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The Reis Magos Church
 The
small hamlet of Reis Magos lies on banks of the Mandovi river
and is home to two famous landmarks of Goa - the Reis Magos
fort and the Reis Magos Church. It is also one of only three
places in Goa, where the unique Feast of the Three Wise Men
is held.
Reis Magos lies off the main road, which
passes through the fishing and boat-building villages of Betim
and Verem on the way to the more famous tourist spots of Calangute
and Candolim beaches. At the Verem Bazar, a turning past a
Hindu tree shrine takes the traveller to Reis Magos.
The Church, whose whitewashed gabled facade
is visible from across the river in Panaji, was built in 1555.
Fransiscan friars, who were in charge of missionary work for
the area, took over the church and founded a small seminary
here.
The church, which was built shortly after
the fort above it, was dedicated to St Jerome. Historians
have found evidence to support the fact that the Church was
built on the ruins of an old Hindu temple. Two typical symbols
of the Hindu Vijayanagar temple architecture - bas-relief
lion figures can be seen on the flanks, at the start of the
steps going up to the Church.
Not long after its construction, the Church
and the Seminary became a well established site for learning
and its prominence can be gauged from the fact that the Portuguese
royal coat of arms is imprinted below the crucifix at the
top of the gable. Two of Goa´s former Viceroys are actually
buried here, their tombstone inscriptions in Por4tuguese and
Latin still clearly legible.
 One
of the tombs is that of Dom Luis de Ataide, who gained fame
all over the Portuguese empire for his spirited defense of
the colony of Goa, when just with a force of 700 men, he managed
to keep at bay 10,000 Muslim attackers supported by 2000 elephants
for a period of ten long months.
The Church interiors are quite colourful
and impressive, with the highlight being the multi-coloured
wood relief showing the Three Wise Men (Reis Magos) bearing
gifts to the baby Jesus, which is the centerpiece of the elaborately
carved and painted reredos behind the high altar.
Every year on the 6th of January, Reis Magos
comes alive with the colourful Festa dos Reis Magos, when
the story of the three Kings is re-enacted by local youth
playing the parts of the Magi. The locals celebrate the journey
of the three kings who went to worship the holy Infant Child
with a procession which starts from the Church and goes around
the village.
See Also Other Churches:
| Churches
of Goa | Old
Goa Heritage Site | St
Francis of Assissi Church |
| Bom Jesus Basilica
| Reis Magos Church
| Church of Our Lady of
Rosary |
| Santana Church
| Sé Cathedral
| St Augustine Tower
| Church of St Cajetan
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| Church of St Paul
| Church of Mary Immaculate
Conception |
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