Mass resumes at Velankanni Shrine, pilgrims pray for tsunami victims

Chennai – Shaken, but firm in faith, the pilgrims of the popular Marian shrine at Velankanni – the Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health – have begun attending the services a week after the catastrophic tsunami of December 26, 2004 killed hundreds of people in villages surrounding it.

India’s most famous Marian shrine at Velankanni, Tamil Nadu became a virtual graveyard when hundreds of pilgrims, villagers, fishermen and tourists were washed away by the tidal waves that inundated the coastal town.

For nearly a week after the disaster, the church remained closed as priests, nuns and scores of Thanjavur diocesan volunteers plunged into rescue and relief operations in Velankanni and the adjoining coastal villages.

Prayers have now resumed with routine masses; but there are not many people who are visiting the shrine these days. There is still an eerie silence in and around the Velankanni church, as people are yet to come to terms with the shocking watery death that has claimed hundreds of lives.

But some parishioners whose relatives died are coming back to the church to pray.

Ever since the Velankanni shrine was built in 1771, it has attracted millions of pilgrims from all over the world and has become a popular center of religious unity. More than 60 percent of its devotees are people of other faiths.

Before the tsunami struck, the shrine had been conducting several Masses daily, each attracting 2,000–3,000 pilgrims. Now, however, the parish priest, Father P. Xavier, says people still stay away because they have not overcome the shock.

“A number of family members of pilgrims are coming back to pray for their lost ones,” Fr. Xavier said hopefully. “It is a tragedy that we can never forget. We can now only pray so that similar disasters do not happen anywhere in the world.”

During the morning mass, the priest’s voice could be heard loud and clear: “God help the wounded, Lord see that the wounds heal and don’t get infected. See that there is no epidemic. The Lord be with you.”

Though the basilica itself was spared, the tidal waves that ravaged the coastal town killed hundreds of people living around it.

Church workers engaged in relief activities were taken back by the emptiness around the shrine. One of them, Sister Josephine D'Souza, said that she was shocked by the scene of devastation around the shrine. "The atmosphere is terrifying," the Daughters of the Heart of Mary nun exclaimed.

Bishop Devadass Ambrose Mariadoss of Thanjavur diocese who rushed in with a team of volunteers and priests to the coastal village after the tragedy continues to oversee the relief and rehabilitations in the pilgrim town.

“We want to ensure that people who lost their family members, homes and properties are properly rehabilitated,” Bishop Mariadoss said.

The Bishop, who has been camping at Valankanni from the first day since the calamity struck, said that efforts are underway to return the shrine to pre–tsunami conditions by Jan. 14, the day on which Tamil people begin a three–day harvest festival called Pongal. Many have approached the shrine authorities asking about rooms, Bishop Mariadoss pointed out, "and we have kept ready almost 150 rooms, but no pilgrim has arrived so far." Even so, he said he expects the situation to improve in the next two weeks.

Cardinal Telesphore P. Toppo of Ranchi, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), is scheduled to lead an inter–religious prayer meeting here on February 3 for local people affected by the tsunami. "We hope to return to normalcy by then," Bishop Mariadoss expressed.

Bishop Mariadoss said that he has plans of asking the district administration to shift business outlets to places away from the shore. Hundreds of shops and inns dotted the shrine's environs before the tsunami hit, and only those at Mass in the shrine, numbering around 2000, were spared. Father Xavier said no water even entered the church though the compound wall around the shrine was also devastated by the waves.