On Friday, 18 March 2022, the University of Saint Joseph in Macau celebrated its 25th Year Anniversary with a Mass in the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady, presided over by the diocesan Bishop, D. Stephen Lee. The Rector of the University, Rev. Deacon Stephen Morgan, assisted the main celebrant as Deacon. Likewise, our Dominican community was actively involved in the liturgical celebration: some priests-professors concelebrated with the bishop, and our student brothers assisting also during the Mass, some as acolytes and the rest in the music ministry as members of the choir. Other members of the assembly participated in different ways, from proclaiming the readings to presenting the intercessory prayers on behalf of the entire community. USJ administrators, professors, staff members, alumni and students alike were also present.
It was a Thanksgiving Mass to commemorate the important landmark of the USJ Silver Anniversary of the USJ, which under the motto “Tradition, Innovation, Vision” continues committed to play a significant role in the evangelization in this part of the world. Bishop Lee, during his homily, highlighted the meaning and relevance of the event. As it coincided with the festivity of St Joseph, the bishop cited the Holy Father’s Pastoral Letter Patris corde (“With the heart of a father”) and encouraged everyone to imitate the fatherly virtues of the Holy Patriarch Saint Joseph. He ended by giving thanks to the Lord for the growth and development of USJ in the past 25 years and requested the academic community present, students and teachers alike, to ask for grace for the next 25 years.
After the Mass, invited guests and participants took a group photo at the nearby Ruins of Saint Paul’s, a place where Catholic Higher Education began in East Asia and a reminder of how the University is rooted in a long tradition of intercultural exchange that has been the hallmark of Catholic higher education in Macau since the College of Saint Paul, founded in 1954.