History of RFC
Raymond FC Mascarenhas
Background:
Raymond was born on Saturday, 23 January 1875 on the feast of St Raymond of Penyafort in Shimoga, Karnataka to a devout, pious and God-fearing couple Mr Lazarus and Mrs Joanna Mascarenhas. They named him after the saint of the day – Raymond – with an additional name Camillus,on 27 January 1875. Later while in the Seminary, he prayed through the intercession of St Francis Xavier for the gift of voice to chant/sing the prayers during Mass, which he obtained. As a mark of gratitude, Raymond added ‘Francis’ as his middle name. Thereafter, he was officially called as Raymond Francis Camillus Mascarenhas (RFC). Interestingly, he had the privilege of bearing the names of three saints – Raymond, Francis Xavier and Camillus – and some of their characteristics like the compassionate nature, love for prayer and love for the Blessed Mother of St Raymond of Penyafort, the caring and compassionate nature of St Camillus and the zeal for souls of St Francis Xavier were prominent in RFC.
Raymond grew up in a natural family set-up among 12 siblings and experienced their warm affection. The pious practices of his family like daily recitation of the Rosary, participation in the celebration of the Eucharist on Sundays and on obligation days and the practice of regular Confessions laid strong foundations for Raymond. As a little boy, he played the role of a priest quite often, making his siblings assist him at ‘Mass’. Watching such repeated plays, his mother intuitively felt that one day he would be a priest of God. In his upbringing, his parents played a significant role and some of their traits like, strong will, courage to venture into the unknown, discipline, determination, adventurous spirit, ability to endure suffering, tender love for the poor became part of his personality. He was blessed with rare intelligence and retentive memory too.
RFC Mascarenhas a Priest in the Making In pursuance of his inner voice, Raymond joined St Joseph’s Inter-diocesan Seminary, Mangalore on 23 February 1891, although it was against the plans of his family, relatives and friends. There he learnt from the Jesuits discipline and gave priority to the mastery of the subjects of philosophy and theology, and spent most of his time reading either in his room or in the library. As a young seminarian, Raymond was found to be fervent, detached and faithful to all prescriptions of the rules and regulations of the seminary life. He was quite earnest in doing whatever was expected of him and conscientious too. Cultivation of virtues like obedience, charity, humility, poverty, detachment, purity of conscience, mortification, penance meant much for him. At the completion of his theological studies, Rt Rev Cavadini SJ, the then Bishop of Mangalore ordained Raymond to the priesthood on Saturday, 4 March 1900 at the Cathedral, dedicated to the Most Holy Rosary. He offered his first Mass on 11 March 1900 in his home parish, our Lady of Milagres in Mangalore, a church dedicated to our Lady. RFC Mascarenhas a Compassionate Pastor in Action Having served for three years as an assistant priest in three parishes, the Bishop appointed Raymond as the parish priest at Udyavar in 1903, a church dedicated to St Francis Xavier, a saint dear to his heart. Without giving into fatigue, he made himself available to minister to their needs - spiritual, pastoral and economical. He visited them, especially when natural calamities hit them and walked miles through the slushy paddy fields despite the uncomfortable monsoon rains.
Thereafter in 1910, Raymond was transferred to Agrar another rural parish with a large Catholic population. There, they required a competent leader and capable administrator. Both qualities were twinned in Raymond, as he was endowed with administrative and managerial skills. Here too, he committed himself to the care of souls through family visits and resolving conflicts.While he was still busy with the affairs of his flock, the Bishop unexpectedly transferred him in 1914 to a newly proposed parish - St Sebastian Church, Bendur. Setting aside his personal plans and bowing down to God’s will Raymond girded himself for a new mission with a ready obedience. Raymond arrived at Bendur in 1914. The place though situated within the city limits, was devoid of life. That, in fact, the name ‘Bendur’ signifies in Tulu, the local language, (Benda = barren + ooru = village). The parish had its own challenges owing to the fact that it was new and raw. Trusting in the Divine Providence and Blessed Mother, Raymond launched into the mission with undaunted courage on 23 August 1914. What to begin first - he had no other compass except God through prayer. RFC Mascarenhas a Founder of the Bethany Congregation Raymond while at Bendur learnt of the desire of some women to dedicate their lives to God through religious life, which they could not owing to their low economic status and insufficient educational qualifications. He grappled with their desire and earnestly prayed for a way forward. In prayer, he felt inspired to found a Religious Congregation for women in Mangalore to meet the educational needs of the poor, especially girls and for the faith-formation of Catholics. Was it a suitable and befitting response? He had to discern before God and with his Bishop, Rt Rev Paul Perini SJ. While sharing, in all humility Raymond said to the Bishop, “I speak as if in foolishness…” The Bishop recognized God’s hand in this project and with a smile of encouragement said, “Act if you have an inspiration to do so, making use of the opportunities you have.” The words of the kind-hearted Bishop gave him hope and confidence. He felt that God was leading him through his Bishop. God in his Providence provided four young women (teachers) from his parish - Clare, Alice, Marceline and Gertrude. Trusting in God and placing himself under the protection of the Blessed Mother, Raymond founded the religious Congregation, ‘Bethany’ on 16 July 1921.
RFC Mascarenhas with a Prophetic Mission: Education of the Poor, especially Girls The heart of Raymond the Founder was set on the poor especially, girls. In the place of its foundation at Bendur, the Founder placed the sisters in charge of the junior section of St Sebastian’s school with 440 boys and 347 girls of St Margaret Mary’s Higher Elementary School and 47 girls of St. Martha’s Industrial School.The Founder also placed 153 boys and 68 girls at St Joseph’s School, Kankanady under the care of the Bethany Sisters. 30 girls in the Bethany Boarding House too benefited from their services. At Puttur the sisters taught 100 boys of St Francis Xavier’s Elementary School and 56 girls of Little Flower School. They also took care of 20 Adi-Dravidas children at St Joseph’s School, Puttur. At Kokkada, the sisters were entrusted with the care of another 50 children at St John’s School and 20 pupils at Little Flower School. At Balkunje, in another remote place the sisters taught 180 students at St Paul’s School. In all, within nine years of the existence of the Bethany Congregation, the sisters devoted themselves to the care of more than 1,500 children in eleven different institutions. He opened more schools in the interior villages as the years passed by and was happy to see the poor, especially girls being empowered. In addition, the Founder opened industrial and technical schools for the dropouts. He sent two sisters to Madras to be trained in Basic Education. While offering non-formal education, his focus was on those who could not pursue their academic studies owing to poverty or less intelligence, knowing that they would excel in some other skill and earn their daily bread. All the above examples manifest the vision of education of the Founder, Raymond which included the education of the head, heart and hands (knowledge, attitude and skill). RFC Mascarenhas towards the Honours of the Altar On 23 December 1960, Raymondappeared peaceful and ready to meet his Creator. The sisters of the Congregation prayed in his room and Mgr Marian Castelino his close friend fortified him through the Sacrament of the Anointing of the sick. At 04.15 am Raymond gave a deep sigh and surrendered his soul in the hands of his Maker. A saintly man, a priest of God, a lover of the poor, a compassionate pastor and a zealous apostle of Christ flew to heaven to receive his reward.Hearing the death news of Raymond, Rev Dr Raymond D’Mello the Bishop of the Diocese exclaimed, “Let anyone say anything, human beings have shortcomings, but Monsignor Mascarenhas was a great priest, who toiled for the greater glory of God through his achievements. May the Lord grant him eternal happiness.”
