Survey Promo
RVA App Promo Image

Thousand people attend to popular Saint Anthony of Padua pilgrimage in Bangladesh

The Catholic Church in Bangladesh held the most popular Saint Anthony of Padua pilgrimage at Panjora village of Gazipur district in the Archdiocese of Dhaka on February 7.

This grand event, held in the first week of February every year, remains the largest Christian gathering in the Muslim-majority nation of Bangladesh.

St. Anthony of Padua, revered for his miraculous intercessions, attracts not only Christians but also a large number of Muslims and Hindus who seek his blessings. The shrine, part of the Catholic Church of Nagari in the Archdiocese of Dhaka, has been a center of faith and unity for centuries.

Nine days of novena prayers, candle lighting, and special Masses preceded the pilgrimage.

In his homily, Archbishop Bejoy N. D’Cruze of Dhaka emphasized the significance of faith and unity fostered by Saint Anthony.

“We have received many graces in our life from God through St. Anthony, and that is why we gather here to give thanks,” he said.

The prelate further highlighted the pilgrimage as a sign of harmony, reinforcing the Church’s mission of Synodality, an open-door approach to inclusivity.

“Saint Anthony’s pilgrimage has become a symbol of unity among people of different faiths,” Archbishop D’Cruze added. “Many people from various backgrounds come here every year, expressing their faith and gratitude.”

Pilgrims from all walks of life shared personal testimonies of the saint’s blessings.

Shila Gomes, one of the devotees, reaffirmed her faith in the saint’s intercessions. “Every year, I and my family members participate in this pilgrimage because we have received countless blessings in our family.”

Despite Christians comprising less than half a percent of Bangladesh’s 160-million-strong population, devotion to St. Anthony remains widely popular among people of all faiths.

According to church historians, the tradition has existed for centuries, with a well-known legend recounting how a small statue of St. Anthony mysteriously appeared and reappeared at the site where the shrine now stands.

Devotion to the saint was further propagated by Dom Antonio, an 18th-century Bengali Catholic preacher, who converted thousands of lower-caste Hindus in the Bhawal region, now part of the Dhaka Archdiocese.

Saint Anthony of Padua was a Portuguese Catholic priest and friar of the Franciscan Order. He was born on August 15, 1195, and raised by a wealthy family in Lisbon, Portugal, and died in Padua, Italy, on June 13, 1231.

Pope Gregory IX canonized him on May 30, 1232, at Spoleto, Italy.

This year’s pilgrimage was attended by many priests, over two hundred nuns from various congregations, and thousands of lay devotees.

The event concluded with solemn prayers and a final Mass, reaffirming the enduring devotion to St. Anthony and the unity among believers in Bangladesh. - Nikhil Gomes

 

Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.”  Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.