Bombay Brothers Outing 2025 (3rd January)

After the Blessed season of Christmas and having welcomed the New Year, traditionally the seminarians belonging of the Archdiocese of Bombay, called the ‘Bombay Brothers’, have a two-day outing. The goal of this outing is to strengthen the fraternal bonds among the seminarians who later will work together in the Archdiocese of Bombay.

This year the outing was to the city of Nashik from 3rd to 4th January. The Brothers along with Fr Gilbert de Lima, the Rector was warmly welcomed at the Shrine of the Infant Jesus at Nashik by the Jesuit Fathers who are in charge of the Shrine. On the first day Fr Gilbert offered the Eucharist at the famed Shrine of Infant Jesus for the seminarians and their families. Then the Bombay Brothers visited Divyadaan, the Salesian Philosophate, where many Salesians and seminarians from other dioceses and congregations come to study Philosophy and also complete their Masters in Philosophy. This was followed with a visit to the neighbouring parish and to Maharashtra Prabodhan Seva Mandal (MPSM), a social outreach that works with traditionally and socio-economically marginalized farming communities, adivasis in particular, in remote rural areas in various parts of the state. The day ended with an input session by Fr Gilbert about the various challenges that priests today face and put forward various suggestions, how we as seminarians can prepare for them.

India being a land of many religions, it is but natural that as seminarians and future priests, especially in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai, we rub shoulders with people of other faiths. The next day the Brothers visited the Trirashmi Buddha Smarak, a Buddhist temple situated in the bottom of Pandav Leni Caves where there are early rock-cut Buddhist temples from the 1st century BC. This was followed by a visit to Sri Dharmachakra Prabhav Tirth, a beautiful Jain Temple near Viholi village. This is a temple has beautiful architecture and an important place of pilgrimage. After this the Brothers visited Panchavati, where the river Godavari flows and it is believed that Ram, Sita and Laxman stayed at Panchavati and therefore holds an important place in Hinduism and the Khumb mela also takes place there.

Our visit to Nashik ended with a visit to St Anne’s Cathedral and a visit to Bp. Barthol Barretto, the Bishop of Nashik, and the former auxiliary Bishop of Bombay, who also was part of the visiting faculty at St Pius X Seminary. Bp. Barthol spoke from his heart to the Brothers and challenged them to adopt a lifestyle that will bring us closer to God and His people. The Brothers were overwhelmed by the hospitality shown by Bp. Barthol and his staff.

The two-day trip to Nashik was a time blessed with unity and fraternity. It was a time of joy and fellowship that reflected the joy promised and brought by the Lord and specially remembered in His Nativity.