poor man, nor create difficulties to him, because if God happens to see their tears, surely, he will question you. In festivities and celebrations spend according to the prevalent custom and according to your capacity. Select one carefully from a thousand. He who does not love God will neither loves you. Do not allow a stolen article to be kept in your house even for a moment. If your parents have left any obligations of restitutions, or have enjoined any obligation of offering holy mass, fulfil them with diligence and devotion. Wealth of the family consists not on the quantity of properties, but on the quality of properties. The day in which you have not done good to your fellowmen will not be recorded in your book of life. Don’t borrow money unless for some particular essentials needs. Desire that others love you, and not that they fear you. Beggars should not leave our door empty handed. A family is constituted by persons related by blood and united in mutual love giving due respect and obedience to parents and elder, fostering devotion to God and living in peace with fellowmen, making every effort according to each one’s particular state of life, to attain eternal salvation. A good Christian family resembles heavenly abode. To ignore wrong is possible only for the prudent, strong and dignified man. Do not borrow money except when it is absolutely necessary. Civil litigations destroy families.

Our Founder

The Congregation of Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI) is the first indigenous religious congregation in the Catholic Church of India. Fr. Thomas Palackal, Fr. Thomas Porukara and Fr. Kuriakose Chavara of the Syro-Malabar Church of apostolic origin, who felt that “a lot of good had not been done due to the absence of a Thapasu Bhavanam (House of Discipline) and a Darsana Veedu (House of Vision)”, had the challenging vision of providing spiritual leadership and fostering unity and growth in the Kerala Church.

Our Patron

St. Francis Xavier, Spanish San Francisco Javier or Xavier, (born April 7, 1506, Xavier (Javier) Castle, near Sangüesa, Navarre [Spain]—died December 3, 1552, Sancian [now Shangchuan] Island, China; canonized March 12, 1622; feast day December 3), the greatest Roman Catholic missionary of modern times who was instrumental in the establishment of Christianity in India, the Malay Archipelago, and Japan. In Paris in 1534 he pronounced vows as one of the first seven members of the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits, under the leadership of St. Ignatius of Loyola.

St. Xavier's Province: History

At the invitation of the Gujarat Jesuit Province and the Diocese of Ahmedabad, Fr. Theobald Pothanikat CMI, the then Prior General sent a team of six priests to Gujarat in 1972. They were Fr. Damascene Manamel of Chanda Region, Fr. Jospeh Vempala and Fr. Modest Purathayil of St. Joseph’s Province, Fr. Sebastian Vadakumchery of Sacred Heart Province, Fr. Clarus Thazhath of Devmatha Province, and Fr. Mathew Panthiruvelil of St. Thomas Vice-Province. Four of them began learning Gujarati staying at the Jesuit Provincialate at Ahmedabad, while the other two joined the B.Ed. course at Vallabh Vidyanagar. After a year they started helping the Jesuits in the different mission stations in Saurashtra.

On July 16, 1974 the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the CMI’s officially took over the civil districts of Jamnagar, Kutch, Junagadh and Surendranagar from the Society of Jesus at a simple function, held at St. Xavier’s School, Jamnagar. Fr. J. Aizpun S.J. the Jesuit Provincial, Fr. J. Arana S.J., the administrator of Ahmedabad Diocese, Fr. Antony CMI Vicar General, and Fr. J. Liguori CMI, the General Mission Secretary were present on the occasion. On the same day the Jesuits handed over St. Xavier’s School, Jamnagar to the CMI’s. there were twelve priests working in the region at that time.