Musician and song writer Seflo Quadros based in UK has recently released a song called ‘Christmas Time’.Christmas is the time to forgive and to share, says the artiste. “This Christmas song speaks all about togetherness and unity at this special Christmas season, especially now during the hard times we are all going through due to the pandemic,” says Quadros who both penned the lyrics and composed the music for the track.The musician previously released tunes like ‘Merry Merry Christmas’ (in 2020), ‘Hope and Faith’, and ‘Give Me All My Time’ (in June this year).
The spread of Covid-19 forces churches across the world to cancel or scale back services and disrupt travel plans and family gatherings From Bethlehem and Frankfurt to London and Boston, the surging coronavirus put a damper on Christmas Eve for a second year, forcing churches to cancel or scale back services and disrupting travel plans and family gatherings.Drummers and bagpipers marched through Bethlehem — the town where Christians believe Jesus was born — to smaller than usual crowds after new Israeli travel restrictions meant to slow the highly contagious Omicron variant kept international tourists away.In Germany, a line wound halfway around Cologne’s massive cathedral, not for midnight Mass but for vaccinations. The offer of shots was an expression of “care for one’s neighbour” that was consistent with the message of Christmas, cathedral provost Guido Assmann told the DPA news agency.Around the world, people weary from nearly two years of lockdowns and other restrictions searched for ways to enjoy some of the holiday rituals safely.“We can’t let the virus take our lives from us when we’re healthy,” said Rosalia Lopes, a retired Portuguese government worker who was doing some last-minute shopping in the coastal town of Cascais.She said she and her family were exhausted by the pandemic and determined to go ahead with their celebrations with the help of vaccines and booster shots, rapid home tests and mask-wearing in public. She planned a traditional Portuguese Christmas Eve dinner of baked cod.Across the Atlantic in New York City, where Omicron has spread widely, people waited in long lines to get tested, many doing so as a precaution before travelling to reunite with family.But holiday travel was dealt a blow when major airlines cancelled hundreds of flights, in part because of staff shortages largely tied to Omicron.In Britain, where the coronavirus variant is ripping through the population, some houses of worship hoped to press on.At St Paul’s Old Ford, an Anglican church in East London, priests planned to hold services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. But to protect parishioners, the church called off its Nativity play.“You might have to cancel the service, but you can’t cancel Christmas,” said Rev April Keech, an associate priest. “You can’t stop love. Love still stands.”Numerous churches in the US cancelled in-person services, including Washington National Cathedral in the nation’s capital and historic Old South Church in Boston. Others planned outdoor celebrations or a mix of online and in-person worship.In Germany, churchgoers faced a thicket of health restrictions and limits on attendance. Some had to show proof of vaccination or testing.Frankfurt’s cathedral, which can hold 1,200 people, offered only 137 socially distanced spaces, all of which were booked days in advance. Singing was allowed only through masks.People in the Netherlands tried to make the best of the holiday, despite living under one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe. All nonessential shops were closed, including bars and restaurants, and home visits were limited to two people per day, four on Christmas.“We are just meeting with some small groups of family for the next few days,” Marloes Jansen, who was waiting in line to buy the traditional Dutch kerststol, a Christmas bread with fruits and nuts.A glitch in a computerised appointment system prevented scores of people from scheduling Covid-19 tests and undermined the government’s efforts to administer booster shots in a country already lagging far behind its neighbours.In France, some visited loved ones in the hospital. In the Mediterranean city of Marseille, the intensive care unit at La Timone Hospital has been taking in more and more Covid-19 patients in recent days.Amelie Khayat has been paying daily visits to her husband, Ludo, 41, who is recovering from spending 24 days in a coma and on a breathing machine.They touched their heads together as she sat on his bed, and now that he is strong enough to stand, he got up to give her a farewell hug, as a medical worker put final decorations on the ICU Christmas tree.Parisians lined up at chocolate shops, farmers’ markets and testing centres. France has posted record numbers of daily Covid-19 infections, and hospitalisations have been rising, but the government has held off on imposing curfews or closings during the holidays.“It does affect our enthusiasm to celebrate Christmas. It does make us a bit sad. But at least we are sure not to contaminate or get contaminated. We will all do the test in our family,” said Fabienne Maksimovic, 55, as she waited in line at a pharmacy in Paris to get tested.In Antwerp, Belgium, Christmas trees were hung upside down from windows in a protest against the closing of cultural venues.In Bethlehem, the scene was much more festive than it was a year ago, when musicians marched through empty streets. This year, hundreds of people gathered in Manger Square as bagpipe-and-drum units streamed through.Before the pandemic, Bethlehem would host thousands of Christian pilgrims from around the world. The lack of visitors has hit the city’s hotels, restaurants and gift shops especially hard.(AP)
After a low-key Christmas last year, a few Goans tell us how they will ring in Christmas celebrations this yearChristmas has always been a double celebration. We first commemorate and celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Saviour who was born over 2000 years ago. But, each and every Christian also celebrates His Second Coming by improving the quality of his/her life and that of others, especially the poor, and those who are disadvantaged. The pandemic, indeed, put a clog to the first type of celebrations but it also gave several opportunities for each one to reach out to such persons in these difficult moments. So, I’ll be celebrating Christmas, by doubling my joy in service to the poor, even though I personally will have to sacrifice a great deal. That’s the true Spirit of Christmas, which means joy, peace, love and justice!!Fr Frank Mendes, SanguemChristmas has always been special with its pomp and colour. The pandemic did disrupt the festive mood last year, but this year seems more Christmassy to me. There will be more family members together than last year. Hopefully we will meet a few friends, though the Omicron scare is present. Being a Covid-19 survivor has definitely given me a reason to celebrate my second life. This Christmas is definitely special to me and my family.Emera Remedios, SaligaoChristmas for me this year is a bit different, because before the pandemic could hit we used to have a grand celebration. But for the past two years it’s been like a casual celebration. Restrictions in church, no visitors at home. But this year there’s a slight change. At my home we have prepared a lot of Christmas sweets, invited people, there is a different kind of joy than the previous year. But, yes, of course we are following all kinds of COVID-19 related norms.Alisha Menezes, DivarThis year we are celebrating Christmas together with our family and friends (with masks and social distancing). Happy to be alive, well and healthy, we will be cherishing the memories of some of us who didn’t make it through 2021 and lost their fight to COVID-19.Priyanka D’Cunha, PorvorimThis year also we are celebrating Christmas like every other year. We have made sweets, decorated the home, stitched new clothes, etc. Also this year we are distributing sweets to each and every bereaved Catholic family since the pandemic, the responsibility of which I’ve taken. The greatest joy for me this year is that my brother has made it for Christmas from Bengaluru.Agnes Pinto, VascoI will be enjoying Christmas like always. Going for midnight mass and having the traditional cake and coffee. And for Christmas lunch if sorpotel is not there it seems incomplete. But yes, I have been gifted sorpotel and so it’s going to be a wonderful Christmas. I have made my traditional miniature crib and will be entertaining friends onChristmas day.Cedric Silveira, PorvorimChristmas is definitely my favourite time of the year, but since the pandemic a lot of things felt different. Midnight masses on Christmas Eve that usually saw people under one roof turned into watching the same via social media platforms at home. I haven’t seen most of my family ever since and celebrations don’t feel the same without having them around. I’ve also come across those who’ve lost a loved one, making me realise yet again how much we take our lives for granted, and that we must be grateful for the little things. Everything seems to be getting back to normal this year and we’re celebrating as usual but with caution of course.Senova Fernandes, Taleigao(Compiled by Danuska Da Gama and Ramandeep Kaur)
KERI: While Christmas is celebrated with much pomp and fanfare in urban parts of the state, rural Goa has traditionally opted to mark the much-anticipated Christian festival as a close-knit celebration of communal harmony. This year is no different. The tribal Gaude of the Tiswadi taluka, who were victims of forced conversions during the Portuguese rule in Goa but were later reinstated into Hinduism, still maintain the age-old practice of honouring the Holy Cross in the vicinity of their settlement at Nauxi, near Bambolim. Called the Nav-Hindu Gaude due to their re-entry into Hinduism through a ‘shuddhi’ (purification) movement by spiritual leader Vinayak Maharaj Masurkar in 1930, they also invoke the blessings of the Holy Cross during the annual Zagor festival and offer garlands to it. At Angodwada, which skirts the Colvale river in Pernem taluka’s Ibrampur, 12 Dhangar families look forward to Christmas celebrations at the 13 homes of their Catholic neighbours. “Every year, the Catholic families happily take part in our Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations by visiting our houses eating vegetarian food and sweets. During Christmas, we visit their homes and relish nevreos, dodol and others delicacies. We look forward to Christmas,” Chandrakant Shinde, a villager, told TOI. A similar camaraderie is seen in Bhironda and Guleli in Sattari despite the Catholic population there being much lesser than the Hindus. Populations, however, do not seem to matter. “In our ward, the Catholic families are in majority. There are only eight Hindu houses, but we live in communal harmony. We love to take part in Christmas celebrations and they relish the vegetarian food offered during our festive occasions,” Swapnil Valvoikar from Vazri of Sankhali, said.
A priest delivers a yuletide message during Christmas get-together organised at the Raj Bhavan on Thursday. Also seen are the Governor P. S. Sreedharan Pillai and the First Lady.
