Hubballi: Infant Jesus Church, Shantinagar, Hubballi celebrated their annual feast on January 14 as is the tradition of the Universal Catholic Church.
The feast is a day of devotion to the Child Jesus and appreciation of His humility and love for humankind. It is a veneration of the Son of God and a calling to mind the mystery of the incarnation of the omnipotent God.
An elaborate spiritual preparation for the feast had been made at the church, with nine days of novena prayers and special preachings on various themes about the role of families and Youth in today’s world.
The celebration of the feast culminated in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist at 6 PM and a solemn procession of Infant Jesus. It concluded with a community meal.
The main celebrant of the feast mass was Rev. Fr. Reginald Pinto of the Udupi Diocese and Rev. Fr. Patrick Rao of the Chikkamagalur Diocese preached a sermon in Kannada. The main celebrant, in his sermon, highlighted the importance of listening to each other, with special reference to the Youth, to understand the feelings of others. He also said that through the Word of God we can enlighten the listener which will lead the person to the sacraments, which in turn will make him an evangelist.
Rev. Fr. Patrick Rao preached about the importance of bringing up children in the ways of God.
Parish Priest of Infant Jesus Church, Rev. Fr. Joe D’Souza, while thanking all concerned, said that through this devotion many graces and blessings, favours and miraculous healings have been received by many people all over the world and he wished everyone a happy feast.
