Category Archives: Aug 2018

BUKIT PADANG – The Friends of St John Vianney (FSJV) marked the feast day of its patron saint, John Vianney, with a charity dinner, at the Putera Theatre Ballroom here on 5 Aug 2018.

Almost a thousand people attended the third dinner organised in aid of the welfare fund for the archdiocesan aspirants and seminarians.

The concept was first mooted by then Aspirants Director Father Wilfred Atin in 2011, realised in 2013 under the acronym RASS (Rakan-rakan Aspiran dan Seminarian) but the name was changed to Friends of St John Vianney (FSJV) in 2014.

The main objective of FSJV was to give material and moral support to the aspirants and seminarians through various activities and involvement of the laity in the early formative years of these young candidates.

In his address, Archbishop John Wong, FSJV patron, thanked the organising team headed by Rayner Ajumal, for organising the event, and all present for their support in turning up for the dinner.

On the other hand,  FSJV chairman Peter Suking,  in his welcoming speech,  gave a backgrounder on its history to the diners while Father Joshua Liew, FSJV spiritual advisor since January 2018, thanked everyone for their presence and support.

Among the stage performances was a skit entitled Sickness of the World by the aspirants.  The performances were interspersed with lucky draws.

The organisers also took the opportunity to honour Father Mattheus Luta (Initiation Year Director) and Father Wiandigool Runsab (assistant pastor of St Michael Penampang) in conjunction with their eighth priestly anniversaries (Aug 4).

Among those present were Abp Emeritus John Lee, Father Thomas Madanan of St Joseph Kiulu, Father Wilfred Atin, former Aspirants Director and now pastor of St Michael Penampang, Father Abel Madisang of St John Tuaran, and Deacon Russell Lawrine.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

PENAMPANG – Father Paul Lo has been appointed by Archbishop John Wong as the rector of the Sacred Heart Cathedral Karamunsing effective 16 Aug 2018.

Lo replaces the archbishop who became the parish priest of the cathedral in October 2014.

Born in Kudat in 1973, Lo joined the preparatory course at the Catholic Diocesan Centre Penampang in 1997 and went on for his philosophical and theological studies at St Peter’s College Kuching in 1998.  He was ordained priest by then Bishop John Lee in 2005.

After ordination he served in Sandakan and Tanjung Aru before being sent to Rome for a licentiate in Biblical Theology in 2010.

Upon his return from Rome in 2014, he served in Inanam, Manggatal, and Telipok until his appointment as assistant pastor at the Sacred Heart Cathedral in 2017.

Currently, he is also the spiritual director of the lay movements/apostolate in the archdiocese.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

SANDAKAN: Thirty-two youth facilitators attended a recollection in preparation for the Let’s Unite Camp (LUC) on 29 July 2018 at St John Paul II Room here.

Organised by the Parish Youth Apostolate, the recollection was facilitated by Anna Teresa Amandus.

The participants came from St Mary’s Cathedral, St Mark and St Peter.

LUC (formerly known as Unite Camp), an annual parish youth programme,  will be held on Aug 23-26 at St Mark Mile 12 Sandakan.

The theme is taken from 1 Corinthians 1:10 – I appeal to you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no dissension among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment – in line with the Diocesan Vision and Mission.

The objective of the camp is to unite the parish youth through a deepened understanding of the faith and knowledge of God with Mary as model.

The recollection began with acknowledging the reality of the community, family, self followed by Mary’s journey of faith till the journey to Emmaus (Christian vocation).

Through undergoing this recollection, the facilitators will be able to help those who will attend LUC later on.  Moreover, friendships will also be strengthened to help each other to stay committed to make LUC a fruitful one.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

Fr Fabian Dicom conducted a Reflection on the Joy of the Gospel (Evangelii Gaudium) to 97 parishioners at the Church of the Divine Mercy (CDM) on July 14. He began by saying that Evangelii Gaudium (EG) doesn’t tell us how to read the Bible but, instead, how to experience the joy of the gospel. He explained that his presentation would be in four parts. First, his reflection on the meaning of Joy. Then he would explain the Spirituality of EG and the Biblical basis of EG.
This would be followed by the Theology of EG and lastly, he would summarise the four chapters of EG in relation to its Ecclesiology (the Evangelising Church).

Speaking of the meaning of Joy, Fr Fabian explained that he is a cradle Catholic who grew up with the perception that God, the Babysitter, was always watching you. This resulted in an upbringing clothed in fear and a sense of not being able to measure up to God’s expectations, being unworthy and fearing punishment. This was to incite obedience and not spirituality. Hence, he explained the difference between religiosity and spirituality. He emphasised that religion has to evolve from fear to joy, from ‘Churchianity’ to Christianity. There should be no cause and effect in what we do as God’s love is unconditional. This is the awareness we should cultivate and we should not make comparisons of our faith devotion with that of others. This awareness comes with our encounter with Jesus and this is the way to experience Joy.

He reminded us that we need to constantly update our encounter with Jesus to let this joy grow.

In explaining the Spirituality of EG, Fr Fabian elaborated on the many things that the Holy Father, Pope Francis, warns are obstacles. These include the “dark side” of secularity, a greedy economic system that produces dehumanizing poverty, a “throw away” mentality and a “worldly spirituality” that has lost its anchor in Christ and the Spirit. Fr explained that the primary reason for evangelisation is the love of Jesus. So, one must heed the call of Pope Francis to renew our personal encounter with Jesus each day as no one is excluded from the joy brought by the Lord. To feel the need to speak of the beloved, point him out and make him known. This is done with prayer to implore his grace to make Jesus the centre and have a real mystical experience. This mystical experience will also allow others to be who they are and for us to live authentically in our faith. He went on to quote Henry Nouwen from his book Bread for the Journey. “What we live is more important than what we say; because the right way of living always leads us to the right way of speaking.”

In the session on the Theology of EG, Fr said that any reflection of God is theology. Theology is often relevant in its cultural context. There are many models of contextual theology. Stephen Bevans has explained six models. A guideline that may be useful is that adopted by the Conference of the Latin American and Caribbean Bishops. They use the See-Judge-Act method. See: reviews the concrete situation; Judge: is where one forms a judgement in the light of social analyses and theological reflection (based on the Scriptures and Catholic social teaching); Act: is where one decides what circumstances can and should be taken to change the situation and address the root causes.

In the final session, Fr Fabian gave a brief summary of the four chapters of EG in the context of the See-Judge-Act guideline. Chapter 1: Basically begins with SEE on the situation of the Church. Chapter 2: SEE extended. Challenges of today’s world and the temptations faced by Pastoral workers. Chapter 3: JUDGE. Proclamation of the Gospel, the homily and issues with catechesis. Chapter 4: ACT. To include different aspects of Catholic teaching, the communal and societal repercussions of the Kerygma and dealing with the poor in society.

In conclusion, the Ecclesiology of EG makes it clear that the gospel exists to be put into practice. It gives a vision of how the Church can be opened to the world in a form that excludes nobody from its compassion. In the image of the washing of feet, the Church ventures forward with humility and inclusiveness, proclaiming the Joy of the Gospel.

In the question and answer session, Fr Fabian explained issues regarding the approaches to guiding the Youth, the rationale of the rules and regulations given to churchgoers and the approach towards being inclusive to all in Church.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

PETALING JAYA: Vatican II may have called for the windows of the Church to let fresh air in, but after 50 years of sunlight, some renovation may be necessary.

Recognising this, the Kuala Lumpur Archdiocese was proud to receive Fr James Mallon, author of the widely acclaimed book, Divine Renovation: Bringing your parish from maintenance to mission for a two-hour session on July 24.

Hosted by Alpha Malaysia and held in Loyola Hall of the Church of St Francis Xavier, Fr Mallon shared with Archbishop Julian Leow, clergy members and lay leaders his personal experiences as pastor of the Church of St Benedict in the Canadian town of Halifax.

The Church needs a spiritual renovation to awaken her sense of mission, Fr Mallon said.

Speaking to an 80-strong audience drawn from 17 churches between Perak and Singapore, Fr Mallon told of the many challenges and obstacles which he faced in trying to renew a tired and shrinking congregation.

Using the Alpha programme as a source of renewal, he shared how, slowly but surely, he instilled a sense of mission into the mindset of his parishioners, who in turn attracted others to the parish.

As a result, St Benedict’s has grown into a 1,400-strong community comprising numerous small “connect” groups and ministries, with some 850 members strongly involved in church and missionary activity.

The Church must move away from the culture of maintenance to one of mission, Fr Mallon told his attentive audience.

Referring to the parable of the lost sheep, he said that the ‘common sense’ solution would have been to write off the one sheep lost in the wilderness in order to preserve and keep safe the remaining 99. Yet, that was not what Christ did.

He recommended three steps to start the process: forming a senior leadership team, running the Alpha programme and reimagining the weekend experience of homilies, hymns and hospitality — the 3H’s — so that it better projects mission as the Church’s core purpose.

The priest also cautioned leaders not to be too troubled by those who complained.Those with loud complaints are usually in the minority, he warned, and appeasing these laggards all the time will harm growth.

Attendees were effusive in their praise of Fr Mallon’s message.

“The talk has changed the way I view how a parish should be run,” said Deacon Martinian Lee, whose priestly ordination will take place in Melaka later this year.

“Fr Mallon is an incredibly sharp, knowledgeable and wise man,” business growth consultant Jeevan Sahadevan said. “I learned so much in just two hours that I can use to improve my relationship with Christ!”

Church of the Divine Mercy’s PPC Chairman, Philip Rao, said he found the talk enlightening yet seemingly logical. “Our maintenance culture, which focuses on the provision of ‘the usual services’, makes us forget that being Church requires us to be much more dynamic,” he added.

Caroline Soon of Alpha Malaysia said that the Peninsular Malaysia Church have been way ahead in her understanding of the Church as being on a mssion. “We have been on a journey for more than 40 years with the 1976 Aggiornamento and the formation of BECs. We just need to stay focused on BECs and keep going.”

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

BUTTERWORTH – With the commencement of the piling works behind the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (NBVM) on 9 July 2018, the RM6 million NBVM Pastoral Centre moved one step closer to reality.

Father Dominic Santhiyagu, parish priest, and Father Victor Louis, Asst parish priest, concelebrated the Eucharist on Saturday, July 7, to ask for God’s blessings for the ground breaking ceremony.

At the site to officiate and witness the ceremony were Fr Victor Louis (former parish priest who initiated the fund raising for the project), Fr Dominic, Father Louis Loi, Tony Edwards (the chairman of the NBVM Building Committee), Bro Jason Raj OFMCap, the parish staff and about 40 parishioners.

Tony Edwards thanked Fr Victor for initiating the fund-building efforts and Fr Dominic for his support and patience with the Building Committee.

Fr Dominic commented that it was Fr Edmund Woon who first mooted the idea of a Pastoral Centre but then he left for further studies. Fr Victor carried on the project with several fund raising activities. Fr Dominic reminded the people to be thankful to God. He reiterated that God is the master planner and Christ is the Divine Architect. So, “unless the Lord builds, in vain will the builders labour.”

He reminded the people of the need for continuous support. Owing to the hard work of the Building Committee and the generosity of the parishioners and well-wishers, the parish building fund stands at about 2.1 million. There is still a shortfall of about 3.9 million. Bishop Sebastian Francis  has promised to give RM 3 million from the diocese as contribution and an additional 1 million as a soft loan. Fr Dominic hopes that the parishioners will continue to be generous in their donations so that the building will be completed.

Then Fr Dominic led the small congregation in prayers, asking the Lord to bless the construction site and to protect all the workers from harm and injury.

After that, the priests sprinkled holy water all over the construction site while those present said the rosary and sang the hymn On this day, O beautiful Mother. Then the three priests and Tony mounted the pile driver and drove in the cornerstone, symbolically signalling the beginning of the piling works, to the applause of all present. Piling work is estimated to take two and half months according to Fr Dominic. There will then be another ceremony for the construction of the Pastoral Centre, to which  Bp Sebastian Francis and some dignitaries will be invited to officiate. – Anne Marie Yap, Herald Malaysia.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

SANDAKAN – Thirty-two youth facilitators attended a recollection in preparation for the Let’s Unite Camp (LUC) on 29 July 2018 at St John Paul II Room here.

Organised by the Parish Youth Apostolate, the recollection was facilitated by Anna Teresa Amandus.

The participants came from St Mary’s Cathedral, St Mark and St Peter.

LUC (formerly known as Unite Camp), an annual parish youth programme,  will be held on Aug 23-26 at St Mark Mile 12 Sandakan.

The theme is taken from 1 Corinthians 1:10 – I appeal to you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no dissension among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment – in line with the Diocesan Vision and Mission.

The objective of the camp is to unite the parish youth through a deepened understanding of the faith and knowledge of God with Mary as model.

The recollection began with acknowledging the reality of the community, family, self followed by Mary’s journey of faith till the journey to Emmaus (Christian vocation).

Through undergoing this recollection, the facilitators will be able to help those who will attend LUC later on.  Moreover, friendships will also be strengthened to help each other to stay committed to make LUC a fruitful one.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

MAJODI, Plentong – Members of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei elected new heads for three regional episcopal commissions at their meeting here on 10-14 July 2018.

The new office bearers for term 2019-2020 were Bishop Cornelius Sim of Brunei for the Biblical Commission, Bishop Cornelius Piong of Keningau for the Pastoral Health Care Commission, and Archbishop Julian Leow of Kuala Lumpur for the Malaysian Catechetical Commission.

The other office bearers remain the same:

President: Bishop Sebastian Francis (Penang)
Vice President: Bishop Cornelius Sim
Treasurer: Bishop Bernard Paul (Melaka-Johor)
Hon Secretary: Archbishop William Goh (Singapore)

Consecrated Life: Archbishop William Goh
Diocesan Priests & Seminaries: Bishop Richard Ng (Miri)
Ecumenism & Inter-Faith Affairs: Archbishop Julian Leow
Family, Laity & Life: Archbishop John Wong (Kota Kinabalu)(Family & Life), Bishop Julius Gitom (Sandakan)(Laity)
Youth/Campus Ministry: Archbishop Simon Poh (Kuching)
Liturgy: Bishop Sebastian Francis
New Evangelisation: Archbishop Simon Poh
Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS): Archbishop Simon Poh
Pastoral Care of Migrants & Itinerants: Bishop Bernard Paul
Creation Justice: Bishop Joseph Hii (Sibu)
Social Communications: Bishop Cornelius Sim
Malaysian Catholic Education Council: Archbishop Julian Leow
Apostleship of the Sea: Archbishop William Goh
Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC): Bishop Sebastian Francis
FABC-Office of Theological Concerns (FABC-OTC): Archbishop William Goh
FABC-Office of Evangelisation (FABC-OE): Archbishop Simon Poh

The bishops meet twice a year (January & July) to discuss various aspects of the life of the Church in the region, and especially the challenges it faces. From their deliberations, common action to revitalise the Church would be evolved in order to render the Church more effective in its service to the members and to the society at large. – Executive Secretary, CBC-MSB

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu