Christianity in Goa

Christianity in Goa has pre-Portuguese roots, according to a few scholars such as H.O. Mascarenhas and Jose Cosme Costa. These roots are probably the same as those of the Saint Thomas Christians or Nasranis of Kerala. Christianity, here at this time, was believed to be spread by Saint Thomas and/or Saint Bartholomew who preached in the Malabar and Konkan coasts respectively.

1. The metallic crucifix found in a wall of a house at Old Goa by Afonso de Albuquerque, a few days after the conquest of Tiswadi in November 1510. A road was later named after this crucifix — “Rua de Crucifixo”. #The document of a gift (doação) on a metallic plate given to a “pagoda” of Goa Velha by a Hindu king in 1391 which speaks of Trinity and divine incarnation, and later produced in the court of the city of Old Goa in 1532.
2. Ibn Batuta's testimony that in 1342 AD, he found Christian settlements on the banks of the River Agashini (river Zuari).
3. The Saint Thomas Cross with Pahlavi inscription found by Fr J. Cosme Costa on the banks of the river Zuari.
4. An article in the Examiner (Bombay) on Pre-Portuguese Christianity which speaks of Thomas crosses on the Hill of Colvale (Bardez) which people would hide in olden days, fearing their destruction by the Portuguese.[6] (This article is probably the same as the interview given by H.O. Mascarenhas, mentioned above.)

Chapel of St. Catherine, built in Old Goa during the Portuguese occupation. It should not be confused with the Cathedral of Santa Catarina, also in Old Goa.

After the Portuguese Conquest of Goa in 1510 and its subsequent rule by Portugal, Goa's indigenous population underwent a large-scale conversion to Christianity.

The state of Goa became the center of Christianisation in the east.[7] The evangelisation activities of Goa was divided in 1555 by the Portuguese viceroy of Goa, Pedro Mascarenhas. He allotted Bardez to the Franciscans, Tiswadi to the Dominicans, and Salcette, together with fifteen southeastern villages of Tiswadi, including Chorão and Divar, to the Jesuits.[8]

After conversion, locals were usually granted Portuguese citizenship.[9] The rapid rise of converts in Goa has been described as mostly the result of Portuguese economic and political control over the Hindus, who were vassals of the Portuguese crown.[10]

The process of Christianisation was simultaneously accompanied by "Lusitanisation", as the Christian converts typically assumed a Portuguese veneer. This was most visible by the discarding of old Hindu names for new Christian Portuguese names. Converts usually adopted the surnames of the Portuguese priest, governor, soldier or layman who stood as godfather for their baptism ceremony. For instance, the Boletim do Instituto Vasco da Gama lists the new names of some of the prominent ganvkars (Konkani: Freeholders):

Rama Prabhu, the son of Dado Vithal Prabhu from Benaulim, Salcette became Francisco Fernandes, while Mahabal Pai, the son of Nara Pai, became Manuel Fernandes in 1596. Mahabal Kamati of Curtorim became Aleisco Menezes in 1607, while Chandrappa Naik of Gandaulim became António Dias in 1632. In 1595, Vittu Prabhu became Irmao de Diego Soares and the son of Raulu Kamat became Manuel Pinto in Aldona, Bardez. Ram Kamat of Punola became Duarte Lobo in 1601, while Tados Irmaose of Anjuna became João de Souza in 1658.[11]

However, the converted Hindus retained their mother tongue (which in most cases, was Konkani) and caste status, even after becoming Christian. Based on their previous caste affiliations, the new converts were usually lumped into their new respective Catholic castes.[12] The converts from the priestly Brahmin class were Bamonns (Konkani word for Brahmins). All converted Brahmins were lumped into the Christian caste of Bamonn. The converts from the Kshatriya caste who formed the second largest group were Chardos (Konkani word for Kshatriya); and converts from the labour class Shudra which formed the largest group became Sudirs (Konkani word for Shudra).[12]

The Portuguese demolished almost all the temples from the Velhas conquests. The temple art, along with its literature was destroyed, as a part of the Christianisation initiatives by the Portuguese.[13] But these temples and their idols were relocated in other places in Goa, especially in the Novas conquistas.

A typical white Sant Khuris (Holy Cross), of a Goan Catholic family, constructed using olden-style Portuguese architecture.

In 1560, the Inquisition established an office in Goa. It was finally abolished in 1812. It was not compliant to the Hindus as well as Christians deemed incompatible with the Latin rite of Christianity. However, it accounted a very poor activity.

Since 1851, the Christian population of Goa has been facing a continual decline. This is caused by an emigration of Goan Catholics from Goa, to other places in India and abroad. As a result, the percentage of Christian population (once a majority) has shifted in favour of the Hindus. As per the 1851 census, Christians constituted 64.5% and Hindus 35.5% of the population.[14] Currently, Christians constitute 25.10% and Hindus 66.08% of the population of Goa according to the 2011 census.[15]

In 2001, the Goan Konkani New Testament was being re-translated. According to Operation World, the old translation is "little understood today."[3]