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Our Lady of Salvation Church - Dadar - Mumbai - INDIA

Parish Altar Care Team

Head:                   Matty Mendoza
Asst. Head:           Julie Saldanha
Priest-in-charge:  Fr. Felix D'Souza

When Jesus decided that the time had come for Him to institute the sacrament of the Eucharist, He chose two of his followers to proceed ahead of Him to Jerusalem with a clear mandate to locate the room where He would eat the Passover meal with his Apostles and to “make ready” that room for the meal (Luke 22:12). That He chose Simon Peter, and John, the beloved, to carry out this preparation, is an indication of the importance He placed on the arrangements to be made in the “Sanctuary”. For, indeed, the Upper Room was to become the first Sanctuary where “bread would be broken and the wine poured out for the remission of sins”.

The dressing of the Altar and the adornment of the Sanctuary around the Altar, therefore, are not just trivial tasks. Rather, they are significant expressions of a conscious acknowledgements of the infinite merit of the action that will take place within its precincts every time the Eucharist is celebrated there. Here is where the Sacrifice of Calvary is re-presented over and over again and where the Paschal Mystery unfolds in awesome reality for our salvation.

Is it, then, not an honor to be among those who are entrusted to ensure that the Sanctuary is adequately beautified and tastefully decorated for such an event? Our Parish has been well served in this Apostolate down the years. When the Convent was located adjacent to the Church, it was the good Sisters who carried out these duties including the mending and laundering of the Altar linen and Priest’s vestments. Later, Ms. Nora Mendonca did it almost single handedly for many years with the co-operation of the Sacristans and Church attendants. Presently, the Parish is blessed with a team of 20 ladies who have retired from professional life and have made a PACT with each other and the Parish Priests to carry out these duties as an offering to the Parish. On account of this PACT, they call themselves the PARISH ALTAR CARING TEAM! With a healthy pride in their artistic skills and a cheerful disposition, they go about the job with smiling faces and a song in their hearts! They really enjoy what they do and because they know how important it is to give of their best, they keep getting better and better at it! Their motto – “NOTHING BUT THE BEST IS GOOD ENOUGH FOR GOD’S SANCTUARY”.

Our team functions on Saturdays , Tuesdays and Thursdays, in the mornings, and we work in groups of 3 or 4, depending what needs to be done, in rotation. Accordingly, each lady is usually called upon to attend only once or twice a month. Now. Many hands make light work – so, if you are willing to make the time to help out when needed, have a talent for floral arrangements or sowing or embroidery or even the ability to supervise cleaning out of cobwebs and the like, do meet us in the Sacristy any Saturday morning after 9:30 am, to get to know more about how you can help.

P.A.C.T.

 

 Address:
Our Lady of Salvation Church
S.K. Bole Road,
Dadar (W), Mumbai 400 028
INDIA
 
Tel.No.: 24224471 / 24370180