Fr. Rufino Cautinho, S.J.

By Fr. John Locke, S.J.
(From the Nepal Region’s 50th Anniversary Book, 2001)

Born In Burma in 1930 of Goan parents, Fr. Coutinho returned with his family to India to reside in Bombay and, at the relatively advanced age of 26, joined the Society for Patna Province. After his studies he spent several years in various mission stations in North Bihar. From there he went to St. Xavier’s in Jaipur as treasurer and after that served as treasurer of Vidyajyoti in Delhi. In 1977, as Fr. Gafney, then the treasurer of the Jesuits in Nepal, became increasingly involved in social work, Nepal was desperately in need of a treasurer.

Fr. Rufie came to Nepal to rake up this work and relieve Fr. Gafney of the burden. He guided the finances of the region through a period of transition from one Jesuit community in two places to several communities and finally a full-fledged region of the Society. In 1990 he passed this work on to others to take up teaching in the school and pastoral work. He moved to Godavari in 1991 to continue teaching and in 1993 became the superior of the Godavari community guiding the community in a period of transition.

At Godavari he also served as pastor to the small Catholic community. A gentle and open religious Rufie is a person people can feel at ease with. He was always a joy to have in the community and a pastor that people could relate to and open their hearts to. Increasing bad health – arthritis, a heart bypass operation, a hernia operation, and several other minor ills – forced him to leave Nepal in 1999 for the warmer and healthier climate of Goa. He now resides in retirement it the Jesuit residence in Panjim.