| Safeguard the Rights of Non-Muslim Citizens |
| KUALA LUMPUR: "Another dangerous precedent that denies the right to legal redress of a non-Muslim," the human rights group Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) said of the judgement of the Court of Appeal which told a non-Muslim to seek recourse in the Syariah Court. On March 13, in a landmark 2-1 ruling, the court of appeal dismissed an application by R. Subashini to stop her husband Muhammad Shafi Saravanan Abdullah, who embraced Islam five years after they were married, from going to the Syariah Court to dissolve their civil marriage and converting their children to Islam without her permission. Judges Datuk Suriyadi Halim Omar and Datuk Hasan Lah were of the opinion that a non-Muslim whose spouse converted to Islam has to seek remedy in the Syariah Court over family matters. They further opined that a Muslim can apply to the Syariah Court to convert his or her under-age children without the permission of the non-Muslim spouse. The ruling came as a shock to many non-Muslims, prompting the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, ! Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism to say, "We express our objection to any requirement for non-Muslims to have to go to the Syariah Court for relief as such courts apply Islamic theological law. - Posted by Herald |
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| Chrism Mass for Archdiocese Celebrated at St Anthony's Church |
| PETALING JAYA: "Priests are called by Christ to serve Him in the new millennium. You have been chosen from among the people, appointed to act in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins." Archbishop Murphy Pakiam echoed the words of Pope Benedict XVI in his homily at the celebration of the Chrism Mass for the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur on Mar 20 at the Church of St Anthony. Over 1,000 members from the various parishes of the Archdiocese came together to celebrate the Chrism Mass, which is historically celebrated on Holy Thursday or any day before it. The Chrism Mass signifies the unity of the Bishop's ministry with the people of God, whom he serves. This unity is brought forth through the blessing of the Oil of the Sick - used for anointing of the sick; the Oil of Catechumens - used for adult and child catechumens; and the Chrism Oil - used for baptism, confirmation, the ordination of priests, and the consecration of altars. It is also at this Mass that priests renew their priestly vocations. - Posted by Herald |
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| Retreat For Assumption Church Leaders |
| PORT DICKSON: A retreat for leaders of the Assumption parish was held recently at the Le Paris Hotel from Mar 10-11. Themed, Deepening Discipleship, the annual retreat was conducted by Fr Francis Tsen, who imparted the values of discipleship of accepting the call, community living, the cross in our lives and fulfilling our mission throughout the three-day retreat. "Disciples are not superior to the teacher, nor is the slave to the master," said Fr Tsen, Church of Immaculate Conception parish priest. "There is a growth process to becoming a disciple. Disciples grow to become teachers," he added. "We are so routine in whatever we do that we do not realize the presence of our Father in our lives and the call to live our lives as disciples. Living the call for discipleship is seen through our everyday living with our family, friends, colleagues and whoever we come in contact with. - Posted by Herald |
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| Media Messages Are Constructed Using Creative Language |
| SEREMBAN: Media messages that we encounter and engage with are `constructed' by specific people. These messages, called texts, are selected and `put together' for consumption by the target audience. This was stated by Lawrence John, director of Cahayasuara Communications Centre, during a youth Media Camp from Mar 9-11 at the Seminari Theologi Malaysia in Seremban. The camp was held for 26 Form Four students from the Church of the Visitation, Seremban, who will be receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. "The audience or receivers only get to read, view or listen to what was chosen for us by those who put these texts together. There are many other texts or news that are not selected for public viewing," - Posted by Herald |
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| Bible Course For Laity Commences |
| PETALING JAYA: A Bible Course for the Laity has commenced on Mar 16. The three year course to be held at the Assumption parish, received registrations from 50 participants this year. The complete course consisting of 12 modules was drawn up by the Regional Biblical Commission of the Bishops' Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. Heading the team of lecturers is Fr Gerard Theraviam of Major Seminary, Penang, who at the introductory session, a Friday earlier, said that this course involves serious study and would demand commitment and discipline. He added, "This Diploma does not guarantee you a job but will certainly give you a sound understanding and knowledge of the Bible that may enable and better equip you in your spiritual journey and serve others in your parish." - Posted by Herald |
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| A Visit to the Old Folk's Home |
| KUALA LUMPUR: Members of the Centering Care of the Elderly (CCE)/Parish Integral Human Development Ministry(PIHDM) of Holy Rosary parish recently organized two outreach programmes in conjunction with the season of Lent. On Mar 11, the CCE/PIHDM members treated members of an old folks home in Old Klang Road to dinner. They were accompanied by the youths of the parish in sitting with he residents as they conversed over dinner. Residents who were bedridden were seen being lovingly fed by the youths. A week later, on Mar 18, the parish's Senior Persons Circle joined the CCE/PIHDM members in a fellowship dinner with members of the leper colony in Sg Buloh. The dinner was preceded by a celebration of the Eucharist, which was celebrated by Fr Frederick Joseph at the Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel in Sg Buloh. The parish youths from Sabah and Sarawak, who were also present, provided the evening's entertainment as they performed songs accompanied by guitars. - Posted by Herald |
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| Feeding The Homeless During Lent |
| KUALA LUMPUR: Members of St Thomas (I) BEC, belonging to the parish of Our Lady of Fatima, sponsored lunch for about 120 homeless people on Mar 8. It was part of the BEC's spiritual activities planned for the year. The Archdiocesan Office for Human Development's (AOHD) Welcome Caring Feeding Programme provides meals for these homeless people, who come from various ethnic and religious backgrounds. They gather every Monday to Friday at AOHD's premises, which is next to St John's Cathedral, for their meals. In keeping with the BEC's sub-theme for March, `In Solidarity with the Suffering,' its members had decided on sponsoring a meal for a day, said BEC coordinator, Philomen Ryan. Excess donations collected from the BEC members for the meals was handed over to the feeding programme coordinator, Carl D'Cunha, towards the Welcome Caring Feeding Programme. - Posted by Herald |
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| Study, Prayer And Practice To Be An Effective Lector |
| PETALING JAYA: A formation was designed for the development of lectors who are responsible to proclaim the Word of God in their respective parishes. Representatives from as far as Kuantan and Bahau were also present in all eagerness to seek ways to become better readers. Organised by the Archdiocese Liturgy Commission of Kuala Lumpur, the formation saw about 180 people from over 20 parishes attending it, on Mar 10, at the Loyola Hall of St Francis Xavier (SFX) Church. Jesus himself was a Lector. He went into the synagogue at Nazareth, according to his custom on the Sabbath day, and he rose up to proclaim a passage from Isaiah - Luke 4:17. "Lectors do not only read but also PROCLAIM the biblical texts in a manner satisfying to all," stressed Fr Leonard Lexson, the chairperson of the Commission. - Posted by Herald |
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| Meeting With Youths From St Michael |
| BATU ARANG: On March 11, a Pastoral Worker from ASAYO, Laura Joseph, met the youths of the Chapel of St Michael. There were 25 youths gathered to meet her. After a brief introduction session, some of the leaders shared their expectation for the day. This was followed by a session finding Jesus in the temple in the Scriptures. In this session the youths learned how the Word of God translates the message of Christ into action for everyday living and in building Community. They shared that they needed bimonthly formation on the sharing of the Word of God. The gathering ended with a closing prayer by Hendry. It was a fruitful and meaningful gathering. - Posted by Herald |
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| Faith formation of Catholic teachers vital |
| KUALA LUMPUR: The EXCO members of the Catholic Teachers' Association of Malaysia (CTAM) had an inspiring meeting with His Grace Most Rev Archbishop Datuk Murphy Pakiam at the Cardijn House in Kuala Lumpur on March 10, 2007. The objective of the meeting was for CTAM to brief Archbishop Pakiam on the on-going activities and also to discuss issues pertaining to the objectives and role of CTAM in effectively meeting the needs of Catholic teachers. The President of CTAM, Ms Chin Poh Choo said that targets set by CTAM for this year are to promote greater communication links with members, providing opportunities for interaction among members, representing the Catholic teachers' community in issues and concerns pertaining to the development of education and establishing synergistic relationships with other Catholic and Christian organizations. "My challenge to CTAM is to become faithful Apostles of Christ," said Archbishop Pakiam when concluding the meeting. - Posted by Herald |
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| Formation On Malaysian Catechetical Series For Catechists |
| KAJANG: A formation for Catechists on how to use the new Malaysian Catechetical series began at the Kuala Lumpur South District parishes (Sacred Heart, St Francis Assisi & Holy Family). Held on Mar 17, the formation was conducted by Dr Steven Selvarajoo. The Malaysian Catechetical series was commissioned by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Malaysia, who saw a need for uniformed catechism textbooks. The task was then handed over to the National Catechetical Office to come up with a catechetical series that could be used in all Sunday School classes in Malaysia. At the formation, Dr Steven emphasized that, one of the roles as a catechist, is to give `life' to the textbook, which is only an instrument. He encouraged the catechists to use the textbooks as a resource material, and add their own creativity to providing faith formation to the students. Dr Steven will be conducting a similar formation for catechists from seven other district parishes under the KL Archdiocese. - Posted by Herald |
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| Homecoming is returning to God's eternal embrace |
| KUALA LUMPUR: A retreat, based on "The Return Of The Prodigal Son," was conducted by Most Rev John Ha, Dr Jeffrey Goh and Angie Goh at the Little Sisters of the Poor. This annual Prodigal Son retreat, based on a book by Henri Nouwen and on Rembrandt's famous painting, was organized by the Archdiocesan Pastoral Institute (API) and was held from Mar 9-11. The parable as told by Jesus in Luke 15 was re-read numerous times throughout the retreat to allow the Lord to speak to each individual to an awareness of who he or she is and who God is to them. The mystery of "homecoming" is understood when one returns to the eternal embrace of God's love, culminated by Jesus on the Cross. It was during the Service of the Cross, when all the participants experienced this. Many broke down when they knelt at the foot asking the Lord for pardon, forgiveness and peace. - Posted by Herald |
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| Archbishop Murphy Pakiam appointed to the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue |
VATICAN: Pope Benedict XVI has appointed new members to the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. The Vatican press office made the announcement on March 8. Archbishop Murphy Pakiam together with 18 other members has been appointed to the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID)
The PCID was instituted on Pentecost Sunday, 1964, by Pope Paul VI. It is the central office of the Catholic Church for the promotion of interreligious dialogue in accordance with the spirit of the Second Vatican Council, in particular the declaration Nostra Aetate. Its responsibilities are to promote mutual understanding, respect and collaboration between Catholics and the followers of others religious traditions; to encourage the study of religions and to promote the formation of persons dedicated to dialogue. - Posted by Herald |
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| Chrism Mass times |
| KUALA LUMPUR: Held once a year in all the dioceses, the Chrism Mass is one of the of the most solemn and significant liturgies of our church. The Chrism Mass for Kuala Lumpur Archdiocese will be celebrated on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 at the Church of St Anthony, at 6.30pm. - Posted by Herald |
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| Lenten Formation at St John's Cathedra |
| KUALA LUMPUR: A Lenten Formation was held for members of St John's Cathedral's various ministries. Facilitated by assistant parish priest, Fr A. Amalanathan. The formation was held in the old parish hall on March 3. The three-hour long session with the topic on "Lenten Preparation" was organised by the Liturgical & Spiritual Life Committee. Among the areas shared by Fr Amala was the nature of Sacred Liturgical, its implications in the life of the Church and the celebration of the Paschal Mystery. Fr Amala explained these in detail making several references to The Vatican Council ll Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrusanctum Cuncilium. - Posted by Herald |
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| Courtesy Call to Negeri Menteri Besar by Visitation Parish |
| SEREMBAN: A delegation representing the parish of the Visitation in Seremban paid a courtesy call on YAB Menteri Besar of Negeri Sembilan, Dato' Seri Utama Haji Mohamad bin Haji Hasan at his office in Wisma Negeri on March 2, 2007. Unprecedented in the history of the Archdiocese's oldest church (1848), the delegation led by Parish Priest, Fr Arockiasamy, comprised Assistant Parish Priest, Fr Michael Chua, Parish Pastoral Assistant IJ Sister Sr Teresa Chua, Chairman of the Parish Pastoral Council, and a number of senior parishioners. The Menteri Besar, commented that the parish's participation in the social dimensions of the community while pursuing its overall mission as a religious institution, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have a common responsibility as Malaysians to respond to the nation's needs. - Posted by Herald |
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| Blood donation drive part of activities |
| BANTING: In conjunction with the Archdiocesan Office for Human Developments (AOHD) Lenten Campaign, the Parish Integral Human Development Ministry (PIHDM) of Gereja Katolik Fatima, Banting (GKF) had organized a Blood Donation campaign. Held on March 4, Under the leadership of Dr Victor John, the campaign was assisted by staff from Banting's District Hospital. The objective of this campaign was to fulfill the Lenten Theme, which is 'To suffer with the sufferings.' This came as awareness to many donors, when on February 35, Dr Victor gave a concise explanation on the importance of Blood Donation. He concluded by saying that one person's blood can save up to five lives. Eighty-seven parishioners, including 25 Youths, volunteered to donate their blood after the Sunday morning's Eucharistic Celebration. Parish Priest. Fr V.A. Michael, PCC Chairman, Gerald Goonting and BEC Leaders were present. - Posted by Herald |
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| Session held to instill significance of Holy Week celebration |
| KUALA LUMPUR: "Reflection and Preparation for Holy Week" was a session conducted on March 5 at the Church of the Sacred Heart by parish priest, Fr Anthony Thomas. The session was held in an effort to instill the significance of Holy Week celebrations and to equip the faithful to fully understand its meaning. Approximately 80 parishioners, making up a cross-section of the various ministries, namely the Lectors & Commentators Ministry, Hospitality Ministry, Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist, BEC leaders, Faith Educators and others involved in liturgy came for the two-hour session that commenced at 8.OOpm held in Dewan Louis Guittat of the newly built SHC Community Centre. - Posted by Herald |
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| God loves us and waits for us to come to Him |
| KUALA LUMPUR: The Rite of Election for the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur was held on Feb 25, the first Sunday of Lent at St John's Cathedral. Consisted of 629 Elect from the 27 parishes, including 4 chapels. The theme this year is A People-Elect Called To Deepening Of Our Discipleship. Some 30 priests together with more than 500 godparents and 240 team members and hundreds of parishioners joined the catechumens who gathered for the ceremony that was presided over by Archbishop Murphy Pakiam. He congratulated the catechumens for having attended about 30 weekly RCIA lessons over several months and for their perseverance. He also requested everyone to accompany the Elect beyond Easter and to initiate them into the BEC gatherings. - Posted by Herald |
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| Stella Maris School Catholic Studen't Camp |
| CHERAS: The Catholic Students' Society of Sekolah Menengah Stella Maris held its first annual camp at the Infant Jesus Convent, from Feb 1 to 3. The theme of the camp was "Love and Honour Your Family." The main presenter was Alvin Teoh talked about were Sin and Repentance and What Our Mission is as Christians. The camp brought them closer as a family and helped them understand each other better and also helped them grow closer to God. - Posted by Herald |
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| Poster competition for World Communications Day 2007 |
KUALA LUMPUR: SIGNIS Malaysia, in collaboration with Cahayasuara Communications Centre (CCC), is organising a poster competition. Held in conjunction with World Communications Day (WCD) on May 20, 2007, the competition is open to all.
Theme: Children and the Media: A Challenge for Education
The objective: To create greater awareness that posters are effective media in communications, while increasing creativity and artistic participation during WCD.
Guideline for concept: The Pope's message for the 41 st WCD at http://www.vatican.va/latest/latest_en.htm
Winner: The one that best expresses and communi�cates the theme.
(If the judges decide that none of the entries submit�ted meet the stipulated selection criteria, then SIGNIS Malaysia/CCC reserves the right to award consolation prizes only.)
Submission: by April 20 2007 to
SIGNIS M'sia/ Cahayasuara
c/o Cahayasuara Communications Centre
5, Jalan Robertson, 50150 Kuala Lumpur.
Email: ccckl@po.jaring.my |
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| Catholic Church Putrajaya Appeal |
KUALA LUMPUR: The Catholic Church Putrajaya Building Committee is currently collating a census of Catholics: - Families residing, including those working or studying (local & foreign)
This exercise is being carried out to facilitate the sub�mission and approval of the building plans (as it is one of the requirements) and also to expedite the approval by the respective authorities. Kindly forward your personal particulars as below (families- include all members of your household, children on a separate sheet of paper):
Name: ______________________________
Address (residence/office/college/university): ____________________________________
IC/Passport No: _______________________
- Fill form and drop it off at the parish office (where you attend Mass)
- Email details to: jbkleow@gmail.com / contact@catholicchurchputrajaya.org
- Fax to: 03-87330471 (Church of the Holy Family, Kajang)
- Contact: Fr Julian Leow at 87331154 |
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| Parish is not primarily a structure but a family of God |
| SEREMBAN: More than 378 parishioners participated in the Visitation parish's pastoral assembly, held on Feb 4. The organising team led by Parish Coordinating Council (PCC) Chairman had successfully coordinated the comprehensive afternoon's programme. The concluding para-liturgy service was led by resident seminarian, Bro Alan Pereira. Archbishop Murphy Pakiam in closing the assembly, called on the parish of the Visitation to continue its commitment to producing priests and leaders as it forges ahead in its mission. - Posted by Herald |
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| Ninety-one confirmed at St Ignatius Church |
| PETALING JAYA: Confirmation Day, St Ignatius Church (SIC). There was therefore much reason to celebrate. The journey consisted of numerous catechism classes on the Catholic faith and lessons and the Liturgical cycle to their daily lives. 91 candidates, English and Mandarin-speaking walked up to Most Rev Archbishop Murphy Pakiam to make their public and personal confirmation that they chose to continue to be Catholic. - Posted by Herald |
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| Building Relationships through diversity, listening and communications |
| KAJANG: A formation for leaders of the various ministries of the Holy Family parish was held over the Thaipusam holiday. One hundred and ten participants participated in the formation, held on Jan 31 and Feb 1. Based on the parish's Pastoral Priority of 2007's theme of Building Relationships, many session topics were discussed. Fr Julian Leow and Fr William Michael, were present throughout the whole programme. - Posted by Herald |
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| No household should be overtaxed for basic human necessity-water |
| KUALA LUMPUR: The privatisation of water in Malaysia has seen this right being chipped away. This was stated by Charles Santiago, a political economist and the Coordinator of the Coalition Against Water Privatisation (CAWP) during the recent Clergy Recollection held at the Archdiocesan Pastoral Centre. He said that CAWP has filed an application for a court order to make public the agreement and the National Audit Department's report on Syabas' non-revenue water reduction. Charles urged priests to initiate groups in their parishes to create awareness on the issue as well as to encourage laypeople to do something about it. - Posted by Herald |
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| Large turnout for double celebration and anointing |
| KUALA LUMPUR: The parish of Our Lady of Lourdes celebrated its feast simultaneously with World Day of the Sick on Feb 11. More than 250 parishioners and pilgrims received the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick after the Eucharistic Celebrations. The Lourdes Bath was provided. Archbishop Emeritus Anthony Soter Fernandez, who presided over the Mass, said that he was very pleased with everything, including the involvement of the youths and the wonderful turnout every single year. - Posted by Herald |
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| Servers learn that fun is part of experiencing God |
| SENTUL: "Mom, Dad! I need to go to church now. I am serving today for morning Mass.This is the attitude of the altar servers of the Church of St Joseph. On January 2, 2007, the servers together with Parish Priest, Fr Stanislaus went swimming at Menara KLH in Ipoh Road. The main objective of this event was to show gratitude to the servers for their effort and sacrifices to the church and to the ministry. - Posted by Herald |
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| Poster competition for World Communications Day 2007 |
KUALA LUMPUR: SIGNIS Malaysia, in collaboration with Cahayasuara Communications Centre (CCC), is organising a poster competition. Held in conjunction with World Communications Day (WCD) on May 20, 2007, the competition is open to all. The theme for WCD `07 is Children and the Media: A Challenge for Education, The objective of the competition is to create greater awareness that posters are effective media in communications, while increasing creativity and artistic participation during WCD. The Pope's message for the 41 st WCD should be used as a guideline for concept and creative design, which is also the criterion for designing the poster. Issued by the Vatican, the full text can be found at http://www.vatican.va/latest/latest_en.htm The winning poster is one that best expresses and communicates the theme. Selection will be based on creative expression and concept. If the judges decide that none of the entries submitted meet the stipulated selection criteria, then SIGNIS Malaysia/CCC reserves the right to award consolation prizes only. The winning poster would be sent (via digital file) to all Signis Asia members, who would be encouraged to adapt the design and reprint it locally for WCD celebrations. Interested participants are invited to make their submissions by April 20 2007 to:
SIGNIS M'siafCahayasuara
c/o Cahayasuara Communications Centre
5, Jalan Robertson, 50150 Kuala Lumpur.
Email: ccckl@po.jaring.my |
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| Putrajaya Catholic Church appeal |
KUALA LUMPUR: The Putrajaya Catholic Church Building Committee (PCCBC) is currently collating a census of Catholic families residing, as well as those working or studying (local & foreign students), in or around Putrajaya to determine the Catholic population in the area. This exercise is being carried out to facilitate the submission and approval of the building plans (as it is one of the requirements) and also to expedite the approval by the respective authorities. Putrajaya residents are requested to forward their personal details as follows:
Name:
Add/Residence/Office/College/University:
I/C/Passport number:
(Kindly include all members of your household including children)
Fax To: 03-87330471 (Church of the Holy Family Kajang). For, kindly contact at
For queries: 03-87331154, Fr Julian Leow
Residents are required to submit the relevant information by March 18, 2007. - Posted by Herald |
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