 
Archive : December 2003
CHRISTMAS MESSAGE 2003
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The Christmas Crib depicting the birth of Jesus portrays best that Christmas is a feast of the family since the Son of God chose to enter the world within a family, the Holy Family of Nazareth. As we contemplate and rejoice in the mystery of Christmas, we see the figurines of Joseph, Mary and Child Jesus in the crib as a kind of prototype of our own family, bringing forth radiantly the message that the communion of persons in a family has something transcendental... more
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Kuala Lipis Chapel Celebrates Golden Jubilee
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Kuala Lipis : The Kuala Lipis community celebrated the golden jubilee of the Chapel of St. Francis Xavier on Nov. 29. The main celebrant at the Eucharist celebration was Archbishop Murphy Pakiam. Concelebrating were Fr. Christopher Wilvaraj, the administrator of the chapel and Fr. Anthony Chan from Bentog. Archbishop Pakiam in his sermon encouraged the parishioners to follow the example of St. Francis Xavier who is the patron saint of missions. “We should be united in our faith and give of ourselves and our talents. We should also be patient and have a forgiving spirit in order to serve others,” he added. The celebration ended with the cutting of the anniversary cake by Archbishop Murphy followed by fellowship and dinner. (Herald)
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CATHOLIC TEACHERS END YEAR WITH HOLIDAY CAMP
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Port Dickson : The Catholic Teachers’ Association of Malaysia (CTAM) wound up its activities for the year with a successfully organized holiday camp. A total of 16 teachers and faith educators attended the camp held from Nov 25 to 27. Themed ‘Networking for Catholic Teachers’, the camp participants were urged to reach out to fellow members and working colleagues with a ‘local networking’ mode in respective areas. “Through networking, we can come to learn, to share while finding encouragement and support when facing this new millennium with much strengthened spirit and enthusiasm as far as our teaching profession is concerned,” said CTAM president A. R. Peter. In summing up the camp’s expectations, CTAM secretary, Gerard Kochappan disclosed that participants enjoyed the principal sessions thoroughly and agreed the three-day programme spelt “a one of its kind and most worthy of repeat”. (Herald)
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A NEW PENTECOST AT THE MINES CONVENTION
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Sungei Besi, Kuala Lumpur : The spirit of the New Pentecost is very much alive in the Malaysian Church. This was evident by the large turnout at the Peninsular Malaysia Catholic Charismatic Convention (PMCCC) 2003. Close to 10 000 adults, youths and children from both East and West Malaysia attended the event from Dec 4 to 7 which was conducted in four languages – English, Bahasa Malaysia, Mandarin and Tamil. The opening ceremony was a colorful and spirit-filled event which witnessed Archbishop Murphy Pakiam carrying the Malaysian flag in procession onto the stage. In welcoming the people to the convention, Archbishop Pakiam thanked the people in the four major languages of Malaysia to the joy of all present. Delivering the keynote address entitled A New Pentecost for a New Evangelisation, Fr. Gino Henriques, CSsr, explained that the aim of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is to bring the life of the Holy Spirit into every part of the Church by bringing it into the life of
every Christian man and woman. (Herald)
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CHRIST THE KING PARISH CELEBRATES FEAST DAY
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Selayang : The Chapel of Christ the King, Selayang celebrated its feast day on November 22. The theme was Moral Growth And Social Spirituality. A large crowd attended the chapel's feast day, which fell on a Saturday. To make the event more meaningful, there was concelebration of the Eucharist by Fr Christopher Wilvaraj from Mentakab, Fr Albet Arockiasamy from Seremban and Fr Frederick Joseph from the Chapel of Christ the King. Seventeen candidates received First Holy Communion. Six new Communion Ministers were also commissioned on that joyous day. The celebration that evening concluded with the veneration of the Blessed Sacrament in procession around the Chapel. (Herald)
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Local talents add new flavour to traditional Tamil Christmas songs
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Kuala Lumpur : Talented singers and musicians from nine parishes in the Archdiocese have recorded a Tamil Christmas song album. Entitled Theiva Kulanthai (God Child), the album was launched on 30 Nov. at the 7.30 am mass by Fr. Jestus Pereira, administrator of the Church of St. Anthony, in conjunction with the start of Advent. “The season of Advent reminds us that we are instruments of peace and joy. I believe this album would help Tamil-speaking Catholics to celebrate Christmas in a spiritual and meaningful way,” said Anthony during the launch. Over a period of two months, the album re-arrangement and keyboard programming was done by Steevan Sinniah, Jeevan Durai Raj, Yohnes Saviour and Arulnathan Lawrence. The recording and soundmix was done by Robert Sebastian and Benedict Lawrence. The title track was sung by Susan Josop. “This album was made possible by the unwavering support and commitment of those who participated in its production. We were able to overcome several difficulties, and I am grateful to them for this,” said Anthony. The album is available at Cahayasuara Resources at 03-20780912 – by Cahayasuara.
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FAMILY DAY AT OUR LADY OF FATIMA BANTING
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Banting : The second day of Hari Raya was also the Family Day of the Church of Our Lady of Fatima. Themed United in Christ as a Family, the family day commenced immediately after the weekday Eucharistic Celebration. It was a fun-filled occasion with various games organised by the youth of the parish. There were participants from all ages present which helped realise the events theme. Parish Priest Fr V. A. Michael took the opportunity to thank the organising committee and all parishioners who helped make the Family Day a memorable one. It concluded with a prayer followed by lunch. (Herald)
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KL NORTH DISTRICT HOLD DINNER AND FELLOWSHIP
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Sentul : The KL North District Pastoral Council's Dinner and Fellowship Nite was held on Nov 28 at the Community Centre, St. Joseph's Church. About 85 leaders from the 4 parishes and3 chapels, together with the 4 district priests, met to get to know each other more closely. The gathering provided an opportunity for leaders to meet and interact with other leaders from the district and also to get to know the district priests. The night began with a warm welcome speech by the President/Senator of the district, Rev. Fr. Joachim Tan, who touched on the need for all leaders of the district to work together towards achieving greater success in the coming year. This was followed by dinner and presentations by the various parishes and chapels. The night ended with a brief feed back session where members were invited to make proposals for the coming year. From the encouraging feedback received, it was clearly evident that members were keen on formation sessions (BEC, Liturgical, Catechetical, Language Apostolat),
Youth Development, Interreligious Unity, District Leaders' Retreat, etc). It was also proposed that the K-L North District Council hold similar fellowship sessions at least twice a year. (Herald)
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CENSUS FOR KL ARCHDIOCESE NEXT YEAR
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Petaling Jaya : The Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur will be undergoing a census exercise next year. This census is part of the preparation for the Archdiocese’s Golden Jubilee celebration in 2005. All baptized Catholics from the age of 12 will be asked to complete a census card. Heads of families with children below the age of 12 should indicate the number of children they have in their card. The census will be conducted on the weekend of January 10 to 11, 2004 for all masses. There will be announcements regarding the census from Dec 27, 2003 to Jan 4, 2004. All confidentiality of information is assured. The information given will not be used for any thing outside of Church purposes. (Herald)
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HOLY FAMILY PARISH ENDS SUNDAY SCHOOL YEAR WITH CONCERT
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Kajang : The Sunday School of the Church of the Holy Family ended its term for the year 2003 with a celebration in the form of a Catechetical Concert on Nov. 9. The Catechetical Concert was a joint celebration involving all students from the Chinese, Tamil and English speaking classes. Students from the pre-school class up to the Form Three class participated in the celebration where an exhibition was also held based on the artwork of the primary classes. The concert concluded with the annual prize-giving for students. (Herald)
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ASSUMPTION GEARS UP FOR COMPREHENSIVE PASTORAL PLAN
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Petaling Jaya : The Church of the Assumption is gearing up for the Archdiocesan Comprehensive Pastoral Plan. The newly appointed parish priest, Fr. Philip Muthu, disclosed this. “After much discussion and consultation with the Parish Pastoral Council (PPC) and BECOT leader and interview with BEC area leaders, we took just one vital point for deliberation, that is the building of communities, “ said Fr. Philip Muthu. “We will begin with our short term objectives which would entail one year of studying, formulating and planning. We will make a concentrated and coordinated effort so that the Archdiocesan Comprehensive Pastoral Plan can be launched in the year 2005,” added Fr. Philip Muthu. Fr. Philip said that the Church of the Assumption has been brought to this enviable status thanks to the efforts of the past parish priests and parish leaders. He specially acknowledged the hard work of Fr. A. Volle and Fr. Simon Labrooy. (Herald)
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COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP TRAINING FOR ME PRESENTERS
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Kuantan : Worldwide Marriage Encounter Malaysia held a two-day discernment at the Church of the Assumption recently. The discernment session was attended by presenting couples from around the country, which included couples from Penang, Ipoh, Selangor and Wilayah Persekutuan. The session, which is held every two years, commenced with a formation session based on the theme, Community Leadership Training. The presenting teams gained insight into their responsibilities as community leaders during sessions that covered topics like Six Steps in Building Communities, Keeping Focuses on Our Vision, Delegation, First Things First! and The Art of Listening. The discernment process followed a set of guidelines. It was a solemn and prayerful process where couples fulfilled their responsibility of discerning their new leaders to the Worldwide Marriage Encounter. Joseph and Anita Pragasam were returned as the National Coordinating Couple for the second term. (Herald)
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KRISTUS AMAN CELEBRATES 20TH ANNIVERSARY
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Kuala Terengganu : The Chapel of Kristus Aman in Taman Tun Dr. Ismail celebrated the 20th anniversary of its foundation by the late Fr. Pierre Decrooq, MEP with a Eucharist celebration on Nov. 9. Archbishop Murphy Pakiam presided the celebration which was held together with the blessing of the newly renovated chapel premises. Archbishop Pakiam congratulated the parishioners and members who had worked hard so that they could worship together as a community. After the opening prayer, Archbishop Pakiam together with Fr, Joachim Tan, the parish priest, blessed the chapel. It was a great day of rejoicing which was followed by fellowship and lunch. (Herald)
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OLL FOCUSES ON OUTREACH
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Klang : The Parish Pastoral Assembly of the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, Klang held on Nov. 16, saw the adoption of a new vision-mission statement for the parish. The vision of the parish is, to be an out-reaching, dynamic community of Christ centred BECs and, to be abounding in love and unity in the footsteps of the Trinity. The parish’s mission is witnessing to Christ in word and deed and journeying in service to and with all people. The parishioners who attended the assembly in unison agreed to adopt the proposed ‘parish focus’ for the year 2004 which reads: That OLL will continue to strive to build Word-centred BECs with special emphasis on the Eucharist and Family Life. “Let our unity in diversity in Church reach out to others and let us continue to build and to be Church,” urged parish priest Fr. Gerard Theraviam in his opening address. (Herald) Sara
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