Goa archbishop Ferrao quotes from Upanishads
During his pre-New Year speech for the Catholic population, Archbishop of Goa, Daman and Diu, Filipe Neri Ferrao, used the Hindu Maha Upanishads extensively and drew parallels between the ancient scriptures and the teachings of Jesus Christ and said that the unity of mankind had been one of the main concerns of Christ.
Throughout history, humanity has been searching for unity, the same unity that Christ made his one cherished desire and that the Maha Upanishad teaches about, he said.
The archbishop quoted extensively from the Sama Veda to underline the importance of unity and brotherhood of man.
In his address, which was released to the media on Thursday, the archbishop said that the genuine development of people depended on the recognition that the human race was a single family working together in true communion for its common good, an underlying trait of the Sama Veda. “The time had come for him (Christ) to be delivered by a traitor into the hands of his enemies, who then would scourge him and nail him to a cross, until he bled to death. At this solemn moment, he has only one prayer, ‘Father, I pray that they may all be one. Unity of humankingdom his Father in heaven’,” he said. Archbishop Ferro stated that Goa, with its 26 per cent Catholic population, was considered a model secular state, which was like one big family. The Maha Upanishad states that the entire world is but one big family: Vasudhaiva kutumbakam. And the Church has consistently proclaimed and defended this universal value of unity of humankind throughout her history, the archbishop said. The Maha Upanishad is a segment of the Sama Veda, considered to be one of the four most sacred texts of Hinduism.
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