ST. FRANCIS XAVIER FEAST DAY 3RD OF DECEMBER 2021 CELEBRATIONS AT XAVIER COLLEGE (Email Report)

It is strange that we should be thankful to COVID-19 for this rare chance to celebrate and honour our school’s patron saint. Despite all the negative impacts COVID 19 brought into our lives and society, we here in Xavier College still managed to be grateful for and utilize the hidden blessings COVID 19 presented us. Earlier in the week, the statue of St. Francis Xavier, located near the entrance to the school, was cleaned and painted in preparation for the feast day on the 3rd of December. When the plaque of the statue was polished and the inscription finally legible, one sentence caught my attention. It read ‘Xavier College is blessed to possess a 1st class relic from the bones of St. Francis Xavier’. Indeed, we are blessed

On the morning of our Feast Day, the students (Catholic and non-Catholic) laid flowers at the foot of the statue and spent a moment in prayer there before entering the classrooms. A special floral arrangement was laid at the statue by the Principal, on behalf of the staff and management. The 5 minutes morning prayer time before class, on the day, was extended to 30 minutes to accommodate a power-point presentation prepared by our sole Catholic teacher (out of 50 teachers) on the life of St. Francis Xavier and his missionary work, together with some explanations on what was a patron saint, how our patron became a saint and how was the date chosen by the Church. Each class had a Catholic student, who was briefed by our Catholic teacher earlier in the week, to do the presenting of the power-point. This simultaneous presentation was so well co-ordinated, that you could hear a pin drop, around the school campus, as everyone focused on the information that
was presented to them.

To mark this year’s celebrations, 2 Hindu teachers led some students in planting bougainvillea plants around the Chapel. Later in the day, all the staff and students were treated to a lunch of tasty chicken palau and vegetarian palau, sponsored by the Xavier College Parents, Teachers and Friends Association. The day was made more special by the visit of the Vicar General, West, Fr. Veremo, who is an ex-scholar. He joined us for lunch together with two other ex-scholars, Mrs Margaret Elisha(Board member and 1st female student to be enrolled at Xavier College) and Mr. Eddy Louey(Parish Finance Chair). The celebration of our Feast Day would not have been possible without the help and participation of our non-Catholic teachers and students, who were more than enthusiastic to learn more of our Patron Saint and to celebrate the day and honour St. Francis Xavier. The day ended with an evening Mass in our Chapel with the community members of St. Francis Xavier Community, Namosau.

In conclusion, I attach this email from our Vice Principal, Mrs Ashita Sharma, a devout Hindu, to all the staff on the feast of our Patron Saint, and so on this note, I believe that St. Francis Xavier could not have been more honoured and celebrated, than in this email from a non-Catholic.
“Wishing everyone a most blessed Feast Day of St. Francis Xavier, patron saint of missionaries. May his life of sacrifice and devotion to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ remind us all of our own baptismal call to share the hope, peace and love of Jesus Christ with others.
Please keep all missionaries who serve our Lord both home and abroad in your prayers. May the Lord bless you and keep you!
St. Francis Xavier, pray for us!
Stay Blessed
Ashita – VP”