Dear Brothers,
It is here, in the thing that happened at the first Christmas, that the most profound unfathomable depths of the Christian revelation lie. God became man. Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as the truth of the incarnation.
May the Lord Jesus make all your dreams, aspirations and wishes come true and may his blessing be with you forever.
Community of Saint Dominic’s Priory
In a few days we shall be celebrating joyfully the Nativity of Jesus. Until that day, we all have different programs and parties. Members of our Priory will attend and participate in different Christmas gatherings. On December 18, our community joins the religious men in Macau for a fraternal party at the Jesuits’ Retreat House in Coloane. On December 19, we shall celebrate Christmas at noontime with Mass, agape and Christmas Carols with professors and students of the University of Saint Joseph at the St. Joseph Seminary, Macau. On the same day, we shall also join our brothers working at St. Paul School for their Mass in the morning with program, and banquet in the evening. Just before Christmas, the members of our St. Dominic’s Priory will gather together in our community room to greet Marry Christmas to our Prior and enjoy each other’s company. We shall celebrate the Nativity of Jesus at midnight Mass to be followed by a fraternal agape to be shared by all.
The staff of our web page is grateful to the many people who encourage us and those who help us in different ways. The staff is particularly grateful to Brother Lawrence The Reh, OP, who is always there to enter competently the different items, news and illustrations.
We greet our dear readers and friends of this modest page wishing you all A BLESSED CHRISTMAS. We read in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “Only when Jesus is formed in us will the Mystery of Christmas be fulfilled in us†(CCC 526).
May Jesus continue to grow in our hearts and families and communities! And may those around us notice it by the way we treat them with kindness and compassion.
May Our Lady, the Mother of Jesus and our Mother bless us!
(dominicansmacau.org staff)
A leading archbishop in Myanmar has hailed the upcoming beatification of the south-east Asian nation’s first native son as a sign of the Pope’ love for the Church in Myanmar, formerly Burma.
“We are delighted to know that the first Burmese Blessed will be Isidore Ngei Ko Lat. The Holy Father is close to Myanmar and this first Blessed is the sign of Pope Francis and the Holy See’s love and attention,” said Archbishop Charles Bo of Yangon.
His remarks came soon after Pope Francis on Monday authorized a decree recognizing the martyrdom of Italian priest Fr. Mario Vergara of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME ) and Isidore Ngei Ko Lat, a lay catechist, martyred in Shadaw (Myanmar) May 24, 1950.
The recognition of their martyrdom was among 12 decrees, including a miracle and 10 heroic virtues, that Pope Francis authorized. The other upcoming beatification is of 19th century Italian nun, Giovannina Franks, through whose intercession a miracle has been recognized.
Speaking to AsiaNews, Archbishop Bo described the “great joy and happiness,” of the Catholic community, caught by surprise by the long-awaited announcement. The journey began in May 2008, when the Catholic Bishops’ Conference wrote a letter to Pope Benedict XVI to “humbly ask the Pope to authorize the study of the cause.”
The beatification of Fr. Vergara and his catechist, the bishops wrote, will be a source of ” encouragement” for the whole community to live” a faith more in line ” with the Gospel and to witness to it “in a brave and heroic” way, even at the cost of dying because of hatred for the faith and giving their lives “for the Gospel.”
Archbishop Bo said the Church in Myanmar is preparing to celebrate 500 years of history and hopes for a visit by Pope Francis to the country. He said that the beatification is a first step on a long journey and “there are many others”, because they have many martyrs in Myanmar, who deserve sainthood. (From ucanews, December 11, 2013)
Source: Vatican Radio
All Catholics make their profession of faith when baptized and renew it every year on Easter. By profession, we all put our faith in God and it means a lot for the believers. Surely it means much more for the religious persons when they make their profession of religious vows; poverty, chastity, and obedience because by doing so with faith, they put their entire life in God’s hand, just to be with Him and to walk along the path He has shown. In today’s gospel of Luke, Jesus tells us that with faith, we can do far more than we could accomplish by our own strength, by our own power. Expectant faith is a free gift God gives us to overcome the obstacles and stoppages along the way of doing God’s will and it enables us to accept God’s grace and power for accomplishing whatever God wants us to do. Jesus encourages us to have this faith, even if as small as a mustard seed, it is something dynamic, active and very alive.
It is this faith that enables our five Dominican brothers to renew their religious profession in the province of our Lady of the Rosary. During the Mass of 27th Ordinary Sunday, these five brothers made their renewal of religious vows in the hand of the prior of St Dominic House in Macau, in place of the Master of the Order of Preachers. Being a part of missionary province, they additionally declared their intention to go to the missions of the Province wherever they may be assigned by the superiors. The brothers who made their renewal of religious vows are; Bro. Peter Phan Ngo Xuan Thoai O.P, Bro. Joseph Nguyen Ngoc Huy O.P, Bro. Antonio Lee O.P, Bro. Mario U Shwe O.P, and Bro. Matthew Shing Mang Htun O.P.
After the ceremony, I curiously asked each of them how they felt or how they were inspired to do their renewal of religious profession, to continue the dedicated life as a religious. Here are their answers:
“I’m happy because I believe that God, the Church and the Province are also pleased with my response.â€
“Strengthened by renewing my commitment to God and community, I believe that with God’s help and the support from the community, I can pursue my calling with hope and joy as a religious.â€
“I’m happy to make my renewal profession. I believe God’s calling to be a Dominican. I would like to follow Him forever as a Dominican brother and our Mother Mary will guide me to her Sonâ€.
“To follow Christ, especially as a religious, it’s the best adventure I have ever. I am very happy and thank God for His graces and I hope I’ll be trying to follow what I have professedâ€.
“I eventually feel much better than before, especially when I renew my religious vows. I feel it brings me closer to God and hopefully I will be a good follower of Christ in futureâ€.
After hearing their answers, I feel I am deeply inspired to renew my religious vows for life. I do believe that in religious profession, we are bound and united in a community that lives in the evangelical counsels and in the community we, brothers help one another with the strength and support to follow Christ as our Father Dominic followed.
Bro. Paul Aung Myint Win O.P
St. Dominic’s Priory celebrated simply and joyfully the arrival of a new member: Fr. Edmond Eh Kim Chew.
Fr. Edmond was previously assigned to the House of St. Joseph in Kowloon, Hong Kong. A recently ordained Dominican priest, Fr. Edmond is at present the new Moderator of St. Dominic Center of Studies, a teacher of philosophical subjects at the Faculty of Christian Studies of the University of Saint Joseph and a candidate for the doctorate in philosophy at the University of Macau.
The assignment of Fr. Edmund to our community by Fr. Javier Gonzalez, OP, our Prior Provincial, was read right after supper on September 16, 2013. At present our community is composed of thirty (30) members: twenty two (22) student brothers and eight priests.
Brother Edmond, a cordial and fraternal welcome!