Biography
Francis Xavier was among the first companions of St. Ignatius of Loyola and became a foundational Jesuit missionary. His travels connected Goa, the coasts of India, Malacca, the Moluccas, and Japan before his death while waiting to enter China.
His body is venerated at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa, while other places preserve episodes of preaching, travel, temporary burial, or later patronal dedication. The distinctions matter when planning a historically grounded pilgrimage.
How to read this pilgrimage
Goa is the center of veneration; Melaka and other Asian stops help reconstruct the movement of a missionary whose journeys crossed languages, empires, and cultures.
St. Francis Xavier, pray for us.