Every year, towards the end of
December, the group of men religious residing in Macau gather together to have
some moments of prayer, partake a meal and sing some carols in the spirit of
Christmas. This year 2018 the gathering took place on the 26th of
December at Saint Joseph the Worker Parish, run by the Comboni Fathers. Around
50 religious men from different Institutes and ages were present. Some of them,
veterans in religious life; others, still in the stage of institutional
formation.
To
begin with, at 6:30 pm and following the program outline, the local parish
priest, Fr. Manuel Machado MCCJ, gave to everyone a warm, fraternal welcome.
Then, the evening Prayer began, led by Fr. Fausto Gómez OP. The psalms and the
gospel canticle were chanted. During the intercessory prayer, there was also a
short moment to pray for those who had entrusted themselves to our prayers, for
the poor and for the victims of the recent natural disaster in Indonesia. The Vespers
ended with the singing of “Salve Reginaâ€.
Afterwards,
all present there proceeded to the parish hall for communal gathering and the
singing of some Christmas songs together before the fraternal agape. It was
beautiful indeed seeing people from different countries in the world together
in the name of the One who came to redeem the world. Time to share with others
one’s life as religious, one’s experiences in the mission and spending some
moments listening to one another.
After
the meal, the program continued with the singing of the most renowned Christmas
song, the “Silent Nightâ€, in the different
languages of those present. The very occasion was closed with the powerful singing
of “Gloria in Excelsis Deo†by our
Dominican brothers, and the final blessing by Fr. Mario Bonfaini CMF. An
evening to remember in our journey’s life.
With the main purpose of meeting the Students, Fr. Pablo Sicouly, Socius of the Master of the Order for the Intellectual Life, paid a three-day visit (5 to 7 of January) to our Priory in Macau. The occasion was also propitious for him to meet the entire Dominican Family in Macau (Friars, Sisters and Laity). And so it happened: An extraordinary gathering was convoked at St Paul School in the afternoon of January 6, Epiphany Sunday.
           The program consisted of three parts. In the first one, we listened to a lecture on “The Challenges of Dominican Study†delivered by Fr Pablo. He based the talk on the first part of the Ratio Studiorum Generalis. Then a friendly dialogue followed between the Socius and the participants. Some student brothers and some Sisters, too, had the opportunity to share with the socius about their institutional study. Fr Pablo answered from his own experience and current position, to the points in questions; and he ended up encouraging all the Students to cultivate the habit of study, something essential for a Dominican.
           After the academic part, the participants moved to the School Chapel where we prayed Vespers together. It was indeed meaningful that the Dominican Family in Macau prayed together. The singing of the Salve Regina and the O Lumen was the crowned those liturgical moments.
           The last part of the program took the form of agape. Having dinner together is another way of sharing. In blessing the food we prayed that “partaking from the same table may help us grow always in brotherhood.†Indeed the agape dinner was the way for us, Dominicans, to share our brotherly and sisterly love as one family in Christ Jesus.
Fr Pablo left for Hong Kong in the afternoon of January 7. Since it was his first time in Macau, he treasured a lot of memories of persons and places. One thing that impressed him was the joyful and harmonious community life lived at St Dominic’s Priory. He enjoyed also his visit to the University of St Joseph, to St Dominic’s church and the other emblematic places Macau offers to visitors. We thanked Fr Pablo for his visit
By:Brs Stehen Saw Lej Kapaw Htoo and Andre Pereira
The Faculty day is an annual commemorative event held by the Faculty of Religious Studies of Saint Joseph University, in Macau. It takes place normally around the feast of St Francis Xavier in the first week of December, and it usually brings together all the members of the Faculty i.e. professors, students, staff, alumni, and friends to join in a whole day program of activities. This year, in 2018, the event took place on the 4th of December at Saint Joseph’s Seminary campus.
With the advanced invitation, the Rector of the University, some other Deans and professors from the different faculties, officers of the University, and Superiors of Religious Congregations were also present. The program began at 10:00 am with a morning coffee and friendly conversation among the participants. It was followed by a Lecture delivered by Reverend Dr. Stephen Morgan, the new Dean of the Faculty. In his lecture, entitled The Word was made flesh, the Dean zeroed in mostly on the Mystery of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ.
Right after the lecture, the participants proceeded to Saint Joseph’s Church for the Eucharistic celebration. Some professors and guest priests concelebrated with the Bishop, who was also assisted by the newly ordained Deacons Ignatius Ngo and Francis Nge Nge. In his homily, Bishop Stephen Lee emphasized the importance of prayer for the sake of enhancing a better relationship with God. Furthermore, he also encouraged the students to study seriously with the assistance of the Holy Spirit, the source of all understanding. After the homily, Reverend Dr. Stephen Morgan made his profession of faith and oath of fidelity in the presence of the bishop and of the faithful, as he took the office of Dean of the Faculty of Religious Study of the University of Saint Joseph.
Once the Mass was ended, the participants gathered together again in the seminary hall for the partaking of lunch, by now readily set on the table. Since it was also the birthdays of the Rector of the University, Fr. Peter Stilwell, and of our Dominican brother Fr. Fausto Gomez, we all shared a birthday cake jointly cut by both of them after blowing the customary candles and the singing of “Happy Birthday by all those present. The lunch, graced by the bishop, was a great moment in which we continued sharing from the Eucharistic table of the Lord to the daily material food received from His Providence, which keeps us united in brotherhood. In our prayer, we expressed our gratitude to God and remembered those who had prepared the meal for us.
In the afternoon, the program continued with outdoor activities organized by the students of the Faculty consisting of games and soccer competitions. We all took part in them with enthusiasm and indeed, it was very enjoyable. The whole activity was great for the interaction between the professors and students and among the students themselves, for all worked together in groups competing to achieve one goal: to win.
The Faculty Day closed with the awarding of prizes to the winners and lots of picture taking.
A lay group composed of eighteen members, led by Professor Jenny Lao Phillips, paid a friendly visit to the St. Dominic’s Priory of Macao on the 1st of December, 2018 from 3:00 to 5:00 pm. They are members of the Macau Catholic Lay Association. With their spiritual growth in mind, the main objective of this visit was for them to know more about the presence and life of the Dominicans in Macau. In fact, it was the first time for this Association to officially visit our community since its foundation in 2006.
The most solid number of it was Fr Fausto Gomez’ short talk on the presence and life of the Dominicans in Macao. He focused on who the Dominicans are, what they are doing here in Macau, where they did come from and where they are heading to. He mentioned also the history of this Priory and of the studentate and the life of the friars. He concluded by remarking also the presence of the Dominican Family in Macau: Friars, Sisters, and Lay members.
As ‘intermission’ number the brothers sang “O Sanctissimaâ€, a traditional Latin hymn addressed to Mother Mary. A brief sharing by four student brothers, the representative from different countries, followed up the singing. There was also a short time for an open forum, with questions and answers on both sides. Then, some refreshments, courtesy of the Association, were friendly shared with all the participants while engaging in joyful and informal conversation.
The encounter was ended by gathering up together in the chapel of the Priory for the singing of “Salve Regina’’ and final blessing.
A group picture and the distribution of some souvenirs rounded off this pleasant and fruitful visit.
The 21st of November 2018 is the Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On this Memorial Day, all the Women Religious in Macau gather together for the Mass in Cathedral to pray and give thanks to God. Fr. Beda Liu, S.J presided the Mass and few priests concelebrated. On this special day, the brothers from the community were invited to sing. Â After the Mass, there was some sharing of conversation among the attendances and at the same time having simple dinner at the hall of the Parish office.
