Author Archives: Ken Wong

Individual Confession 8:30 am – 10:00 am

Siapa menaruh belas kasihan kepada orang yang lemah, memiutangi TUHAN, yang akan membalas perbuatannya itu.” (Amsal 19:17)

SANDAKAN: Pada 5hb November 2017, dua perwakilan daripada Pusat Pastoral Keuskupan Sandakan telah menyampaikan sumbangan berupa wang tunai kepada enam pelajar Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM), Sandakan. Penerima-penerima sumbangan ini telah dikenalpasti melalui guru Katolik mereka terlebih dahulu dan acara penyampaian sumbangan diberikan di Gereja St Mark selepas Misa Kudus.

Sumbangan dana ini adalah untuk menambah wang saku para pelajar yang kurang berkemampuan. Bapa Uskup Julius Dusin Gitom dan para kakitangan Pusat Pastoral berharap agar sumbangan ini dapat memberi makna dan sukacita kepada mereka.

‘Projek Satu Ringgit Sehari’ merupakan satu projek musim Pra-paska dan Adven yang telah dilaksanakan atas saranan Bapa Uskup Julius kepada kakitangan Pusat Pastoral Keuskupan Sandakan sejak beberapa tahun yang lalu.
Projek ini dijalankan bertujuan menyalurkan dana yang terkumpul untuk membantu individu dan keluarga-keluarga yang kurang berkemampuan termasuklah golongan pelajar.
Pada musim pra-paska tahun ini, 11 kakitangan Pusat pastoral Keuskupan Sandakan termasuk Bapa Uskup Julius telah sebulat suara memberikan dana tersebut kepada pelajar-pelajar MRSM yang lebih memerlukan.

Sebagai umat Kristian Katolik, kita amat digalakkan untuk memberi bantuan kepada mereka yang susah dan yang memerlukan. Salah satu cara untuk membantu adalah menderma dalam apa juga bentuk.

Kakitangan Pusat Pastoral Keuskupan Sandakan akan terus mempraktikkan amalan ini terutama sekali pada musim Pra-paska dan Adven.

Article reproduced from Diocese of Sandakan

SENTUL: As part of their annual school uniform sponsorship programme for the underprivileged children, a “fitting” session to determine each child’s uniform and shoe size was held on Sunday, 12th November 2017 at the SJC Dewan Monsignor Anthony Thomas (Community Hall) from 9.00 am to 2.00 pm. A total of 305 children took part in this exercise. The school uniforms will be distributed on Saturday, 16th December 2017.

A big thank you to our dedicated volunteers and PIHDM members for successfully organising this event.

At the funeral of Monsignor Anthony Thomas on 27th September, 2017, many parishioners of St. Joseph as well as a few priests asked me why the funeral did not take place here in our parish of St. Joseph Sentul, as the late Monsignor Thomas had served here for 22 years, which was longer than he had served in any of the other parishes in the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur.

After some deliberation and discussion with a few individuals (clergy and laity), I decided that holding the 40th Day Memorial service in our parish would be a fitting tribute to Msgr. Thomas who had touched the lives of so many people here.

Some of the individuals who came forward included Neubert Ambrose, who volunteered to take on the responsibility of Organising Chairman for the 40th Day Memorial Mass, Jillian Thomas (booklet preparation), Gabriel Moses, Mary Bernadette Peters, Gregory William, Nicholas Asirvatham and Joshua Jude (committee members in charge of logistics, food & beverage and the evening entertainment). In a short period of time, they managed to coordinate, plan and execute this memorial celebration successfully.

Close to 1,000 people attended the memorial Mass which was held on Sunday, 5th November. The 13 clergy and con-celebrants included Cardinal Soter Fernandez, Archbishop Emeritus Murphy Pakiam and Archbishop Julian Leow. We began the celebration of life of late Monsignor with the Vespers (the evening prayer of the Church) at 5.45 pm. The Memorial Mass started at 6.00 pm celebrated by Fr. V.A. Michael and assisted by Frs. James Gabriel and Jean Claude. These three priests were sent by the late Monsignor to the seminary in 1980s.

Immediately after the Mass the congregation adjourned to the St. Joseph Community Hall where Archbishop Julian Leow unveiled a plaque renaming the Hall “Dewan Monsignor Anthony Thomas.” The late Monsignor had built the St. Joseph Community Center in 1987 and it is the first legacy of his, followed by two other community centers at Church of Visitation, Seremban and Church of the Sacred Heart, Kuala Lumpur. During dinner, both our Tamil and English choral groups entertained us with music and songs composed by the late Monsignor. All those who came that evening felt contented and went home with fond memories.

On behalf of the 40th Day of Memorial Mass Committee, I would like to   personally thank our parishioners and the parishioners of the Church of St Aloysius, Mantin as well as everyone who had penned down your thoughts and fond memories of the late Monsignor and for sparing your memorable photographs of him for us. There is a saying, “Memories are old but the pen is fresh.” Your fresh pen through contribution of articles and also  photographs for the booklet has revived and refreshed many people’s old memories. This Memorial Mass and fellowship was our tribute to the late Monsignor Anthony Thomas who had rendered his service to the Church in Malaysia. He lived his priestly life for 52 years and grew faithful communities with love, faith and charity. During these five decades he was truly a priest, pastor, friend, builder, liturgist and a musician. We love you and we cherish you always!

“In you, Lord. I have found my peace,” (Ps 131)

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

KUNAK – Fifty-three youngsters attended the Youth Alpha Camp organised by the Silam Catholic Youth Apostolate (SCYA) on 6-8 Oct 2017 at Borneo Paradise Eco Farm Resort here.

The participants came from Our Lady of Pilar Silam and St Nicholas Tampenau.

The objective of the Youth Alpha is to bring youth closer to God, to build a relationship between them and Jesus, and to strengthen their faith.

The camp consisted of ten sessions: Who is Jesus? Why did Jesus die for us? How confident am I in my faith? How and why do I pray? Why and how do I read the Bible? Who is the Holy Spirit? What does the Holy Spirit do? How can I be filled with the Holy Spirit? How do I overcome evil?

There were also group sharing, praise and worship, healing sessions, Faith in Action (FIA), and Journey to Unity (Amazing Race).

Father Marcellinus Pongking gave a session on confession, examination of conscience and the meaning of the Sacrament of Reconciliation while Father Simon Kontou presided at the Mass.

In his homily, Fr Kontou said the camp has helped the youth to become better persons and stronger in their faith.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

KUALA PENYU –  The winning entry from the youth choir of St Peter Bundu here will be used as the theme song for the Silver Jubilee of the Keningau Diocese next year.

The choir, under the guidance of Batholomew Cornelius, defended their victory for three consecutive years at the Pesta Koir Belia on 14 Oct 2017 at St Peter Bundu here.

They won for Best Lyrics for their song Rayakan Jubli Keuskupan Keningau.

The song was composed by Batholomew and written by Michael Kimsin.

However, the overall champion of the choir competition was St Theresa Tambunan.

The first competition was held in Sook Keningau in 2013 while the second took place in 2015 in Toboh Tambunan.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

BUKIT PADANG – The Children’s Liturgy of the Word (CLOW) ministry of the Church of Mary Immaculate (CMI) here celebrated its 19th anniversary on 12 Nov 2017.

The celebration has become the sub parish’s annual children’s Mass with children taking part in the choir and the Presentation of Gifts.

Archbishop John Wong presided at the Mass.  A simple fellowship took place at the canteen after the Mass.

CLOW managed to raise RM425.00 for the Catholic Centre building project through the sale of coffee, cakes, and pastries.

Entertaining the children, parents, and members of the Parish Pastoral Council were two young girls: 7-year-old Angelina Liew’s recital of the Parable of the Good Samaritan by heart while Caelan Sham, 9, sang and played two songs on her ukulele.

The ministry started on 22 Nov 1998, Solemnity of Christ the King, under Rose Chu with the consent of then-pastor Father Cosmas Lee.  The first facilitators were Janet Lee, Catherine Kung, Vera Kung, Stephanie Chin, Janet Ho, and Victoria Voon.

In 1973, the Congregation for Divine Worship promulgated the Directory for Masses with Children. This document offers principles and guidelines for adapting the liturgy for children so that they may gradually take a more active and conscious part in the full Eucharistic assembly. The Directory attempts to respect the nature of childhood and the age and abilities of the young.

The priest calls the children (pre-first communicants) forward, before the first reading, to listen to God’s word at an adapted Liturgy of the Word, blesses the leader and hands the Lectionary for Masses with Children to the leader, who processes with the children to a separate place (chapel). As the children are sent forth, the liturgical musicians lead the assembly in singing a suitable song.

The children and leader exit down the main aisle, singing in procession until they reach the chapel to continue the Liturgy of the Word with Children. The Liturgy of the Word continues as usual for the main assembly.  Children then return during the collection of the offering and participate with their parents and caregivers in the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

CLOW is a part of the entire parish’s worship, not a separate “children’s time”.  It is considered as an extension of the Mass itself.

Article reproduced from Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu

Parish priest of the Church of St Jude, Fr David Arulanatham said many have contributed to the Building Fund for the proposed new church.

He said the money collected so far amounted to more than RM5 million. But the estimated total cost is about RM15 million.

The proposed Church will have a seating capacity of 1,300 and will be air-conditioned. The other facilities will include Sunday school classrooms, a funeral parlour, parish office, etc. Fr David is hoping that construction will start in October 2018, but it will depend on the generosity of the faithful.

“Sixty years ago, our predecessors built this present church. It is now our duty and responsibility to help to build the new church.”

Fr David said the building sketch plans are on display for all to see. A team from the Archdiocese is guiding the parish team.

A ten-minute video on the history of the church which was built on top a hill in Rawang in 1957 was shown.

Today, after 60 years of existence, the parish has a diversity of cultures and different races who come together for worship every week.

Fr David also introduced Fr Kenneth Gopal, OCD (Ordo Carmelitarum Discalceatorum or OCD), the first Carmelite priest in the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur. Fr Kenneth said the Religious Priest Order has just started a house in Seremban with a Deacon and a seminarian. He said a Carmelite priest is one who focuses on a deeper prayer life and mental prayer ie. meditation.

“The Order encourages people to take their prayer life seriously. We should learn to pray all the time because it is important to keep God in our lives.”

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

The Catholic Ministry for the Deaf (CMfD), under the auspices of the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur, was launched at the Church of Jesus Caritas on Oct 29, the International Day for the Deaf.

Approximately 40 deaf persons from around the Klang Valley joined the celebration, which began with Mass presided over by Archbishop Julian Leow, with Fr Michael Chua interpreting the Mass in Sign Language for the Deaf.

Archbishop Leow began his homily with silence. This was done on purpose, to give the hearing members of the congregation a small taste of the experience of a deaf person’s world. A world of silence.

He touched on how those who can hear are privileged because they are able to hear the word of God. But what about the deaf? Have we considered their world? Do we expect them to find ways to hear or do the hearing have the responsibility to transmit the word of God to them in a language they understand? How will the deaf know the Word of God if we have no one to sign to interpret for them? He, therefore, challenged the hearing and those who are able bodied to use all the faculties that God has given them for others who may be lacking or special in different ways. We have a responsibility to bring the word of God in whatever way we can.

At the Mass, nine Sign Language interpreters were commissioned to serve in CMfD. The Archbishop highlighted the need for more interpreters to serve and bring the word of God to the deaf.

After Mass, members of the congregation and students from Jesus Caritas Sunday school joined activities to introduce the work of the CMfD and to create awareness of Deaf Culture. In his speech, Archbishop Leow encouraged all those who know sign language to come forward to offer their services. If anyone is thinking of learning a new language, perhaps the language of the Deaf can be considered; to enable them to be the link or channel for the deaf to hear the Word of God.

Fr Chua, the Ecclesiastical Assistant of CMfD, briefly explained his role to all present. He hopes to spend more time with the deaf community, to know and understand their needs more. He also encouraged all present who may have an interest to learn to come forward.

Joseph Loh, the hearing representative of CMfD, spoke about the Church Interpreting Programme. He shared his personal journey and what would be required in the training of a Church interpreter. The most basic requirement is to know Basic Sign Language. Those who already possess some skills should work to develop their vocabulary. After which, they are required to have direct interaction with the Deaf Community for a minimum of six months to a year to allow the potential interpreter to have a firsthand experience of Deaf culture and to allow them to improve their signing. During this time, they would be taught how to sign songs and scripted text prepared for Mass. This would help prepare them to be Assistant Interpreters. Finally, after having gone through these preliminary trainings and exposure, they would be enrolled in the Church Interpreting Programme and, upon graduation, they would be commissioned as Church Interpreters. Fr Chua then presented the certificates to four interpreters who had successfully completed the CIP programme.

Jennifer Ng, who is the pro-tem CMfD coordinator, thanked all present for making the time to be there. She shared that this ministry is not only just for the deaf but it’s also a platform to empower the hearing to help reach out to more deaf. It is hoped that with the launching of CMfD, there would be greater awareness created among the hearing to understand the needs of the Deaf.

The IDD celebration then continued, with mimed skits performed jointly by the deaf, and students learning sign language. Thereafter, the audience was engaged to provide an interpretation for what they had seen. The catechism children displayed keen interest and exhibited great prowess in unravelling the message of the skits.

The audience was then taught how to sign the alphabets, which led to the spelling of their names.

To create awareness so that the children will not fear approaching the deaf just because they don’t know sign language, basic gestures were shown to describe objects and emotions. Some even mentioned that they can communicate with the deaf by writing or using text messaging.

Before the programme ended, the audience was taught two signed songs: Happy Birthday and the Bahasa hymn, Hari Ini. The event concluded with fellowship.

For more information, please visit www. catholicministryfordeaf.my or email humblebmyhands@gmail.com.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online

October 18 marked another historic moment for the Diocese of Sandakan: it celebrated the 10th anniversary of the formation of the diocese and the episcopal ordination of His Lordship Bishop Datuk Julius Dusin Gitom. It was also the day the Vision and Mission Statements of the diocese was launched. The triple joyful celebrations were hosted by the Church of the Holy Trinity.

In keeping with the launching of the Vision and Mission (V&M) statements, a Talk on Basic Ecclesial Community (BEC) was organised a day earlier. It was delivered by Cardinal Anthony Soter Fernandez, followed by a Q & A session.

The next session was a briefing on the V & M and Pastoral Plan of the Diocese of Sandakan by Pilis Malim, the Chairman of the Diocesan Focus Committee. He shared that it took them seven tedious years to formulate the V & M to guide the diocese in the coming years. All parishes within the diocese will incorporate the V&M in their pastoral planning.
In the evening, the organisers hosted a dinner reception to commemorate the celebration.

The highlight of the 10th anniversary celebration was marked by a Thanksgiving Eucharistic Mass presided over by Bishop Julius Dusin Gitom and concelebrated by Cardinal Anthony Soter Fernandez, Archbishop John Wong of Kota Kinabalu Archdiocese, Bishop Cornelius Sim of Brunei Vicariate, Bishop Cornelius Piong of Keningau Diocese, Msgr Nicholas Ong of Holy Trinity Tawau, and all the priests from Sandakan and Keningau Dioceses. Among the 800 attendees were the Mother General of the FSIC, religious nuns and the Parish Pastoral Chairmen and their councillors, Lay leaders from the five parishes within the Sandakan diocese (Holy Trinity Church, Tawau, St Mary Cathedral, Sandakan, St Dominic Lahad Datu, St Martin, Telupid, Our Lady of Fatima, Beluran and St Francis of Assisi, Paitan Mission).

During Bishop Julius’ homily, he unveiled the Vision and Mission Statements of the Diocese as Christ-Centred Community, Serving One Another With Love. He called upon the congregation to reflect on the character of St Luke, as it was the Saint’s Feast Day. He invited all to discern and reflect on the Saint’s characteristics to live in communion with others, encouraging each other and supporting each other, being merciful, caring, concerned and committed to building the Church of God. The Bishop hoped to see a community that will share their talent, wisdom, knowledge and energy towards achieving the diocese’s vision and mission.

After the Eucharistic celebration, Msgr Nicholas Ong, the Rector from the hosting parish, stressed on a few points: the BEC programme as a platform to achieve the V & M, Eucharist as the priority of life, life in harmony within the community, deepening the faith of the younger generation for a continuity of the mission and, in jest, an encouragement for the family to multiply.

Cardinal Soter stressed on the oneness of the human race as the people of God, living as one human race and in the presence of God. His Eminence reminded all that a true Christian only knows one language, that is, the language of “Love” as is propagated by the V&M.

Bishop Julius thanked God for the auspicious event of the 10th Anniversary of the Diocese of Sandakan. He acknowledged that not only is the diocese celebrating a three-in-one-event but the diocese was honoured, for the first time in the history of this diocese, to have a Cardinal to witness this celebration.

Bishop Julius concluded by sharing his hope with all the faithful in the Diocese of Sandakan, saying, “Ten years of a journey as one Diocese has taught us the importance of understanding, accepting, respecting and having consideration within parishes, priests, Religious, lay leaders, as well as parishioners. There are many ups and downs: failures, tiredness, conflicts but, at the same time, we also experienced joy, happiness, peacefulness and spiritual and physical growth in our journey. Formulating the Vision and Mission was a long and challenging process, and to implement it will be another challenge that will take a longer time, needing perseverance and patience.” The prelate ended by encouraging all the delegates and representatives from the five parishes of the Diocese of Sandakan to dedicate their wisdom, talent, knowledge, commitment and determination towards the achievement of the Vision and Mission Statements.

Witnessed by the congregation and the three other Dioceses and the Cardinal of Malaysia, Bishop Julius officially launched the Vision and Mission statement. Then he signed the Diocesan Pastoral Plan Documents which were handed over to the representatives of each parish, Paitan Mission. Copies were given to the Cardinal and the Arch/Bishops of the visiting three Dioceses (Kota Kinabalu, Keningau and Brunei Darussalam).

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online