Category Archives: Aug 2017

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As Christians, we are called to be good people, for we have a shared humanity, with one another and with God himself in the person of Jesus Christ. It is this shared humanity that underpins our responsibility for the good of our neighbour, of society, and of the world. This is our Christian hope – that in being good people we will show that God is good because “God has no hands except ours” (St Teresa). So, it is that we must build bridges of peace, unity, and harmony between people of all races and religions.

And nowhere is the call to goodness more urgent than in societies like our own, made up of diverse races and religious affiliations. Our Malaysia will only ever be ours if we love it into being. Today we celebrate 60 years of independence. For many of us, the first exuberant cries of merdeka are something we have only seen in history books and documentaries. The joyful hope of the people of a new nation risks becoming nothing but a relic of the past, as our collective memory fades from generation to generation, and our freedom becomes detached from that first hope. On this auspicious day, it is timely that we reignite the aspirations of our nation’s founding fathers and examine our use of the freedom we have been given. It is ultimately a freedom to love, and together to build a nation through which the love of God flows, to unite all in regard for each person’s God-given dignity, to care for the least among us, and to work in service of each other for the common good. How far have we come these last six decades as a nation and a people?

It is a love that sacrifices self for the good of the other, which prompts us to set aside our personal agendas and the temptation to prioritise selfish desires, in order to build a just society, a nation that favours all over the interests of a few. It is a love that acts first, emboldening us to seek out dialogue and common ground upon which we may build the foundations of national peace, stability, and growth. It is a love that teaches by example, so that future generations, seeing the way we work for good, will never lose sight of our aspirations, and will be equipped with the skills and conviction to continue our work. It is a love that is benevolent, which replaces utilitarian sentiments with those of genuine care, especially for our migrant workers who have joined their hopes to ours and work in often unappreciated ways to help achieve our aspirations. It is a love generous in its giving to those most in need, ensuring that the rewards of growth and development are felt all the way to the margins of society. It is a love that is blind to anything that would tempt us to love less, and recognises the inherent dignity of each individual regardless of race, religion, political affiliation, status, or any of the weak human distinctions by which we divide rather than unite.

As we celebrate the commemoration of these great events in our shared history, Hari Merdeka and Hari Malaysia, let us take the opportunity for a personal examination of conscience: how far do my values and attitudes towards my country and all the people in society reflect the good news of God’s love for me and all mankind? In the words of His Holiness, Pope Francis, to the US Congress in 2015, “Each son or daughter of a given country has a mission, a personal and social responsibility.” Independence means little if we remain enslaved by pride, jealousy, anger, greed, and apathy, which feed the polarisations that are so injurious to unity. Let us look first at the communities that make up our own churches. Do we divide ourselves along lines of race, language, and social and economic background, which are ultimately invisible in God’s eyes? In remedying our own divisions, in love and humility, so that Christ’s prayer may be fulfilled, “that they may all be one” (John 17:21), let us also never forget our mission to our nation, to adopt a multi-pronged approach to building-up society beginning with a change in our own mind-set and attitudes that will effect a change in our behaviour. We must then educate others from the youngest to the eldest in our society and promote efforts that seek unity in the diversity of races and religions that make us uniquely Malaysians.

And may God’s blessings be poured out upon us, that our celebrations may extend well beyond the parades, parties, and public holidays, and become a lived reality that sees us berganding bahu (standing united) in love to build an even greater and more prosperous Malaysia.

SELAMAT MENYAMBUT HARI MERDEKA DAN HARI MALAYSIA!

Most Reverend Julian Leow Beng Kim DD
Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur
President, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Malaysia, on behalf of:

Most Reverend Simon Poh —
Archbishop of Kuching

Most Reverend John Wong —
Archbishop of Kota Kinabalu

Rt Reverend Cornelius Piong —
Bishop of Keningau

Rt Reverend Julius Dusin Gitom —
Bishop of Sandakan

Rt Reverend Richard Ng
Bishop of Miri

Rt Reverend Joseph Hii
Bishop of Sibu

Rt Reverend Datuk Sebastian Francis —
Bishop of Penang

Rt Reverend Bernard Paul —
Bishop of Melaka – Johor

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

He expressed his hope that all the above information helps in disseminating the talk2francisMY campaign to all the youths both Catholics and Non-Catholics.   The youth office at parish and Arch/Diocese level should take ownership of this campaign in their own dioceses.

Krishnan can be contacted via email to ignatius@serantau.org.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

INANAM –  Over 200 parishioners attended a catechesis on The Prodigal Son parable at St Catherine’s Church here on 18 Aug 2017 conducted by the Archdiocesan Social Communications Commission (Soccom).

The catechesis was jointly presented by Father Thomas Madanan, the Commission’s Spiritual Adviser who spoke on The Merciful Father; Joseph Leong, its Chairman on The Elder Son; and Gideon Mosito, another Soccom member on The Prodigal Son.

Fr Madanan explained that although the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy (YoM) officially ended in November 2016, Soccom has continued with its  YoM programme because of its timeless message for all those seeking God’s mercy and showing mercy to others around them.

In their presentation, the speakers gave testimony on how they have experienced the forgiveness of God and have thus become witnesses of mercy.

They said the central purpose of visiting the Inanam parish and giving the catechesis on The Prodigal Son was to underscore the need for everyone in a Catholic family to repent and seek the mercy of God.

It was brought home in their talks that not only The Prodigal Son, the younger son in the parable, but the elder son too has to see a need to heal broken relationships within a Catholic family.

They stated that those who serve the church in various capacities on a regular basis and for a long time might have a similar attitude of the elder brother in the parable who was angry with the father and was upset over his younger brother being given such a lavish welcome.

They stressed that everyone in the family should recognise their wrongdoings and seize opportunities for repentance and return body, heart, and soul to God the Father.

The Soccom speakers invited the parishioners, coming from Telipok, Manggatal and Inanam, to be reconciled with each other in their respective family by way of forgiveness and other acts of mercy.

They also had the opportunity to watch videos on the YoM celebrations in the Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu and the World Communications Day (WCD) celebration at the archdiocesan level hosted by the parish on 28 May 2017.

They were each given a free copy of an information leaflet on the Extraordinary Jubilee Year, entitled, “What ‘Mercy’ Means to Me and My Family,”  produced by the Soccom in English and Bahasa Malaysia.

Commenting on the Soccom programme in Inanam, Leong recalled that Pope Francis had, in his message for World Communications Day in May this year, stressed the need for all Catholics, especially those engaged in media work, to communicate hope and trust in our time.

“This was precisely what we did at St Catherine’s Church that night,” he said, adding, “We were there to give a word of hope to the crowd who appeared to be full of hunger and thirst for the love and mercy of God.”

This is the third parish where this special YoM programme was conducted in the archdiocese.

The previous occasions were at the Holy Rosary Church, Limbahau, on 11 Nov 2016 and at the Holy Nativity Church, Terawi, on 28 April 2017.

Among parish officials present were Fr David Sham, Parish Priest; Paul Augustine, Chairman of Parish Pastoral Council; Francis Ten, head of Liturgy; and Jesuit Deacon Leslie Bingkasan, who is due to be ordained a priest at the same church on 1 Sept 2017 by Archbishop John Wong.

Patricia Regis, another Soccom member, responsible for documentation and research work, was also present to lend support for the event.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

Our Lady, Queen of All Saints, Dontozidon praesidium organised a one-day recollection at Bamboo House in Kg Notoruss June 17 with the theme Sharing the Joy of Faith like Mary.

PENAMPANG: Our Lady, Queen of All Saints, Dontozidon praesidium organised a one-day recollection at Bamboo House in Kg Notoruss June 17 with the theme Sharing the Joy of Faith like Mary.

The recollection, facilitated by Franciscan Sr Dora Obod, the praesidum’s Spiritual Director, was attended by 32 active and auxiliary legionaries from the praesidia of Our Lady, Queen of All Saints, Dontozidon, Our Lady of Grace, Kg Kopungit and Our Lady of Sorrow, Kg Kolopis.

The legionaries reflected on the Magnificat, Mary’s song of praise, also known as the Canticle of Mary. They were encouraged to emulate Mary’s life which is in full union and cooperation with the Holy Spirit, echoing her fiat ‘I am the servant of the Lord, be it done unto me according to Thy word.’

They were also invited to be open to God, not only to follow the rules, but to be able to love one another and to do the will of God with a clear conviction that God speaks to us.

A few members stepped forward to share their joys, sorrows, challenges and ways to remain loyal and to live up to their promise.

Praying with Mary, especially in the daily rosary, and faithful accomplishment of weekly assignment of works of mercy for 33 years, Angeline Hunggim from Our Lady of Sorrow, Kg Kolopis, testified to the presence and powerful intervention of God in her vocation, family and personal life.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

In conjunction with the 50th Universal Anniversary of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR), the English Prayer Group of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament organised a Renewal Seminar with Jude Antoine as the main facilitator.

LABUAN: In conjunction with the 50th Universal Anniversary of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR), the English Prayer Group of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament organised a Renewal Seminar with Jude Antoine as the main facilitator. The seminar began with a Para Liturgy led by Fr Johnny Raju. Approximately 180 participants attended this seminar.

The topics of this seminar were: The History of the Charistmatic Renewal in the Catholic Church for the past 50 years, How it came about from Vatican II, The discernment and prophesy from Popes Leo, John and Francis.

The Universal Catholic Church needs to undergo a renewal, to work as a team in every parish community but, before we can do that, we need to renew ourselves and our mindsets.

There were also talks on personal growth, understanding the role of the Holy Spirit and Transformation and a time of personal ministering and baptism of the Holy Spirit.

The fruits of the spirit were evident during the personal testimony of the participants. They shared on the personal touch of the Lord as they received various gifts. — By GL

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

“There are three elements to cooperating with God to fulfil His salvation through the family, said Fr Aloysius Tan on August 2 at the Chapel of St Anne during its feastday celebration

By DMC Durairaj
“There are three elements to cooperating with God to fulfil His salvation through the family, said Fr Aloysius Tan on August 2 at the Chapel of St Anne during its feastday celebration

“They are — to place priority on prayer and worship, to increase love within the family and, to be of service to one another. The important element is to grow in hope. The family is like a field with treasure — we want to give everything for it,” said the priest from Kampar.

Fr Tan spoke on the theme for the first day which was Hope Creates Harmonious Families. He presided at the multilingual Eucharistic celebration with parish priest Fr Vincent Paul concelebrating. The celebration began with a flag-raising ceremony and novena.

On August 3, the Eucharistic celebration was presided by Fr Anthony Pillai, assistant priest from Taiping parish, with Fr Vincent concelebrating. In his homily, he stressed how we should be united, no matter the race or religion. It is always good to be involved in church activities. This will strengthen our faith and relationship with one another.

On August 4, the Eucharistic celebration was presided by Fr Vincent Paul, assisted by Deacon Lazarus from St Anne, BM parish. The homily for the day was by Deacon Lazarus who shared on the Gospel reading about how Jesus was rejected in His hometown. He gave three reasons. Firstly, the people knew him as a carpenter, secondly, being from the same town, thirdly, they had a low impression of the family as Mary had been pregnant before marriage. He also asked a few questions for everyone to ponder on such as, Do we treat people equally? Do we look at their status? The anointing of the sick followed after the homily.

On Aug 5, the final day, Fr Vincent was the main celebrant, with Deacon Clement Samuel from Taiping parish assisting. The theme for the celebration was the Parable of the Sower. Deacon Clement, in the homily began by asking, Have we been growing as good Christians? Why is it that some do not change? The reasons could be that they hear, but they don’t believe. They are too busy and have no time for the Word of God. St Anne taught Mary the Word of God — Mary was to say YES to God’s word. Parents, nowadays, should teach their children the Word of God so that God can work on all of us and we can grow spiritually.

An the end of the Mass, there was a candlelight procession, with Fr Vincent carrying the Blessed Sacrament, followed by the decorated and lighted statue of St Anne. Hundreds of parishioners followed, singing hymns and reciting the Holy Rosary. The procession ended with the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at the Chapel.

Fr Vincent was happy and proud that the parishioners of this little Chapel were able to make all the arrangements for the successful feastday celebration.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

By Julita Kantod
The Diocesan Family Life Ministry Commission members were commissioned by Fr Marcelinus Pongking, the Assistant Rector of St Dominic, Lahad Datu, during the Sunset Mass on July 22.

The next day, the Parish Family Life Ministry of St Dominic, together with some members from Sandakan, joined the team in giving the Pre- Marriage course to 23 couples in Tampenau, Lahad Datu.

Serving in the Family Life Ministry is challenging. The members are there to help other families sustain and protect the dignity of the family and, yet, they themselves have to struggle to maintain and sustain their own families in the midst of difficulties and disappointment. The Lord’s reassuring voice in the Gospel of Matthew encourages them. “Do not be afraid; I am with you always. Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

These couple of months I have noticed that the attendance for our weekend Masses have been dwindling. I don’t know about other churches but I tend to be too obsessed with this troubling thought.

By Fr. George Packiasamy 
These couple of months I have noticed that the attendance for our weekend Masses have been dwindling. I don’t know about other churches but I tend to be too obsessed with this troubling thought. I try my best to make my homilies and celebrations interesting so that you may stay connected when you come for Mass. Some of our parishioners don’t feel that it is important to attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation.

Church attendance is important. We attend Church to meet with God. God is worthy of our worship.  As Catholics, Church is a place where we can all come together to worship. It reminds me of one of the hymns, which goes, “Enter His gate with thanksgiving in our hearts…” (cf. Psalm 100:4). Every time when we enter our Church doors we come with thanksgiving in our hearts and we sing praises to God.

We come to Church to be part of our Church and to be one with Jesus. We submit ourselves to Him and draw life from Him. We gather in the Church where the Word of God is faithfully proclaimed and the Sacrament of the Eucharist is celebrated reverently for us. Our gathering in the Church for weekly worship will encourage us, strengthen us and nourish us.  We listen and learn from Jesus, Mary and Joseph in order for us to grow spiritually.

It is very important that Catholic families should mould their children in faith while they are still young. We attend Sunday Masses or any other spiritual formations in Church to enhance our spiritual and psychological growth. Our participation in the sacrament, prayers and formation each week deepens our belief and our faith in the “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one Church,” (cf. Eph 4: 5).

There is no excuse for not attending mass on Sundays. Often we hear that “Sunday is my only day to sleep in.” Church no longer holds priority in our lives. We are too occupied with our daily schedules. When the weekend comes,  we would prefer to go for a  vacation or away from the town just to get some relaxation. One of the greatest advantages we Catholics in KL have is the easy accessibility to numerous Churches in the city –  just a mere  20 minutes drive!  It will be most pleasing to God that we fulfill our Sunday obligation before we get engrossed with other agendas during the weekend. God will be happy when we come to Church and worship Him. When Jesus sees that His Church attendance is full and His Church is growing in numbers, surely He will be rejoicing in Heaven as He rewards us with His overflowing love.

Today’s culture is changing where we have become very individualistic. Both Church attendance and fellowship with communities are equally important. The Holy Spirit leads us to unity with the Body of Christ, which is the Church. “Without Jesus Christ, there can be no Church; and without the Church, we cannot stay united with Jesus.” We need to bring ourselves closer to Jesus and to reach out to the people in the community. It is for our own good that Jesus wants us to have fellowship with one another. The more we develop our friendship in the Church, the more we want to be together.  We are to be disciples of Christ.  We need each other to grow in the faith of Christ, to learn to serve, to love one another, to exercise our spiritual gifts, and to practice forgiveness.—SJC

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

VATICAN CITY –  The Vatican released on 19 Aug 2017 the official logo and motto for Pope Francis’ Apostolic Journey to Peru, which takes place on 18-21 January 2018.

“United for Hope” (Unidos por la esperanza) is the official motto for the Journey, signifying that the encounter will be “a great feast of hope to be received in unity”.

The logo expresses the Pope’s closeness to the Peruvian people and his accompaniment of their journey of faith.

Two outstretched hands under the motto and date of the visit evoke the colors of the Peruvian and Vatican flags: red and yellow, respectively.

They form the shape of wings as a sign of prayer, praise, and joy for the arrival of Pope Francis in Peru.

To the left, Pope Francis joyfully reaches out of a map of Peru in a sign of closeness to the country and of unity with it.

Pope Francis will be the second Pope to visit Peru, following Pope John Paul II’s two visits in 1985 and 1988.

Thirty years then since the last papal visit, Peru requested that Pope Francis journey there, in order to strengthen the bond between God and his Peruvian people and to aid in “a new missionary awakening” in the country. – Vatican Radio

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

PENAMPANG – Over 1000 parishioners attended the rededication of Penampang church on 18 Aug 2017.

Saint Michael had been closed for renovation since March this year and Masses had been celebrated at the parish hall.

Archbishop John Wong officiated the rite of dedication.  Joining him at the altar were Msgr Primus Jouil, Fathers Wilfred Atin (pastor), Fundes Motiung (past pastor), Wiandigool Runsab (asst pastor), Mattheus Luta, Raymond Edward, Abel Madisang, Rayner Bisius, and Max Hontor.

The rite began with the blessing of water at the new baptismal font at the foot of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Altar.

The prelate then went around the whole building blessing it with holy water including the cemetery compound where the tombstones of former state minister Datuk Peter Mojuntin and Rev Anthony Paulmichl mhm were laid (left side of church building) which had been turned into a seating area for 300 people.  He also went up to bless the mezzanine.

The tombs were relocated to the cemetery behind the church.  Mojuntin was one of the newly-formed Berjaya Cabinet members who were killed in the Nomad crash on 6 June 1976.  Fr Paulmichl died on 20 June 1945 enroute the death march to Sapong Tenom with Msgr August Wachter and other Mill Hill Missionaries and laymen rounded up by the Japanese.

The altar and tabernacle were blessed before Presentation of the Gifts.

In his speech, Ernest Mojikon, parish finance and property council chairman, said the renovations took about six months to complete.  The church used to accommodate 800 parishioners but now it has 1,300-seating capacity.

The major face-lift involved all the interiors such as window glasses, altar, sound system, tiles, wall paintings while the pews were repainted.

The total cost of the renovations work was around RM332,852.00 with funds from both the Federal and State Governments.

Businessman Datuk John Lim Pang Seng donated 10 units of air-conditioners while Gerald Chin donated two sets of chandelier lights (near the main entrance). The three-dimension painting of the Last Supper backdrop was done by Samson Gadakui of Kg Babagon.

In turn, Fr Motiung who initiated the project explained the conceptual framework of the ceiling paintings and the altar design of four loaves and two fish.

The church was built in the 1930s by Msgr August Wachter with stones collected from the Dambai River by the villagers headed by Bartholomew Sinsua using buffaloes. It survived World War II.  No other church was built the same way except St Michael Sandakan which also survived the war.

Fr Atin, in his speech, encouraged the parishioners to build up their parish community which is more important than the material building itself however beautiful it may be architecturally.

Abp Wong, too, exhorted the faithful to build themselves up through having large families, praying for priestly and religious vocations, and having a strong eucharistic life.

After Mass all adjourned to the parish hall for a late dinner fellowship.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu