Sacred Heart Church, Keamari
Encyclopedia
Sacred Heart Church is a 150 year-old church in a parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi in Pakistan.
On September 18, 2011, Archbishop Evarist Pinto
and eight priests celebrated Mass for over a thousand people to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Church.
. There were approximately 200 Christian families living in Keamari at the time. In 1923 the Sacred Heart school was constructed. The medium of instruction was originally the Marathi language
.
.
The parish is also home to the Sacred Heart Secondary School.
The Apostleship of the Sea
is based in this port parish.
In 2009 thieves broke into the church on January 6 and took property worth 80,000 rupees (US$1,000). The chalice, a brass cross, the sound system and emergency lights were among the stolen items.
In October 2010 a special mass was celebrated to consecrate the century-old church vessels recently recovered from the robbery.
On September 18, 2011, Archbishop Evarist Pinto
Evarist Pinto
Evarist Pinto is the current Archbishop of Karachi, Pakistan.-Education:He received his religious training at the Christ the King seminary in Karachi, where he was ordained a priest on 6 January 1968. He also had a doctorate in theology...
and eight priests celebrated Mass for over a thousand people to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Church.
History
The present church building was built in 1922 with funds provided by the Karachi Port TrustKarachi Port Trust
Karachi Port Trust is a Pakistani federal government agency that oversees the operations of the Port of Karachi in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.-History:...
. There were approximately 200 Christian families living in Keamari at the time. In 1923 the Sacred Heart school was constructed. The medium of instruction was originally the Marathi language
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
.
Ministries
The parish has two conferences of the Society of St Vincent de Paul, PakistanSociety of St Vincent de Paul, Pakistan
The Society of St Vincent de Paul first reached the shores of Karachi in 1869. The first Conference was the St. Patrick’s Conference....
.
The parish is also home to the Sacred Heart Secondary School.
The Apostleship of the Sea
Apostleship of the Sea
The Apostleship of the Sea is an agency of the Catholic Church. It is also sometimes known as Stella Maris , and its patron is the Virgin Mary as Our Lady, Star of the Sea...
is based in this port parish.
Parish Priests
- Fr. Anthony Lobo
- Fr. Bruno Sequeira
- Father Thomas Gulfam
- Father Nazar Nawab
- Father Inderias Rehmat
Violence
In November 1990 fanatics attacked the Sacred Heart Church. The parish priest Fr. Bruno Sequeira was brutally beaten. The mob tried to throw him in a fire made from the pews.In 2009 thieves broke into the church on January 6 and took property worth 80,000 rupees (US$1,000). The chalice, a brass cross, the sound system and emergency lights were among the stolen items.
In October 2010 a special mass was celebrated to consecrate the century-old church vessels recently recovered from the robbery.