Soaring Spirit: 450 Years of Margao’s Esprito Santo Church (1565-2015)

The first church in South Goa was built not in Verna, site of the first Mass on the soil of the district in 1519, nor in Cortalim, which saw the first conversion to Christianity in Salcete in 1560. It was not built in Margao, the principal centre of the district either. The first church was not built by the Franciscans, the first to arrive in India, or by the Jesuits, who evangelized Salcete…. This book offers facts, solves puzzes and throws up colourful details of an institution that shaped Margao’s life for centuries. It walks us through the times of our ancestors, many generations removed. ‘ But while zooming into details, Faleiro does not miss the big picture. Quoting historians and scholars, challenging legends and assumptions, he presents a world of acts. A list of Margao’s priests, and an insightful introduction to the Largo da Igreja, the chruch square, and its people, are what lend further charm to this book.