Archbishop Wong visits Labuan parish

The Parish of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament was graced with the presence of Archbishop John Wong June 2-3 for his Annual Pastoral Visit and also to celebrate the feastday of the parish.

His Grace met with members of the Pastoral Council and Coordinators of the various Church ministries. The main item of discussion was to get a permanent Resident priest in Labuan. They also mentioned the growth of the Catholic population and the possibility of building an extension to the church.

Archbishop Wong was the main celebrant for the Sacrament of Confirmation for 90 of our parishioners, 23 from the English class and 67 from the BM class. It was concelebrated with our Resident priest, Msgr Primus Jouli.

The celebration of Corpus Christi ended with a procession with about 2000 particpants. Archbishop Wong stressed on the need for the procession because to us, Catholics, the Body and Blood is a living testimony of our Faith. We walk with Jesus and follow him as we practise our Faith of Love, Tolerance, Humility, Humbleness and Commitment to the Sacraments. There were 2000 participants in the procession.

A fellowship was held after the Eucharistic celebration with the cutting of three cakes: one for the newly confirmed, one for the Parish Feastday and one a surprise birthday cake to celebrate Archbishop’s birthday.

Archbishop Wong was very encouraged with the feedback on the commitment and co-operation between all the groups.

He encouraged the Catholic community to have bigger families as the Catholic population is dwindling. He also stressed on our responsibilities to look into the needs of the Catholic students at the Higher Institutions of Learning in the island of Labuan.

Msgr Primus Jouli reminded the parishioners that we are the only Church in Sabah with the Name of the Blessed Sacrament. We should set an example to our family members that the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ is a living testimony of our salvation.

The Pastoral Visit ended with great memories for us, the parishioners of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament. WP Labuan.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online