Rev. Fr. Stephan D’Souza
Priest in Charge of Holy Family Church, Joida.
Holy Family ChurchJoida
A greater portion of the Supa town of olden days lies submerged under water. Joida is the new town in Supa Taluk that has come up recently. Being an important highway from Sadashivgad to Belgaum in the olden days, as also being in the proximity of the great Vaishnavite Shrine at Ulvi, there is every reason to believe that Supa was an important town, through which many people passed by. As regards the Catholic presence, they must have been sufficient in number to warrant the Jesuits to build a college here with 2 residences in the early 18th century. But by the end of the century, Tipu’s persecution must have taken its toll and those that escaped being deported, could have migrated to the Haliyal and Khanapur areas. The few Catholics that were in pockets of Potoli, Joida, Kumbarwada may have found themselves like believers in the wilderness for any spiritual help as Joida lies mid-way between Halga and Haliyal.
It is in this situation that Fr. Ignatius Gonsalves, OCD found the people at the inception of the Diocese. He gathered them together and painstakingly built the Church dedicated to the Holy Family, which was inaugurated by our Bishop on 25.3.1980. He also built the Parochial house. As there is a sizable population of Catholics in the Kumbarwada region, the Bishop thought it wise to build a separate Chapel there, dedicated to the patronage of St. Paul. Fr. Rock Mascarenhas, Fr. Reginal Pinto, Fr. Michael Pinto served the Parish. Over the years the condition of the Presbytery as also the Church at Joida began to deteriorate and Fr. Balajoji K. undertook the renovation of the Presbytery and the Church. The Church not only looks stronger, but is a beauty to behold! Fr. Balajoji started a small boarding and a Kinder Garten to help raise the educational standard of the children. Fr. Joaquim Furtado, Fr. Prakash Rao, Fr. Lawrence D Souza, Fr. Chrysostom Rodrigues served the parish. Fr. Steven D Souza is the present Parish Priest.
The Sisters of Our Lady of Fatima known for their zealous efforts in development skills especially in the rural areas are toiling hard along with the Parish Priest in the spiritual and social upliftment of the people of Joida and surrounding villages. They run a boarding for girls and also conduct tailoring and crafts lessons for the school drop-out girls.
