Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Vettucaud church fete begins

Photo: S. Gopakumar

Symbol of piety: Pilgrims throng the premises of the Madre-de-Deus Church at Vettucaud in the city for the inauguration of the Christ-the-King festival on Friday night. —

Thiruvananthapuram: The 65th annual Christ-the-King festival at the Madre-de-Deus Church, Vettucaud, began here on Friday with the Holy Mass and the raising of the ceremonial flag.

Vicar-General of the Thiruvananthapuram Archdiocese Eugene H. Pereira presided over the mass. Episcopal Vicar James Kulas participated in the mass.

Later in the evening, Vicar Johnson Alexander hoisted the festival flag at a function attended by thousands of pilgrims from across the district and several places in the State. Metropolitan of the Thiruvananthapuram Latin Archdiocese M. Susaipakiam read out the benediction address. Students from various city schools and colleges presented choir music and chant prayers at the ceremony. Vicar-General Eugene Pereira handed over the ceremonial torch to Fr. Rodricks Kutty.

The church and its premises were lit up for the event. A fireworks display and showering of petals marked the flag hoisting ceremony. Law Minister M. Vijayakumar, Thiruvananthapuram West MLA V. Surendran Pillai, State Human Rights Commission member S. Varghese, District Collector N. Ayyappan and Tahsildar Krishnakumar were present.

The government had declared a holiday for the afternoon in schools and offices in the city. The 10-day festival will be marked by prayer meetings and rituals. Tens of thousands of devotees are expected to participate in the rituals. Special prayer services will be held for the poor and the destitute, youth, non resident Keralites, jawans, teachers and students and the working class.

The festival will draw to a close on November 25 with a Pontifical Holy Mass led by Dr. Susaipakiam.

The Southern Railway has announced that all trains would stop at the Kochuveli station on the 10 days of the festival. The KSRTC will also operate special bus services to Vettucaud.

Expatriate members of the Vettucaud diocese in the UAE will celebrate the festival on November 23 at the St. Michel’s Church, Sharjah, while those in Qatar will hold their celebrations at the Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Church, Doha, on November 22.

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