Pope Benedict on July 20 urged a teeming World Youth Day final Mass crowd estimate at up to 400,000 to become prophet of a new age to bring faith to a "spiritually barren" world.
The Pope's challenge echoed over a vast sea of Catholics packing Sydney's Roya Randwick Racecourse at the concluding mass of week long World Youth Day (WYD) celebrations, which at times attracted up to half million pilgrims and well wishers.
Declaring the spirit of the Church alive and well, the Pope told pilgrims from more that 170 countries he had shared an "unforgettable experience" in the great south land.
"Our eyes have been opened to see the work around us as it truly is, `charged' as the pope says, `with the grandeur of God', filled with the glory of His creative love," he said.
Pope Benedict said a new generation o1 Christians was being called to help build a world in which God's gift of life was welcomed and love was not greedy or self seeking but pure, faithful and genuinely free.

At the Final Mass for World Youth Day in Sydney, Pope Benedict announced that the next World Youth Day would be held in Madrid, Spain in 2011.
Spanish pilgrims erupted into excited chants of Viva el Papa. Estaes la juventud del Papa (Long live the Pope, We are the youth of the Pope), waving a sea of yellow and red Spanish flags when the announcement was made.
"It was impressive when the Pope said that the next WYD will be in Madrid, because I think that in Spain we need the young people to be witnesses to Christ, even when it seems that we are a very Catholic country with a lot of faith, we need to revitalize it, and rejuvenate it. We also need it because as Spanish people we want to give to others, the things we already received," said 26 year-old Azucena.
"I would like to express my gratitude in the name of the diocese of Madrid for choosing our city," said Juan Antonio Martinez, Auxiliary Bishop of Madrid
The bishop said that WYD activities will take place in the third week of August in 2011.

On the occasion of his 61st anniversary of his priesthood, Fr Antoine Henriot MEP was invited to celebrate Mass in the Good Shepherd Church by the parish priest, Fr Patrick Boudville.
Coincidentally it was also an opportunity to celebrate Fr Henriot's recent award De Chevalier de Legion d’ Honneur (Knight in the French National Order of the Legion of Honour) bestowed on him by the Republic of France for his tireless service in the vineyard of the Lord.
At the end of the Eucharistic celebration, the Legion of Mary from the Good Shepherd Church presented Fr Henriot with an Anniversary cake, while Fr Patrick presented him with a bottle of vintage Cognac, (from France, of course) It was a very touching moment, not only for Fr Henriot, but also for all present, since it was he who shepherded the Good Shepherd parish for 13 years before he d in 2004 to serve as chaplain to the St Xavier Home of the Little Sisters of the Poor.

Dear Editor,
The Pope has launched the special year dedicated to St Paul (beginning June 28, 2008 to June 29, 2009) in commemoration of the 2,OOOth anniversary of the apostle's birth and has called on all Catholics in the Universal Church to join in the worldwide celebration. Special indulgences have been assigned to those who partake in the Pauline Year.
Catholics knows that Paul wrote many letters – like Timothy, to the Galatians and to the Thessalonians. But not many our Muslims brothers and sisters believe or have been misled to believe or have been misled to believe that we Christians are actually practicing or following Paul’s teachings and not that of Christ.
The Pauline Year, set aside by the Universal Church, is an excellent opportunity to promote the truth of Christ's teachings through St Paul's preaching and his letters.

The High Court in Lumpur on July 9 started hearing HERALD’s  appeal for its continued right to use the word "Allah" in its weekly newspaper. But the hearing was immediately jammed by a flood of applications to join in the suit against the government from Muslim bodies as well as one by the Sikh temple.
Some of the applications from the respective Majlis Agama Islam had already been filed before the hearing today but others are still in the "pipeline." Therefore, Justice Madam Lau Bee Lan decided that they should all be heard together and set a new date, Nov 21, for continued hearing.
Jagjit Singh, Balwant Singh Sidhu, Joginder Singh and Manjit Singh applied on behalf of the Gurdwara Council, the apex Sikh body Malaysia to intervene in the case. This is because the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Sikhism's Holy Scripture had for centuries used the word "Allah" to refer to God. They said if Sikhs are similarly prohibited from using the word, it would violate their constitutional rights as they would not be able to “truly perform and practise their religion.

On June 4, a seminar entitled An Islamic Perspective on the Commitment to Interreligious Dialogue organised by the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies, was held at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS). Fr Michael Chua and Sherman Kuek of the Archdiocesan Ministry of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs (AMEIA) were invited participants.
The distinguished scholar invited to be the presenter in the seminar was Dr Syed Farid Alatas, Associate Professor of Sociology in the National University of Singapore.
Dr Farid aptly began by noting the importance of dialogue for national integration and racial harmony. In other words, dialogue was a non-negotiable. He expressed a concern that dialogue had thus far been relegated to the mere exchange of theological ideas among scholars rather than being embodied as a joint effort to solve very practical issues facing a multi-racial society.
Dr Farid elaborated his insightful observation that the positive elements of modern civilisation found their roots in multi-cultural – and to be more precise, Interreligious – encounter.

The Kuala Lumpur Archdiocesan third Kaamatan, Gawai & Panen Harvest Festival was celebrated with pomp and splendour at the Church of St Anthony (SAC), with the theme Word of God Uniting Culture. It attracted some 3.200 Catholics, mainly Sabahans, Sarawakians, Orang Asli and those migrants from Flores, Indonesia.
Held On July 6, the celebration began with a Thanksgiving Mass at 10.00am that was presided over by Archbishop Murphy Pakiam and concelebrated with Bishop of Penang, Rt Rev Antony Selvanayagam, Msgr Sebastian Francis from Melaka-Johor Diocese, Fr Valentine Gompok OFM Cap; SAC parish priest Fr Jestus Pereira, Fr Rudolf Joannes from Keningau Diocese and Fr Haary from Jakarta, Indonesia.
Archbishop Pakiam, at the beginning of the Mass, expressed joy at the presence of so many including Tenaga Nasional Bhd Chairman, Tan Sri Leo Moggie; H.E.Victoriano M. Lecaros, the Philippines Ambassador to Malaysia; and Enrique R. Gallego, the Political Officer who represented the US Ambassador to Malaysia.

The Temerloh High Court on July 9 ordered that the hearing over the non-supply of water and electricity to a Jahut church in Kampung Pasu to proceed as planned on Aug 15.
It threw out the respondents' the Temerloh District & Land Office and the Pahang State Government - preliminary objection to the hearing on the basis that the application bv the Orang Asli was submitted late.
However. Judge Datuk Abdul Halim Aman ruled that until the application is heard, water and electricity supply would not be established, forcing the Jahut Christians to continue worshipping by candlelight.
"Who knows how long this case will drag on? The defendants have not even filed their affidavit yet," Annou Xavier, one of the counsels for the Jahuts told The Malaysian Insider.
The group of Jahut Christians from Kampung Pasu, led by village elder, Wet bin Ket and his son, Yaman bin Wet, are seeking a judicial review over the local district and land office’s refusal to supply their village church with water and electricity from the authorities.

The past several decades has seen an amazing growth in the education industry, especially in terms of the mush- rooming of private institution of education. In the late 1990s, a number of these major institutions began establishing themselves in localities beyond Klang Valley.
This is a challenge that confronts the Church of Visitation (Seremban) and the Chapel of St Theresa (Nilai) now as the community is surrounded by private colleges in just about every direction! One particular concern of the parish is that Catholic students of private colleges in Nilai. Although there is a chapel inNilai wherein students attend Mass each Sunday, there is an increasing need for us to enter into their world, they study, socialize, and live. As a response to this growing pastoral need, the Church cf Visitation has engaged Sherman Kuek, who is competing his doctorate in theology, as a Pastoral Associate for youth Ministry and Formations.

"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you: and you will be  witnesses " (Act 1:8)
The grace and peace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you! In few days from now, I shall begin my Apostolic Visit to your country, in order to celebrate the Twenty-Third World Youth Day in Sydney. I very much look forward to the days that I shall spend with you, and especially to the opportunities for prayer and reflection with young people from all over the world.
First of all, I want to express my appreciation to all those who have offered so much of the time, their resources and their prayers in support of this celebration. The Australia Government and the Provincial Government of New South Wales, the organizers of all the events, and members of the business community who have provided sponsorship - all of you have willingly supported this event, and on behalf of the young people taking part in the World Youth Day, I thank you most sincerely.

Since assuming the shepherdship of the Church of St Aloysius in March this year, Fr Anthony Thomas has been working tirelessly to reactivate his parish Basic Ecclesiastical Communities (BECs).
The parish needs a new perspective as the BECs have remained sluggish and idle for a considerable time. Fr Thomas immediate mission is to reactive the BECs into living cells of Christ. With this in mind, he will be having a special meeting with all BEC leaders on July 6.
Fr Thomas has already visited some 151 Catholic families within the territorial limits of the Church of St Aloysius within the past three months and, during his visits, he took down particulars of the families and introduced himself to the Catholics there and apparently his visits were well received.
So far, Fr Thomas has reinstated the 8.30am Mass on Sundays, which has received very favourable response from the congregation.

Some 150 Sabahans and Sarawakians donned their traditional attire to join hundreds of local and foreign Catholics for the 8.OOam Mass on June 29 at the Cathedral of St John (SJC) to celebrate their Gawai and Kaamatan or harvest festival in a thanksgiving Eucharist to God.
The theme chosen for this year's joint celebration is Evangelization Through Culture and the event was organised by the parish's East Malaysia Catholics Community (EMCC).
SJC parish priest, Msgr James Gnanapiragasam presided at the Mass and offered a prayer especially to the Sabahans and Sarawakians for their well being while they were earning a living in the capital city.
The highlight was the Offertory Procession, where Iban, Bidayuh and Kadazandusun representatives, besides carrying the Bread and Wine, they brought up local fruits all of which symbolise good harvest as thanksgiving to God.
They felt proud of their culture and there was an atmosphere of unity and sense of upholding each other; for Gawai & Kaamatan means homecoming for them.

"A great event that is to be looked forward to" were the words of David Kivaititu, a foreign participant from Kenya who attended the recently concluded Alpha course held every Friday evening at St John's Cathedral Old Parish Hall.
This is the second time that this course was held after the success of the first Alpha course held in October 2006.
Besides the weekly Friday gatherings, a weekend away was held at the Archdiocese Pastoral Centre. There was Praise & Worship, listening to the audio sharing by Nicky Gumbel on the topics Who Is The Holy Spirit.
The celebration night was held on June 13, with the presence of parish priest Msgr James Gnanapiragasam and assistant parish priest Fr Amalanathan.
Msgr James spoke about how we can put to practice the Alpha teachings in serving God in the various ministries of a parish and as well as bringing and leading more people to Christ and His church.

BEC Coordinators of Kristus Aman Chapel, together with their Area Core Team members attended a BEC Leaders' Formation Weekend recently at the Trolak Country Resort, conducted by Martin Jalleh.
Introducing the theme Called, Chosen. Commissioned and Community-centred, Jalleh affirmed the participants for choosing to "come away for a while." All we are being asked is to leave everything behind to be one with the Lord only once a year!
He added that it is sad that there are BEC leaders who may be very good at carrying out the Role, Rites and Rituals of their ministry but regretfully neglect what is most important - Relationship with God, their collaborators in ministry and those whom their serve.
Parish Priest Fr Mitchel Anthony Joseph joined the group for lunch on Saturday and spent some time sharing his thoughts on the theme of the formation. The participants were also privileged to have Fr Joe Stephen, CsSR parish priest of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Church, Ipoh, as the celebrant for the Mass.

The Parishioners from the Church of St John Vianney (SJV) will be celebrating their Annual Patronal Feast this coming August. Unlike the Jubilee celebration two years ago, this year the event will a simple yet faith-filled.
A Triduum begins with Novena to SJV followed by a Multi-lingual Mass on Friday, August 1 as well as on Saturday, August 2 at 7.30 pin with the themes focusing on Christ as the Living and Witnessing Word.
Parish priest Fr Mari Arokiam said that the high point of this year's celebration will be the Sacrament of Confirmation to be conferred upon the youths of the parish by His Grace Archbishop Tan Sri Dato' Murphy Pakiam D.D, at the concluding Eucharistic celebration on Sunday, August 3 at 9.OOam, followed by a lunch fellowship.
Those who wish to send petitions and prayers. Mass offerings and donations please kindly contact the parish clerk at 06-4417362.

Commenting on the theme, Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's Tan Sri Bernard Dompok, the Sabah Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, emphasised that it was "Pay back time now," at a function organized by the Independent Christian Renewal Society (ICRS) in one of its monthly programmes entitled Spiritual Skills for Everyday Living on June 24 at the Assumption Hall.
The quote above was what inspired him to join politics in Sabah. It was a statement made by a principal of a mission school in Singapore when asked why he was teaching in that mission school rather than receiving a good salary with a prestigious post in some other field. The principal replied, "It is pay back time and it is time now to give back to the mission and to society for an educational opportunity given me to come up in life. This has given me a motivation to render to society what I've received when I needed it most."

“In terms of pastoral care that you offer to your people, I would encourage you to show particular concern for your priests. Using the image evoked by St Paul in writing to the young Timothy, urge them to rekindle the gift of God that is within them through the laying on of hands (cf.2 Tim 1:6). Be a father, brother and friend to them, as Paul was to Timothy and to Titus. Lead them by example, showing them the way to imitate Christ, the Good Shepherd. St Paul famously proclaimed “ It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20). This was part of the message Pope Benedict gave to on June 6 upon receiving in audience the bishops of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, in Rome for their five-yearly visit.

The funeral Mass for Archbishop Gregory Yong, who died on June 28, was celebrated in the Good Shepherd Cathedral on Wednesday, July 2, 2008.
The 83-year-old died of heart failure on Saturday afternoon at the St Joseph's Home in Jurong, where he had lived for the past four years.
His successor, Archbishop Nicholas Chia said "he was saddened by the news but added that he had lived a good life."
Gregory Yong Sooi Ngean D.D. D.C.L was the Roman Catholic Archbishop Emeritus of Singapore. From May 20, 1925 to June 28, 2008.
Born in Taiping, Malaya on May 20, 1925, he was educated at St George's Institution and St Michael's Institution in Ipoh, Malaya. In January 1941, he entered the Minor Seminary and in 1944 graduated to the Major Seminary, Penang. He was ordained in 1951 and posted to the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Singapore.
In 1953, he left for studies in Rome where he was conferred a Doctorate in Canon Law, the very first local priest to achieve the distinction.
He was the second Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Singapore, which was formed in 1972 when the Archdiocese of Malacca-Singapore split and held the office until retiring on October 14, 2000.
He was cremated at the Mandai Crematorium on July 2.

Fr Richard Anthony, a Jesuit from Kuala Lumpur, was ordained a priest on June 7, 2008 at Sacred Heart Chapel, Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. Richard has been a Jesuit for about 14 years in total and did his formation in Singapore, the Philippines and the United States.
As a young boy, he attended Mass with family at St John's Cathedral, the place he recognizes as the birthplace of his vocation. He was an altar-server there for a number of years while assisting the late Br. Damien Oliver, in coordinating youth programmes and camps in the Archdiocese. While discerning his vocation, he met the Jesuits for the first time Life and Love Seminar which was organize by Br. Damien.
Fr Richard will be returning to the US at the end of July 2008 to do doctoral studies in the area of communications and developmental psychology.

About 100 teenagers and youths including some adults and parents attended a talk on vocation by Fr Christopher W. Soosaipillai, parish priest of the Church of the Sacred Heart (SHC).
Fr Christopher, who is the Vocation Director of the Archdiocesan Vocation Promotion Team (AVPT), highlighted that there was an acute shortage of priestly and religious vocations in Peninsular Malaysia. Though many are doing their part, yet it is still not enough. He said we must continue to pray earnestly especially that our young people, men and women, will take the challenge to listen to God's call and accept this special ministry of service.
The Vocation Talk was jointly organised by the Sacred Heart Church Vocation Promotion Team (SHCVPT) and the Archdiocesan Vocation Promotion Team (AVPT). This is the first talk in the series of three; the next is scheduled to be held on August 24 and October 26 respectively at the same time and location. It is open to all Catholics in the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur.

We are Church, United in Our Differences - this was the theme that reverberated through the Church of the Visitation during its grand Triduum from May 29 to 31. This Triduum was celebrated in conjunction with the Feast of the Visitation.
The Feast of the Visitation commemorates the second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary, which is Our Lady's visit to her cousin Elizabeth who was six months pregnant with St John the Baptist in her womb.
After the third Mass of the Triduum on May 31, the parishioners enjoyed a big treat as thousands of them gathered in the church grounds for a big feast. But that was not the end. An hour later, there was a concert at the parish hall.
The celebration of the Visitation feast in Seremban was an embodiment of a dream -- a dream for unity in diversity. The participation of all kinds of people in this event demonstrated once again that in and through Christ, we are Church, united in our differences.

The Islamic Religious Council of two more states have filed applications to intervene in a case on the use of the word "Allah" in the HERALD.
They are the Terengganu and Penang Islamic Religious Councils, whose applications were filed through the legal firm of Zainul Rijal, Talha and Amir at the High Court Registry at the Jalan Duta Court Complex on June 26.
This brings to four the number of state religious councils which have applied to become interveners in the case.
On May 5, the High Court had allowed an application by the Kuala Lumpur Catholic Archbishop for a judicial review of the Home Ministry's decision in disallowing HERALD from using the word "Allah" in its publication.
On June 30, HERALD filed its response to MAIPP's application for intervention by stating that the proposed intervener not be given leave and that their application be dismissed with costs.