Christmas originated as a Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem, observed on December 25. The date was first mentioned in the third century, coinciding with Roman winter festivals to symbolize light triumphing over darkness. Over time, Christmas embraced traditions from many cultures, such as gift-giving, carols, and evergreen decorations.
The meaning of Christmas is both religious and cultural. For Christians, it represents hope, salvation, and God’s love revealed through the incarnation of Jesus. For many others, it has become a season of joy, generosity, and togetherness, marked by family gatherings, festive meals, and the exchange of gifts.
This year, 2025, our community Christmas celebration started in our chapel at 10:00pm with the ‘Midnight’ Mass, attended by a good number of the faithful and the Dominican Family (Sisters and Lay members). The Chapel had been beautifully decorated by our student brothers, who also filled it with their voices during the Eucharistic celebration in honor of the Nativity of the Lord. Afterwards, we shared joy and fellowship over simple food. We sang songs together and enjoyed a small but heartfelt celebration that lasted until midnight. It was a truly memorable and uplifting experience, filled with warmth and gratitude.
Merry Christmas to everyone, and a Happy New Year to all! May this coming year 2026 bring peace to our hearts, prosperity to our endeavors, and happiness to our families. May love and kindness guide us, and may the light of Christmas continue to shine brightly in our lives throughout the year.
On December 30, 2025, we enjoyed a community sports day. It was part of our Christmas celebration aiming to foster our bonding.
We competed among ourselves in table tennis, basketball, badminton, and football.
By working together as teams, we deepened our family spirit in a day filled with laughters and sweats. Although the Holy Spirit is the basis of our communion, yet through our engagement in our common interest of sport, we indeed grow in mutual appreciation and love.
“The brothers should gladly join in community recreation, by means of which mutual understanding and brotherly communion are developed” (Book of Constitutions and Ordinations of the Friars of the Order of Preachers, #5).
On the feast of St. Albert the Great, November 15th, 2025, our studentate celebrated the accomplishment of Father Paul’s term as our Master of Students; and at the same time, the welcoming of Father Hilary, as our new Master. We thank Father Paul for his hard work and silent dedication during the past years to each of us, especially in our trials. We thank God for him. We continue praying for him in his new mission in Spain, as he will also keep us in his prayers.
Likewise, we express our heartfelt welcome to our new Master, Father Hilary. He has recently finished his doctorate at the Angelicum, in Rome. As a member of the very first batch of Dominican vocations from Myanmar who studied Theology in Macau, Father Hilary is now committed to walk with us in our good and bad times, as a brother. We are grateful to him for his generous acceptance of this office and pray that the Holy Spirit enlighten him to guide us.
We also added to the joy of that day the joint birthday celebration of some brothers of the community, as well as the welcoming of Father Martin Bai into our community.
May God continue showering his blessings upon this studentate community in Macau!
On the memorial of St. Josaphat the martyr, 12th of Novemeber 2025, the studentate saw the commissioning and blessing of Brother Francisco Zin Ko Lin for his mission to Taiwan. We thank God for His grace these 5 years of his studentate formation in Macau, and we celebrate Brother Francisco’s “Fiat” to embark on a foreign land to preach the Gospel. Let us earnestly pray for him and for the mission in Taiwan!
In a solemn and joyous liturgical celebration filled with songs and prayer, the Dominican Province of Our Lady of the Rosary witnessed the ordination as Deacons of three of its friars. The ceremony took place at St. Joseph Seminary church, at 3:00 p.m. on October 7th, a date of profound significance as it was the Solemnity of Our Lady of the Rosary, the Patroness of the Province.
The three newly ordained deacons were: Brother João Baptista Pereira, OP; Brother Gaspar De Jesus, OP; and Brother Matthew He Yue Sai, OP.
The ordination ceremony was presided over by His Excellency Stephen Lee Bun Sang, Bishop of Macau, who conferred the sacrament of Holy Order of the Diaconate through the laying on of hands and the prayer of consecration. In his homily, he underscored the diaconate’s call to a life of service, both at the altar and in the world, encouraging those being ordained to embody the charity of Christ in their ministries.
The event was a powerful display of the universal and communal nature of the Church. The presence of Bro. João Baptista Pereira’s father, who traveled from East Timor to witness his son’s ordination, added a poignant touch of familial love and support. The congregation was a vibrant tapestry of the wider religious family in Macau, including members of the Jesuits, Comboni, Divine Word Missionaries, etc. The Dominican family was strongly represented by friars from the two Hong Kong communities, Dominican Sisters from Macau and Lay Dominicans both from Hong Kong and Macau, underscoring the deep bonds within the Order.
The liturgy was marked by its solemnity and reverence. The sacred songs, beautifully rendered by the Dominican student brothers, elevated the celebration and inspired the faithful in attendance.
At the end of the ceremony the newly ordained Deacon Gaspar addressed the congregation on behalf of his fellow deacons. In a heartfelt speech of thanksgiving, he expressed their profound gratitude to God, to the members of their families, to their formators…, and the entire community for their prayers and support throughout their years of formation.
After the liturgical celebration, all attendees were invited to a friendly tea reception at the adjacent St. Joseph School Hall. This provided a warm and fraternal atmosphere for the congregation to offer their personal congratulations to the new deacons and to share in the joy of this momentous occasion with the Dominican Family and the Church.
The ordination of Brothers João, Gaspar, and Matthew as Deacons marked a significant step in their journey of service to the Church, as they now take on new responsibilities in the ministries of the Word, the Altar, and Charity. The Dominicans of Our Lady of the Rosary Province give thanks to God for the gift of these three new deacons and pray for their fruitful ministries as they continue their journey of service in the Lord’s vineyard.
From the first to the second day of October 2025, during our University’s holiday break, our student brothers engaged in a prayer relay. We were invited by Dominicans abroad to a Rosary relay event to pray for peace. It is our duty as religious brothers to stand in the breach and pray for peace and salvation, especially when many of our brothers are from the beloved war-torn country of Myanmar. We have always been keeping this intention deep in our hearts, and thus we earnestly joined the worldwide Dominicans’ plead.
We formed pairs, and each pair committed to pray for two hours within the twenty-four hour period from 12pm of October 1, to 12pm of October 2. We kept vigil with the Lord suffering in each mourning soul in the war-torn lands. Even as we lifted our hearts to pray with Mother Mary, we have also received much consolation in this team prayer event. We united ourselves with the world to pray in this 8-day prayer relay.
Blessed be God, and thanks be to Mother Mary: Gaza experienced a ceasefire in that same week! We will continue to hold the nations and individuals struck by wars in our hearts. May God grant peace to the world through Our Lady of the Rosary.
Brother Marcus Tan, OP,
October 11, 2025
