First Auxiliary Goan bishop remembered

Goa's history is dotted with names of many noteworthy personalities who played an important role in shaping the Goa as we now know it. In the realm of the Catholic Church in Goa though, one name especially stands out - Fr Francisco Xavier Roque Joao da Piedade Rebelo, who was the first Goan priest to rise to the post of Auxiliary Bishop in Goa, and who was also instrumental in bringing about notable changes in the Church affairs.
Born in Margao on September 4, 1891 to Joao Fenelon da Piedade Rebelo and Perceliana da Piedade Miranda, Fr Francisco studied at the Rachol Seminary and was ordained priest on September 26, 1915. He celebrated his first mass in Margao Church on October 5, 1915. Following this he was posted as Assistant Parish Priest at St Francis Xavier Church Dabul Mumbai which was under the jurisdiction of the Archdicose of Goa and Daman. Post his return to Goa, he served under various positions of the Archdiocese. He was also a judge in the diocesan process of the Beatification of Fr Agnelo de Souza, a saintly menber of Pilar. He was elevated as Chancellor in 1942 and in 1953 became the Vicar General of the Archdiocese. It is said that Fr Francisco's name was put forward to be the Auxiliary Bishop of Goa in 1939. The Apostolic Delegate in New Delhi His Execellency Msgr Leo R Kirkels is said to have written to Patriarch of East Indies Dom Teotonio Manuel Ribeiro Vieira de Castro that his Auxiliary Bishop Dom Manuel Maria Ferreira da Silva was to be transferred. Dom Teotonio wrote back that he would prefer a Goan Auxiliary Bishop and mentioned Fr Francisco's name. However owing to the Concordata between the Vatican and the Portuguese Government, this didn't come throught.
It was in 1961 that he was chosen as the local bishop to head the Archdiocese in the absence of Patriarch Alvernaz who had migrated to Portugal soon after Liberation. He was appointed Auxiliary Bishop to the Patriarch in November 1963. On December 21, 1963 he was consecrated at the Se Cathedral, Old Goa. Later, he was elevated as Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese sede plena by Pope Paul VI in 1966.
He was at the centre of affairs when the traditionally used Latin language in Church made way for the vernacular tongue and was also instrumental in getting the New Testament printed and published in Konkani. Education got a lot of attention from Fr Francisco who encouraged churchs to open schools allowing for children in villages to get a chance to learn instead of travelling to the city to study at more expensive schools. It was due to his hardship that three colleges named St Xaviers' College Mapusa, Institute of Education (Nirmala Colleg), Panaji and Carmel College, Nuvem and about 80 high schools were opened. The Renewal Magazine was also started as a resul of his desire to reach the remotest areas of Goa.
In 1972, he voluntarily stepped down as bishop owing to old age and was replaced by Bishop Raul Gonsalves. He returned to his ancestral house in Margao on July 1, `972 and passed away on July 7, 1975. His good works however have not been forgotten and in tribute to this great but humble servant of God, the Avenue Road which passes in front of Ravindra Bhavan and runs from, Fatorda Circle to Mungul was named after him on September 13, 1976.