Happy Easter!
Dear Brothers,
Easter brings us hope of a new beginning. May your life be full of joy and a fresh new start.
Wish you a very happy Easter.
Fr. Alejandro Salcedo
Prior
Saint Dominic’s Pripry
Br. SEBASTIAN MAKES SOLEMN PROFESSION
On March 10, 2013, Brother Sebastian Lee Skang Hoon, O. P., made his Solemn Profession within the Mass of the Fourth Sunday of Lent at our St Dominic’s Priory in Macau. Bro. Sebastian is from Korea.
The main celebrant of the Eucharist was Fr. Javier Gonzalez, O. P., Prior Provincial of the Province of Our Lady of the Rosary. Ten Dominicans and two secular priests concelebrated with Fr. Javier. The Chapel was fully packed. The faithful were members of the the Korean Community in Macau, the participants in our Sunday Masses, our Dominican Brothers and Sisters including the postulants, and friends of Bro. Sebastian and of our Priory.
Bro. Sebastian made his Solemn Profession for life before Fr. Javier, promising obedience to the Master of the Order, Fr. Bruno Cadoré, O. P. It was a joyful celebration animated by meaningful songs and prayers led by our Dominican brothers and Sisters.
The Province of the Holy Rosary rejoices! Little by little and consistently the number of brothers getting ready to be missionaries is growing. This month of March 2013, the Province rejoices also for the Solemn Profession of our Brother Paul, member of St. Albert Convent in Rosaryhill, Hong Kong; for the Ordination to the Deaconate of our brothers Philip Soreh and John Bosco, members of the House of the Most Holy Trinity in Rome, and Brother Juan Franco Pérez, O. P., member of the House of St. John Macias in Cáceres, Spain.
For so many blessings – and more to come -, thanks be to God!
SOLEMN PROFESSION OF Br. SEBASTIANO LEE. O.P
The Prior Provincial Rev. Fr. Javier González Izquierdo OP and the brethren of the Dominican Province of Our Lady of the Rosary request the honor of your presence to share with us this joyous occasion when our brother Sebastiano Lee Sanghoon OP will make his solemn profession as a friar preacher.
The profession will be held during the conventual Mass at Saint Dominic’s Priory, 39-41 Avenida Sidonio de Pais, Macau
on 10 March, 2013 Sunday at 11:00 in the morning.
A fraternal agape will follow after the liturgy
WELCOME TO THE CHINESE NEW YEAR OF THE SNAKE
On February 9, 2013, St. Dominic’s Priory said ‘Good bye’ to the old Year of the Dragon with a dinner at home tastefully cooked by our brothers. We had then two special guests and friends of the community: Frs. Peter Stilwell, Rector of the University of St. Joseph and Joao Eleuterio, Dean of the Faculty of Christian Studies of the same university. After the sumptuous dinner, our student brothers went to the city to enjoy the colorfully lighted city of Macau, especially the Casino districts. (In case you do not know, there are at present forty four casinos in Macau)
The Chinese New Year, the Year of the Snake, was welcomed by the Priory with a Solemn Mass and a lunch of tasteful Chinese food. As the first day of the New Year (January 1, 2013) we celebrated the Feast of the Motherhood of Mary, the first day of the Chinese New year (this year February 10, 2013) we commemorated the Feast of Our Lady of China. After communion, a lovely touch: The giving of simple gifts (in red or yellow envelopes, of course!) to our faithful brothers and sisters who attend regularly our Sunday Mass. What was the simple gift? A five-mystery Rosary made by our brothers in China!
After the celebration of the Eucharist, all the members of the community, that is, thirty one (31) shared a good lunch with the usual kinds of Chinese dishes in a Macau restaurant. After the dessert, Fr. Prior Alex distributed the traditional red or yellow envelopes – this time with some money, as custom demands – to each member of the community. By the way, we were thirty, and a few days ago became thirty one: Brother Antoninus from China joined our community to pursue a master’s degree at the Catholic University of St. Joseph. Most welcomed, Brother!
The Chinese families celebrate the New Lunar Year with great solemnity, exemplary harmony and serene joy – and at times with some accompanying fire crackers to keep the bad spirits away. On February 10, 2013, the Year of the Snake began. The Chinese Horoscope assigns the twelve Zodiac sings of the year to different months. The first month is given to the rat, and the last to the pig. The sixth month is the Month of the Snake. The snake in this case is a symbol of wealth, progress, courage and of finding solution to difficult problems. We Christians living in this part of the world add a deeply religious meaning: the year of Our Lady as Our Lady of China. May the Year of the Snake, the Year of Our Lady be for all a hopeful and happy year!
SOLEMN CELEBRATION OF ST. THOMAS’ FEAST
On January 28, 2013, the St. Dominic Center of Studies, Macau, celebrated the Feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas at St. Paul’s School. The morning celebration consisted of three consecutive parts: St. Thomas Lecture, Holy Eucharist and fraternal agape. About ninety people graced the celebration, including Dominican student brothers and priests of the Province of Our Lady of the Rosary, postulants and sisters of the Dominican Missionaries of the Rosary, professors and teachers from the University of Saint Joseph and St. Paul’s School, and religious men and women of different religious congregations.
The solemn academic program of the second St. Thomas Lecture began with a prayer-song followed by the Invocation delivered by Brother Mariano Maung, OP, coordinator of the students. Fr. Fausto Gomez, OP, Regent of Studies, delivered the Opening Address which focused on the continuing importance and relevance of St. Thomas Aquinas today. Fr. Jose Luis de Miguel, OP, Moderator of the St. Dominic Center of Studies pronounced the formal lecture on “The New Evangelization: Recent Developments and Challenges.†Fr. Jose Luis divided his excellent lecture in three parts: the teachings of the Church on evangelization and new evangelization; the new evangelization in the 2012 Synod of Bishops, and some serious challenges for the future. The speaker made pertinent references to the meeting of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences in Ho-chi-min, Vietnam in December 2012. Christ, the speaker stressed, continues to be the evangelizer and calls us today to be new evangelizers attuned to the world in which we live. An interesting open forum closed the event.
The Holy Mass was presided by the Most Rev Bishop of Macau Joseph Lai, DD, and concelebrated by about twenty priests. The Bishop underlined in his homily the significance of St. Thomas, the great teacher of truth, for the Church and as Patron of Catholic Schools. He pointed out the importance of inculturating the Christian faith in the cultures of Asia, in particular the Chinese cultures for we live in Macau, which is part of China. After communion, Fr. Alejandro Salcedo, OP, Principal of St. Paul’s School and Prior of St. Dominic’s Priory expressed the gratitude of the Dominicans of Macao and Hong Kong to Bishop Lai and all those who graciously accompanied us in this celebration of our Brother Thomas Aquinas.
After the celebration of the Eucharist, a simple agape followed. There was plenty of food and drinks and some bottles of excellent Portuguese wine. The participants were happy for having been invited and grateful for the singular academic and liturgical celebration they witnessed. The Dominican student brothers and the postulants of the Dominican Sisters animated the whole celebration with appropriate songs and prayers. Fr. Jarvis Sy, OP, acted as Master of Ceremonies.
In this Year of faith, may St. Thomas, the Angelic Doctor aid us to deepen our faith and practice it in love. (FG)
LAR DE IDOSOS DA OBRA DAS MÃES
  After several months breaking the ice and building friendly relationships with the aged at the Nursing Home for the Mothers, our Brothers have now felt good to spare their Saturday afternoons visiting them and offering them some spiritual comforts. As of today, the weekly Mass celebrated by Fr. Lancelot will be even uplifted with some music and, afterwards, many more.
This Nursing Home for the Mothers offers services to approximately fifty residents, of whom the youngest is already over seventy years old and the eldest far exceeds a century. Most of them are already frail. About one-fifth of them are Catholics, who, though mainly speak Cantonese daily, say Mass in Portuguese. Different human languages seem to be a barrier that may not allow  the brothers communication with them.
Working with senior citizens, especially with those not sharing the same cultural background and language with them, is definitely a both challenging and rewarding experience. The brothers know that it requires them being generous, patient and, more importantly, “always listening, always understanding!†Yet, what could make the missionaries happier than the happiness of those who receive them and regard their presence as “glad tidings� Indeed, just with a piece of out-of-tune music already the brothers made them stand up and dance with their wheelchair; listening to their nostalgic memories, or simply sitting with them for a while in silence already the brothers brought some comfort or feeling released to them. “I have been living here for seventeen years,†gratefully said Mary Johnson – a 99-year-old lady who is simply known as “Lulu,†“but no one comes visit me.†Such moving words may have touched the brothers! More thrilling for them is Mimi – a 98-year-old Portuguese lady whose real name is Maria – who always looks forwards to seeing the brothers coming back and, of course, sadly says goodbye when they have to go home.
Language is any longer a barrier in our communication if we have a heart for each other. It is the language of the human heart rather than human language itself that communicates and connects common human concerns and unites human beings. If we realize that what we are given by God today is to give back those who have given back to God in their due time, our baptism into one body of Christ begins to take in us. If we are able to see the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among those lonely aged, it is the time when the Good News of our Lord becomes fulfilled. May this be true in our hearing today (cf. Luke 4:14-21)! Amen.
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