 |
May words of strength, courage and hope accompany our journey through the year opening up before us.
|
Wish you a joyous and prosperous
New Year 2018
----------------------------
CANTATA MACAU-2017
The 2nd Edition of the international Choral Festival was celebrated on 6 - 10 December in Macau. “Macau has a rich and ancient Catholic tradition. In the last quarter of a century, however, it has come to be designated as the haven of gamblers, unholy wealth and even as ‘the sin city’,” Fr Jijo Kandamkulathy, the Director of the Claretian Publications and one of the coordinators of the event.
“Unfortunately, this designation does not suit most people living here, Catholics or otherwise who are in general God fearing. So, the intention of holding this event is to begin reinstating our territory for its Catholic traditions and regain its appreciation for what is holy and sublime,” he added.
The opening ceremony was held on December 6, Wednesday, with a concert in St Dominic’s Church at 7:30 PM. Eight teams from five nationalities participated in the four-day Catholic Music Festival. Cathedral Schola, Fundação Rui Cunha Chorale (Macau), Bishop Hall Jubilee School Choir (Hong Kong), Chorus Vocales Philippines, Parañaque National High School Glee Club (Philippines), Medan Community Male Choir (Indonesia) and Noche Lirica (Mexico) were the performing groups.
On December 7, a solemn Mass was celebrated at the Nativity of Our Lady Cathedral, Macau at 7:15 PM, followed by the sacred concert in the same venue at 8:30 PM. The grand concert on December 8, Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, was held in the Cineteatro Macau.
On December 9, the friendship concert was be held at St Joseph’s Seminary and Church at 5:00 PM. On the last day the closing concert was conducted at the Cathedral of Macau. The Music Festival was also made available for the public through live streaming of the events through social media networks.
-------------------------
Christmas
Christmas was a time of celebrations as usual but this time with a difference. A few pictures from our mission centers to share the story with you.
Fr. Jojo and his parishioners began to provide food for needy in the parish premises every evening. It all began when a couple of poor people came to Fr. Jojo asking for alms. He took them to a nearby shop to buy them dinner. Next evening there were more people at the door. In a couple of days time, he began to get 20-30 people every evening. During the Christmas eve, there were around 100 people at the parish premises for the free meal.
Pictures from Nepal: The "Candle Light" charity group that take care of a school in Nepal was also involved in providing food for the poor in the Christmas season. These visuals show the gleaming faces of kids in the Nepalese village when they had their "catch"!
From Nepal
 |
| Getting their meals ready! |
 |
| Bro. Sid spent the Advent and Christmas season in Indonesia with a few aspirants from the Mainland, training them in English. |
 |
| Fr. John who hails from Inner Mongolia and his friends were involved in bringing electric light to one of the poorest villages in Yun Nan province in the Mainland. By 24 december, they had the electric lines reaching the village. "A festival of lights" in the season of the birth of Jesus, the Light! |
Fr. John was also involved in food distribution to the homeless. On the Christmas Eve, he gathered the kids in the parish in Yokohama in Japan and set out in search of the homeless, bringing them food packets. They met over 70 homeless on the streets.
--------------------
Our Visitor
Fr. Manuel Ezhaparampil from India, a Claretian Missionary working in South Korea for over 20 years has visited the Claretian Communities of Hong Kong and Macau. Fr. Manuel serves as a professor at the Incheon Catholic University.
No comments:
Post a Comment