 As in previous years, the Diocese of Macau celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima on May 13 with a High Mass and a Procession through the streets of Macau: From the Cathedral to the Church of Nossa Senhora da Penha, or Our Lady of Penha. Our Bishop Jose Lai, DD, led us in the concelebrated Mass in the Macau Cathedral and in the Procession.
 Our Priory of St. Dominic participated in both celebrations. The great majority of our priests and brothers were significantly present. A good multitude of people attended the Mass and the Procession (the most popular in Macau), particularly the hundreds of members of the Portuguese community in Macau, which was a Portuguese colony until 1999.
 The Procession ended in front of the Church in the Penha Hill with the Consecration to Our Lady and the Bishop’s Blessing of the City of Macau with the Blessed Sacrament. It was a beautiful day dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima. May she continue blessing the citizens of Macau and in particular its thousands of Catholics, so that we all may witness in our lives Christ’s message of respect, freedom, kindness and compassion.
 Every year at this time, on the “Good Shepherd´s Sunday†(fourth Sunday of Easter), the Church celebrates the “Day of the Consecrated Lifeâ€, when women and men religious, renew their promises (sometimes of long ago…) and ask the Lord to help them be faithful to Him and to their fellow men and women until the very end of their lives. They also beg the “Good Shepherd†to increase their diminishing numbers, so that they can reach farther and deeper in their task of  the construction of his Kingdom.
 In Macau, this ceremony is usually marked by great solemnity, for not only it offers the Religious the opportunity to gather together in communion, but also the joy of honoring those of their “mature†members who are celebrating this year their Silver Jubilee, or the Golden Anniversary of their profession, or ordination. All this, within the frame and the joy of a Solemn Mass, presided by the Bishop himself, with the assistance of numerous faithful Catholics, animated and led in the chant by a very professional outstanding choir.
 
  This year, the Dominican Family of Macau, all of us present for the occasion, had an extra motive for joy: to the surprise of many, for he still looks very young and full of enthusiasm, fr Fausto Gómez, OP, was among those Golden Jubilarians (the only man among six women!), so ostensibly thanked and acclaimed by the assembly present at the Eucharist. He will soon celebrate the 50 years of his Ordination to the Priesthood. Those of us who know him closely, can attest that those have been 50 very laborious and fruitful years of fidelity to the Lord and of happy and unceasing dedication to teaching and preaching his Word, and of  service to His children.
Congratulations, Brother Fausto, and “ad multos annosâ€!
Dominican Community. Macau.
NEW YEAR 2012 – We began the New Year half an hour before midnight of December 2011 and January 2012. Before the Blessed Sacrament, all the Members of St. Dominic’s Priory said Good-Bye†to 2011 with their gratitude to God, to one another and to so many wonderful people who accompanied us on the journey of life. Forty seconds before twelve, we ate the traditional grapes and wish one another a Happy New Year. May it be so for us and for all!
On January 14, Fr. Jose Luis de Miguel, OP, arrived in our Priory. Fr. Jose Luis comes after finishing his apostolate in Chile, where he worked for the Kingdom for about twenty seven years. He will be the new Moderator of Studies and also the Assistant Master of Students. A most cordial and fraternal welcome!
CHINESE NEW YEAR – On January 22 in the evening we celebrated the coming of the Chinese New Year with a sumptuous dinner. We had a short program in which all the members of the community and the support staff received from the Prior Fr. Alex the traditional “laisi(red envelope)â€. The Chinese New year, the Lunar New Year, represent the most significant holidays for all the Chinese throughout the world. Known as “the Spring Festival,†it is above all a family celebration. This year of 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, and therefore, a prosperous, successful and happy year. May it be so for all of us working with and among our Chinese brothers and sisters!
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, PAV – On February 11, 2012, Fr. Fausto Gomez, OP went to Rome for the Annual Conference and General Assembly of the Pontifical Academy for Life (PAV), of which he is a member, since 2000. The topic of the Conference was: “Management of Infertility Today.†After PAV Assembly, Fr. Fausto stayed for a few days at our community in Via Condotti and was able to see that our four students pursuing postgraduate studies – three at the Angelicum and one at the Sancta Croce University – are fine and doing very well in their studies. They are Brothers Edmund, Philip and John Bosco, and Fr. Krzysztof Wojciech.
ST PAUL SCHOOL “CLASSROOM 2012 PROJECT†– The Partnership Signature Ceremony for the innovating “Saint Paul School Classroom 2012 Project†was held at the school hall on 28 March, 2012 It was witnessed by Most Reverend Don Jose Lai (Bishop of Macau), Fr. Javier Gonzalez (Provincial of Our Lady of the Rosary Province) and Mr. William Wai (Adviser of Office of the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of Macau). The Director of the Education Department, the Principal of Saint Paul School, representatives from Macau University of Science and Technology, Microsoft, DyKnow, Mediasite, Automated, H3C, Lenovo and Hp compromised in partnership for the further development and implementation of the “Classroom 2012 Projectâ€. Fr. Alejandro Salcedo, OP, Principal of the School of Saint Paul and the moving spirit behind the project presented the vision of the “Classroom 2012 projectâ€. He said that the vision was born after realizing that the current traditional approach of the School to learning and teaching was not addressing fully the technological needs of our 21st Century students and ICT was not improving the quality of education of our students. It was visualized, he added, on the requirement to review our curriculum and pedagogical practices to accommodate new learning and teaching styles aiming to develop systems and structures that excite, engage and motivate our students and increase parental involvement. With the implementation of the project the School has passed from the traditional single-source paper textbooks and moved towards electronic based textbooks so that students will be able to reference information from multiple sources. Likewise, the a 1:1 table-pc to student ratio enable students to use their own table-pc at home and at school in a technology-rich learning environment. Most Reverend Bishop Jose, Lai, the Director of the Macau Education Department Ms. Leong Lai and the representative from Microsoft gave an opening speech each praising and thanking Saint Paul School for the innovative, challenging and unique project in Asia and Europe. After the ceremony all guests were invited to the classrooms where they could eyewitness the project in action.
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HOLY WEEK AND EASTER – The Priory celebrated the Triduum of Holy Week and Easter (April 5-8) with great solemnity and devotion. We were accompanied at our Masses and other liturgical services by a good number of faithful who filled our chapel. After the Easter Vigil celebration, the faithful attending the Mass were invited to partake of our simple and plentiful table. For its part, the University of Saint Joseph had its Easter Mass on Easter Tuesday with the Bishop of Macau, Bishop Jose Lai as main celebrant and our students as the choir.
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USJ CELEBRATES ITS PATRON’S FEAST – The Catholic University of Saint Joseph (USJ) of Macau celebrated the Feast of its Patron Saint, St. Joseph on March 16, 2012. The simple celebration centered on the Concelebrated Mass held at the University’s Speakers Hall at noon. The Eucharist was presided by His Excellency the Most Reverend José Lai, Bishop of Macau. It was concelebrated by seven priests-religious from the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) and the Order of Preachers (OP). About one hundred people, including professors, students and the administrative staff attended the Mass. The students of the USJ School of Christian Studies animated the celebration with appropriate songs and prayers.
 RELIGIOUS MEN AND WOMEN IN MACAU – On April 13, 2012, the religious men and women working in Macau had a meaningful Easter Celebration at the St. Joseph Seminary Hall. The evening program included: The Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament; a short talk, and a fraternal agape. As the previous one for Christmas, the celebration was prayerful, serene and joyful. Fr. Jose RuÃz Márquez, CFM, talked briefly on The Birth of Christ: The Acts of the Apostles Yesterday and Today. All the religious congregations present contributed food and drinks to the common table. Our Priory was represented by some priests and student brothers.
OUR VISITORS – Fr. Provincial stayed with us from January 4 to January 23, while he taught Canon Law at the University of Saint Joseph. Fr. Jerome from the community of Binondo, Manila, was with us for a few days in January. Fr. Augusto Antolinez, OP, from the Community in Avila, was also with us a few days in Jan. Luciano Lopez, a well-known Spanish lawyer visited us on January 25 and stayed with us for some weeks. He was a Dominican and loves the Dominican life. Fr. Felicisimo Martinez, OP, lived with us over one month (March-April), while teaching The Trinity and Christology at the University of Saint Joseph. Fr. Secundino Vicente visits us every month to be available for spiritual direction for our students. We are also happy to mention that brothers from the two Dominican communities in Hong Kong and the communities in China visit us from time to time. We were happy receiving some of the brothers who participated in the meetings of the Commission on Formation (April 16-17, 2012) and of the Extraordinary Council of the Province (April 18-19, 2012). Both important meetings were held at our Convent of Saint Albert in Rosaryhill, Hong Kong. (FGB)
(For these and other news and developments you may wish to visit our web page:Â www.dominicansmacau.org )
There may be no other country in the world that over the past half century has seen growth as sustained as that of South Korea, including conversions to Christ. From 1960 to 2010, the number of inhabitants went from 23 to 48 million; per capita income from 1,300 to 19,500 dollars; Christians from 2 to 30 percent, of which about 10-11 percent, 5.5 million, are Catholic; there were 250 Korean priests, today there are 5,000. I first went to South Korea in 1986 with Fr. Pino Cazzaniga, a missionary of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions in Japan, who speaks Korean.
Even back then it was a Church with many conversions, and it is still so today. Every parish has from 200 to 400 baptisms of converts from Buddhism each year. Most of the converts are city dwellers. Each year there are 130-150 new priests, one for every 1,110 baptized. In 2008, the proportion of Catholics exceeded 10 percent of South Koreans, and grows by about 3 percent each year. In 2009, the number of baptized reached 157,000, and 149 priests were ordained, 21 more than in 2008. More than two thirds of the priests are under the age of 40.
“Over the past ten years, the Catholic Church in Korea has gone from three to five million faithful; in Seoul we are 14 percent,†Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, archbishop of Seoul, has said in an interview. The Catholic Church in South Korea is the one that is growing most vigorously in Asia.
Full Story: South Korea, the Asian Tiger of the Church [Note: the text of this article appears after a lengthy preamble by Sandro Magister. Please scroll down through the article to reach it.]
Source: Chiesa Espresso/La Repubblica
Article taken from ucanews.com – http://www.ucanews.com
URL to article: http://www.ucanews.com/2012/04/19/explosive-growth-in-s-korean-catholics-may-be-worlds-fastest/
Preface. On February 29, 2012, representatives of the different religious congregations and institutes met at the SOLT Fathers Residence. Our representatives were Frs. Dionisio Cabezón and José Luis de Miguel. Considering that it is important for us all to know what is going on in our different religious communities and in the diocese, and how we religious men – and women – can help each other and the pastoral project of the Macau Diocese, we present hereafter the minutes of said meeting.
Minutes
Date: February 29, 2012
Time: 15:10
Venue: SOLT Fathers Residence
Present: Fr. Peter Pong Ping Fai SDB, Fr. James Liebner SVD, Fr. Jojo Ancheril CMF, Fr. Matthias Christian SVD, Fr. John Ledesma SDB, Fr. Jose Luis de Miguel Fernandez OP, Fr. Dionisio Cabezon Garcia OP, Fr. Artemio Balana Jr. SOLT, Fr. Franz Gassner SVD, Fr. Martin Daniel CB, Fr. Pedro Balde Jr. SOLT, Fr. Antonio Kim BMC and Fr. Victor Aguilar MCCJ.
1- The meeting started with a Lenten Season opening prayer led by Fr. Victor.
2- The Minutes of the last meeting on January 25, 2012 were read and approved.
It was pointed out that there is a correction of the previous minutes saying that “At present there are ten (instead of nine) Male Religious Congregations in Macauâ€. It is to be added to the list of the previous minutes the “Clerical Congregation of the Blessed Korean Martyrs†BMC.
3- The Agenda for the meeting was presented and approved.
*Election of the directing committee of the Religious Men in Macau
*Organization and Plan for the year 2012
*AOB
4- Election of the directing committee (Association) of the Religious Men in Macau
Fr. Victor explained to the participants the proposal of the previous meeting that is to formally elect a directing committee or Association of the Male Religious in Macau. This Association will allow us to collaborate among ourselves and also to support and collaborate with the Bishop of Macau, with the secular clergy and with the Women Religious in Macau.
Fr. Peter Pong asked about the opinion of the bishop of Macau regarding this proposal of the Association of the Male Religious in Macau. Fr. Pong also informed the participants that he and Fr. Manuel Machado were elected and are members of the “Presbyteral Consultative Council of the Diocese of Macau†representing the Religious.
Different opinions in favor of the importance of establishing this organization were expressed by the participants and it was proposed that the directing committee is composed by Fr. Peter Pong (president), Fr. Alberto Rossa (vice-president) and Fr. Victor Aguilar (secretary).
All the participants unanimously agreed on this leadership.
5- Organization and Plan for the year 2012
It was proposed that the elected directing committee gathers and make a draft of the guidelines for the Association (i.e. bylaws) taking into account the Vision, Mission, Membership, Plan, Activities, etc.
Some aspects to be considered in these guidelines are the following:
* To do some activities together (during the year) with the Women Religious Association in Macau.
* Besides the monthly meetings also other kind of activities (i.e. outings, picnic, etc.) and prayers activities are to be conducted.
* To know more ourselves, our congregations; to create a family spirit and to unite ourselves.
* To discuss together challenges, difficulties and also developments and plans.
* To look for common concerns and real cooperation and collaboration.
* Feast days of each Congregation are to be celebrated and included in the plan and also mutual invitation could help us to know more each other.
* To celebrate together the World Day for Migrants and Refugees.
* For the monthly meetings, we usually visit different communities; therefore the hosting community can share about themselves and their service and ministry.
* To consider the possibility of an inculturation course for those newly arrived in Macau.
* To help the Diocese of Macau and the bishop to make a Diocesan Pastoral Plan.
6- Any Other Business
Fr. Jojo was appointed by the bishop to be the Administrator of St. Joseph Seminary. He is planning to organize a Novena in preparation for the Feast of St. Joseph (March 19, 2012). He is inviting all of us to participate and collaborate during the Novena with the Eucharistic celebration. He will prepare a final schedule for the masses during the Novena and will request our support and collaboration. We thank the SOLT Fathers for their kind hospitality of today’s meeting.
7- Next meeting
Our next meeting is scheduled for March 28, 2012 in the Comboni Missionaries (MCCJ) Residence.         Following the recommendations of the participants the schedule of the monthly meeting is for the last Wednesday of every month.
8- The meeting adjourned at 16:15.
Fr. Vic Aguilar, MCCJ
Postface. On March 10, 2012, the Bishop of Macau, His Excellency Most Rev. Joseph Lai, DD called a meeting, held at the Cathedral, of different representatives from the Parishes, Religious Men and Women and Lay Movements. The purpose of the meeting was to present and discuss the new Pastoral Project of the Diocese and the renovation of the Catholic Center, which shall house the different centers and activities of the Diocese. Certainly, something is moving! This is good also for us Dominicans in Macau, for we shall have a golden opportunity to participate and contribute towards the implementation of pastoral programs directed to a renewed evangelization in Macau. The representative of our community to this meeting was Fr. Fausto Gómez, OP.
Nearly 80 people, including eight priests, about fourteen Dominican brothers, and a good number of friends and alumni of the late Fr. Lionel Xavier, OP –  who passed away on October 19, 2011 – attended the Holy Mass in is honor and the liturgical ritual for the reposition of his ashes.  The celebration was held at the chapel of St. Dominic’s Priory, Macau.
The Eucharistic celebration began at 11:00 am, January 15, 2012. The concelebrated Mass was presided by Fr. Javier Gonzalez, OP, Prior Provincial of the Province of Our Lady of the Rosary. It was the Second Sunday in Ordinary time and the readings of the Liturgy of the Word were about vocation. In his homily, Fr. Provincial talked about the calling of the prophet Samuel, about John the Baptist who pointed to Jesus as the Lamb of God, and finally about how the first disciples were called. Before he ended his homily, Fr. Javier reflected on the life of Fr. Lionel who generously replied to God’s calling like Samuel and followed the path of Jesus: practicing what he believed, encouraging the youth, and promoting the religious vocation. He added: “We owe him so much.†Fr. Lionel faithfully offered his life in the Dominican Order, serving the Province in different ministries:  for many years he served in the Dominicans’ Rosaryhill School (Hong Kong) as an administrator, as its Director, also as Prior of St. Albert’s Priory. When the mission in Macau was reopened, he enthusiastically helped and served as a superior of the Dominican house and as a Master of the Dominican students, and he was in charge of the Department of Religion of the diocesan school of Saint Paul administered by Dominicans. After the homily, Fr. Alex, the Prior of St. Dominic’s, gave thanks to all present, in particular to the people who came from Hong Kong.
Right after the celebration of the Eucharist, the urn with the ashes of Fr. Lionel was blessed and then placed in a special niche located at the back (right side) of the chapel of St. Dominic’s Priory. Before the reposition of the remains of Fr. Lionel in the niche, all those attending people gave Fr. Lionel Xavier, OP, who was a member of our St. Dominic’s Priory when he passed away, their last sign of respect and homage in accordance with the Chinese tradition.  Finally, the small columbarium of ten niches, inaugurated with the ashes of Fr. Lionel, was closed. On the dark glass covering it we read LOVE NEVER DIES!
Paul Aung Myint Win, OP
