Feast of St Joseph Vaz

Goa celebrates the feast of its very own homegrown saint, St Joseph Vaz, on January 16 every year at Sancoale. While the feast was previously celebrated at the shrine of Blessed Joseph Vaz, the venue was shifted to the Church of Our Lady of Health, Sancoale, after his canonization.

Joseph Vaz (Konkani: San Zuze Vaza; Portuguese: São José Vaz; Kannada: ಪವಿತ್ರಾ ಯೋಸೆಫ್ ವಾಸ್ ಸಂತರು Pavitra Yoseph Vaz Santaru; Tamil: புனித யோசேப் வாஸ் முனிவர் Punitha Sūsai Munivar; Sinhala: ශාන්ත ජුසේ වාස් මුනිතුමා, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ අපෝස්තුළුවරයාණන් Santha Juse Vas Munithuma, Sri Lankawe Aposthuluvaraya), who passed away on 16 January 1711, was an Oratorian priest and missionary in Sri Lanka (Ceylon), originally from Sancoale in Portuguese India.

Vaz arrived in Ceylon during the Dutch occupation, when the Dutch were imposing Calvinism as the as the official religion after taking over from the Portuguese Empire. He travelled throughout the island bringing the Eucharist and the Sacraments to clandestine groups of crypto-Catholics. Later in his mission, he found shelter in the Kingdom of Kandy where he was able to work freely. By the time of his death, Vaz had managed to rebuild the Catholic Church on the island.

As a result of his labours, Vaz is known as the Apostle of Ceylon. On 21 January 1995, he was beautified by Pope John Paul II in Colombo. He was canonized on 14 January 2015 by Pope Francis in an open-air Mass ceremony at the Galle Face Green in Colombo.