Prutha Goa

The remains of the Tertiary Carmelites’ church and convent, or the Church and Convent of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, have finally achieved the status of a heritage site. It has been an arduous quest towards achieving this mission and the people of Chimbel deserve a substantial amount of praise in moving this issue forward. The Tertiary Carmelites’ church and convent are a heritage of great value given that history sets the remains apart from most other such monuments; its singularity being the fact that it housed the first indigenous order of lower caste priests. The rule of the day was only upper caste Brahmins were allowed to be part of priestly orders. Chimbel’s so called green space marked on the regional plan does not have any tree cover and has been demarcated along the Kadamba plateau off the highway, which makes it a prime target for builders. Once the builders move in, any tree cover at all is compromised. The Tertiary Carmelites’ church and convent are part of the few green

Goa is a historian’s delight with so much of its history still being unravelled. The legacy of the Portuguese rule has been a heritage of unique standing. The Tertiary Carmelites, not to be confused with the Discalced Carmelites reformed by St Teresa of Avila, are an integral part of Goa’s past. Today, the ruins of the monuments connected with this order lie open to desecration and looting with impunity. Much less regard is offered in terms of a study and preservation of this significant historical site. The Tertiary Carmelites are in fact one of two indigenous priestly orders that welcomed Goan vocations to the priesthood. The Jesuits and other religious orders did not display a favourable attitude towards Goans, which led to the requirement of congregations that would be open to the natives of Goa. The Oratorians of Philip Neri, which came into existence in the 1680s and was recognised by the Vatican in 1707, was the first Goan priestly congregation in Estado de India. However, the