On April 21, 2013 the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday, the Diocese of Macau honored priests and religious men and women who celebrate their respective anniversary: the Diamond, Golden or Silver Jubilee. The highlight of this especial celebration was the Solemn Mass presided by the Bishop of the Diocese, the Most Rev. Joseph Lai, DD, and concelebrated by thirty secular and religious priests. The Rite of Recognition and Gratitude, held after Communion, was led by the officers of the Serra Club of Macau that sponsored and organized the whole celebration. After the Holy Mass, the participants were invited to a simple and joyful agape.
This year the number of Jubilarians was sixteen: four priests Golden Jubilarians and twelve religious women – three Diamond, five Golden and four Silver Jubilarians. The priests as well as religious sisters came from different countries to work for the Kingdom of God in Macau. One of four priests is our own Fr. Jose Luis de Miguel, OP.
In his homily Bishop Lai underlined the significance of the Good Shepherd Sunday, which is the Vocation Sunday in the whole Church. He invited all the faithful that filled the Cathedral of Macau to pray for vocations to the priesthood and the religious life. He also remembered the victims of the recent earthquake in the Sichuan Province, China, of the Boston Marathon Bombings and the Fertilizer Plant explosion in West, Texas.
During the Rite of Recognition of and Gratitude to the honorees, the jubilarians received some tokens, including a cross and a diploma. The best and most appreciated gift was the enthusiastic and grateful applause of all the faithful, the laity, religious men and women and our Dominican students.
The Serra Club of Macau took care of all the details of the very successful and joyful celebration. The Serra Club is an association of Catholic lay men and women dedicated to foster and promote vocations to the priesthood, the religious life and to the lay ministry. There are about 670 Serra Clubs throughout the world. Its name refers to Blessed JunÃpero Serra, the great Franciscan missionary.
Our warmest and fraternal congratulations to all the jubilarians, our brothers and sisters in Christ! Our sincere gratitude to the Diocese of Macau and to the Serra Club!
Fr. José Luis, our dear Golden Jubilarian was ordained in Valladolid, Spain on June 30, 1963. He joined our Priory in January, 2012. He is the Moderator of our Center of Institutional Studies and the Assistant Master of Students. Our Macau Dominican community will celebrate Fr. Jose Luis’ momentous event on May 11, 2013 with a Solemn Mass in our Priory and a formal dinner in a Macau restaurant. By the way the classmates – all golden jubilarians – of Fr. Jose Luis are eleven Dominicans, including our dear Fr. Lucio Gutierrez, OP. who lived in our community for two years and is now confined at the St. Martin de Porres Hospital in Manila.