Novena of St Mary's Basilica to go virtual from August 29

The Covid-19 pandemic has cast a dark spell on the annual festivities at the St Mary’s Basilica and the Novena in Shivajinagar. Unlike the regular grandeur and fervour surrounding the region, this year, the festival will be held virtually from August 29 to September 8, according to sources at the Archdiocese of Bangalore.

Confirming the virtual celebration of one of Central Bengaluru’s most iconic events, Rev Dr Peter Machado, Archbishop of Bangalore, said all the festive activities will be telecast live on various social media platforms.

“We have been advised by the government and the police to have low-key celebrations to avoid crowding of devotees at the shrine and its vicinity. As per their directive and as a responsible community, we have decided to live stream all the spiritual programmes spanning nine days on social media channels,” the archbishop said in a statement.

The archbishop has appealed to all the faithful to confine to their homes and spend time in prayer, recite the rosary and participate in the holy masses. It is an opportunity to seek Mother Mary’s intervention to help wipe out the pandemic. “We will be praying specially for all the devotees and the people of Bengaluru and Karnataka,” he said.

Programmes will be telecast on www.stmarysbangalore.com and www.bangalorearchdiocese.org. The same will also be available on the YouTube channel of the Bangalore Archdiocese and app of the Archdiocese.

Mass will be held daily at 6 am (English), 7 am (Kannada), 8 am (Tamil), 9 am (Konkani) and 10 am (Malayalam). A special prayer for the sick will also be held at 11 am. At 5 pm, the rosary, litany and marian reflection in various languages and benediction will be held.