Pray for Portugal

A couple looks at a billboard calling for a 'no vote' on an abortion referendum, in Fatima Catholic shrine in central Portugal February 5, 2007. This month, Catholic Portugal may decide to break ranks with a small group of countries including Ireland and Poland and legalise abortions, in a referendum which some cast as a deeper test of its readiness for progress. 'Por Vontade de Deus' means 'By God's Will' REUTERS/Jose Manuel Ribeiro (PORTUGAL)

In our concern with the happenings in England, the US and in other parts of the world, let us not forget Portugal which first evangelized this country.

Let's pray to Our Lady of Fatima, who choose to bless Portugal and consecrate it to herself, that through her intercession, this vote, which would legalize abortion, will fail and many innocent unborn lives will be saved.

Portugal abortion vote to test modernity

By Axel Bugge Sun Feb 4, 6:52 PM ET

LISBON (Reuters) - This month, Catholic Portugal may decide to break ranks with a small group of countries including Ireland and Poland and legalize abortions, in a referendum which some cast as a deeper test of its readiness for progress.

On the face of it, the February 11 vote could resolve the estimated 23,000 abortions that take place in secret each year -- which Socialist Prime Minister Jose Socrates has called "Portugal's most shameful wound."

An anti-abortion activist, wrapped in a Spanish national flag and wearing a sticker reading 'I'm happy I was born', participates in a march through downtown Lisbon, Sunday, Jan. 28 2007, ahead of the national referendum on whether to legalize abortion scheduled for Feb. 11. Portugal has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe. Abortions are illegal unless a woman has been raped, her health is in danger or the fetus is malformed and they can only be performed until the 12th week of pregnancy. The referendum will ask if abortion should be allowed for all women until the 10th week of pregnancy. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Women walk by a campaign billboard in downtown Lisbon Monday, Feb. 5, 2007, ahead of the national referendum on whether to legalize abortion scheduled for Feb. 11. Portugal has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe and the referendum will ask if abortion should be allowed for all women until the 10th week of pregnancy. The billboard reads 'you're still in time to save many lives. vote no thanks'. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

But -- even though campaigners on both sides say the issue goes beyond a woman's right to choose -- almost half the Portuguese may ignore the referendum. That would repeat an experience from 1998 when only 32 percent voted and the outcome ruled invalid.

The battle lines are clear: Portugal's Catholic church -- whose members make up 90 percent of the population -- argues that lifting the ban could open the way to moral decay in what is one of Europe's most traditional countries.

On the 'yes' side, liberals hope to stop women facing prison sentences if they abort, often in clandestine, back-street operations; they also want to usher in more open attitudes in a country where conservatism remains the overwhelming norm.

People walk underneath campaign billboards in downtown Lisbon Monday, Feb. 5 2007, ahead of the national referendum on whether to legalize abortion scheduled for Feb. 11. Portugal has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe and the referendum will ask if abortion should be allowed for all women until the 10th week of pregnancy. Foreground billboard reads '...punished with up to 3 years in jail' and 'vote yes to change the law'. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

"A 'yes' vote will not just be a victory for women's rights, but will also show the possibility of victory against conservatism," said Alda Sousa, a member of the national executive of the Left Bloc of parties in parliament.

If approved, abortions will be allowed in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy.

The Catholic Church warns that allowing abortions could open a slippery slope on other issues such as gay marriages.

"We are a country of great customs but the pressure on these big questions is beginning to be felt," said Cardinal Jose Policarpo, the head of the Catholic Church in Portugal.

Polls show the number in favor of lifting the abortion ban outnumber those against, but more than 40 percent are either undecided or will not vote. If less than 50 percent of the electorate takes part the result is invalid.

Thousands of pro-life activists take part on a march in Lisbon, 28 January 2007. Official campaigning began in Portugal for a referendum on whether to relax the nation's abortion law, one of Europe's most restrictive, with polls indicating support for liberalisation is slipping.(AFP/File/Francisco Leong)

A sticker reading 'Fragile, vote no' is seen on a pole in downtown Lisbon Thursday, Feb. 1 2007, ahead of the national referendum on whether to legalize abortion schedulled for Feb. 11. Portugal has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe. Abortions are illegal unless a woman has been raped, her health is in danger or the fetus is malformed and they can only be performed until the 12th week of pregnancy. The referendum will ask if abortion should be allowed for all women until the 10th week of pregnancy. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

BIG SHIFTS TAKE TIME

Since the 1998 vote, Portugal became one of the first countries to join the euro and had a booming economy for a few years followed by a bust that has undermined the country's prospects, not least its ability to compete in an increasingly globalized world.

A massive budget deficit prompted the economic troubles and Socrates is introducing tough economic reforms to resolve it, but like deep social changes, big shifts take time.

Slow economic development is holding back social change, says Marina Costa Lobo, a political scientist at Lisbon's Social Sciences Institute. The country of 10 million people is the poorest in western Europe, with per capita income of about 15,000 euros ($19,530).

"Generally, there is a strong relationship between economic development and more modern attitudes," she said. "Lagging development is the reason Portugal hasn't adopted new attitudes. Even the left here is conservative."

A woman walks past an abortion pamphlet in Lisbon February 6, 2007. Portugal will go to the polls in a referendum to decriminalise abortion in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy on February 11. The pamphlet reads, 'The abortion is not solved in the court. The abortion is not solved in the prison. Vote Yes'. REUTERS/Nacho Doce (PORTUGAL)

That argument is borne out by the fact the abortion vote in 1998 showed the richer, urban centers like Lisbon and Setubal in favor while poorer, northern rural areas were against.

In this country -- where the formal 'voce' version of 'you' remains the most widely used -- conservatism is also reinforced by one of Europe's fastest-aging populations.

Portugal's old-age dependency ratio, or the proportion of retired people relative to workers, is now at 24.9 percent, above the European average of 24.5 percent. But it will rocket to 58.1 percent by 2050.

Portuguese anti-abortion supporter Filipa Perestrelo looks at an anti-abortion billboard in Lisbon in this January 30, 2007 file photo. In February 2007, Catholic Portugal may decide to break ranks with a small group of countries including Ireland and Poland and legalise abortions, in a referendum which some cast as a deeper test of its readiness for progress. To match feature PORTUGAL-ABORTION/ REUTERS/Marcos Borga/Files (PORTUGAL)

A man carries his son next to a banner during a march against abortion in Lisbon January 28, 2007. The banner reads 'Abortion on request, no thanks'. REUTERS/Nacho Doce (PORTUGAL)

A Eurobarometer survey of 25 countries last year measuring 'socio-cultural' values showed Portugal was the seventh most traditional in Europe. That aligned it with the poorer, new eastern European EU members.

For modern-minded Portuguese that rating may be especially galling when considering Portugal's historic rival Spain has jumped into the ranking of Europe's third most liberal country as its economy boomed over the past decade.

"Spain is what Portugal could have been if it had developed," said Costa Lobo.

SPANISH EXAMPLE

Spain has allowed abortions since 1987 and its first gay marriages took place in July 2005. In Portugal, only 29 percent agree gay marriage should be allowed, against an average of 44 percent in the EuropeanUnion Eurobarometer showed.

Other Portuguese say the country's lagging development is because of the years it spent under dictator Antonio Salazar. Salazar's 1933-74 regime controlled Portugal's economic, social and cultural life, helped by a repressive secret police force.

An anti-abortion woman gestures next to a poster of a foetus in Lisbon February 6, 2007. The placard reads 'O protagonista do Referedum' (Referendum's main character). Portugal will go to the polls in a referendum to decriminalise abortion in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy on February 11. REUTERS/Nacho Doce (PORTUGAL)

The Catholic Church was closely aligned with Salazar.

"Don't forget that Portugal was very closed for many, many years, with complete political control," said Ines Carvalho, a 35-year-old divorcee who intends to vote in favor of lifting the ban.

That leaves the vote too close to call, and its outcome may anyway be invalid if too few turn out. "If that happens, it shows that Portuguese society is just not prepared for this change," said Carvalho. Tue Feb 6, 2:42 PM ET

Cardinal urges Portugal to reject abortion in poll

Portugal's top cleric Cardinal Jose da Cruz Policarpo, seen here in 2005, urged followers to reject abortion as the predominantly Catholic country decides in a weekend referendum whether to liberalise the country's strict anti-abortion stance.(AFP/File/Francisco Leong)

LISBON (AFP) - Portugal's top cleric urged followers to reject abortion as the predominantly Catholic country decides in a weekend referendum whether to liberalise the country's strict anti-abortion stance.

Catholics must take into account the sanctity of life when casting their votes, Cardinal Jose da Cruz Policarpo said.

Sunday's referendum will ask voters if they agree with the legalization of abortion until the 10th week of pregnancy.

The conscience of Christians regarding abortion "must be illuminated not only by natural light but also by the word of God and the teachings of the Church," the cardinal, who is Partriarch of Lisbon, wrote in a text published on the Church's website.

Predominantly Roman Catholic Portugal has one of the most restrictive laws against abortion in Europe.

The practice is currently allowed only until the 12th week of pregnancy in cases of rape, a malformed foetus or if the woman's life is in danger.

The influential Church has vocally opposed any change to the law during the referendum campaign, with bishops and priests frequently speaking out from the pulpit against liberalisation.

Two Church-run daycare centres in Setubal, a port city some 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Lisbon, handed out copies of a letter purportedly from an aborted foetus to its mother which angered some parents and sparked controversy.

"Mom how were you able to kill me? How were you able to allow me to be cut up in pieces and thrown into a bucket?" asks the letter which was reprinted in several newspapers and Internet sites.

In a referendum held in 1998 voters upheld the existing abortion law by 51 percent to 49 percent, but the result was declared void as nearly seven out of 10 voters stayed away.

Bringing up a child: Atheist or Believer

I was reading the blog of a Jesuit priest in Malaysia, the Rev. Fr. Christopher Wee, SJ who posted this (emphases mine):

I remembered my mother telling me that she did not have my two sisters baptised because in traditional Chinese custom when the woman is married to the man, she has to follow him. Her reason was that they might have to abandon their Faith if they were to marry non-Christians. My mother’s assumption was not baseless as many Catholic wives, and husbands as well, have stopped going to church after marrying a non-Catholic spouse.

I wonder if I would do what my mother did if I were married. Should I baptised my child or should I allow her to make her own choice when she is of age? A former student surprised me when she got her baby baptised within a month with the consent of her non-Christian husband. She said it was the conviction of her Faith and what they had agreed upon before marriage. (Andrew: This is part of the Rite of Marriage. Both parties consent that children be brought up in the Faith. Some take this oath seriously.)

I guess I would have done the same, as what Mary and Joseph did following the Jewish custom of presenting the newly born to God. In wanting the best for my child, it has to come from the conviction of my belief in the God I believed in that I am doing the right thing. If I am not convinced of my own Faith, of God’s goodness and love, I guess I would hesitate to baptise my child. Mary and Joseph were convinced of the God they believed in that they obeyed the Law to have Jesus presented in the temple.

Here's what I responded in the comments.

Dear Father,

Thank you for your post and for blogging. Duc in altum, put out into the deep, says the Lord Jesus Christ. Blogging is the means to put out into the deep of cyberspace =)

Before I begin, I would like to say how much I admire St. Ignatius as well as the other Companions, Blessed Peter Faber and St. Francis Xavier, whose anniversaries we celebrated last year.

In response to your post, I've often heard the argument that parents should wait until the child is grown up and then let it choose which faith it wants to practice, let it make its own free decision, of its own volition and free will. That seems to be the common reasoning in our modern world where one’s personal choice reigns supreme and absolute, even to the point of terminating the life of the unborn or one’s own life.

Several commenters have already laid forth the Catholic Church’s biblical reasoning for its judicial requirement that children born to a Catholic parent be baptized as soon as possible, so I will not delve into it. The importance and necessity of Baptism is is a clear teaching of the Church’s infallible ordinary Magisterium and is amply testified to in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition and in the writings of numerous Popes, including His Holiness Benedict XVI, gloriously reigning. I’m also not going to touch on the Catholic position on Election and Predestination, that it is God who chooses us, before we were formed in the womb, to be His and that it is He who chooses us ultimately, and not vice versa.

I'm will instead be coming merely from a logical perspective, and show that this position, that the child be allowed to choose after having attained the age of reason, is untenable for the following reasons.

In brief:

Firstly, no parent in their right mind would give their child ultimate freedom of choice. They recognize that as parents, it is their responsibility to do what is best for their child. That’s what parents do, always keeping their child’s best interest first. When their child falls sick, or needs a life saving operation, the parent does not say ‘Perhaps I should wait for my child to grow up and get its consent before agreeing to it’. No, the parents recognize their duty and responsibility to do what is best for the child.

Parents, in the course of their daily duties, make numerous decisions such as which school to send the child to, what diet to put him on, makes sure that he eats all his vegetables, even if he doesn’t want to and wants to start with dessert, makes sure he goes to bed on time, makes sure he does not stay out too late, etc, all in the best interest of the child.

These are the choices of life which every parent makes for their child.

In terms of eternal life, it also falls to the parents to make a choice. So, the argument ‘Let’s wait for the child to decide’ does not hold water. They can’t abdicate their duty on this one thing while making all the other choices for their child.

Secondly, Faith does not exist in a vacuum. A parent can’t bring up their child as an unbeliever or an atheist (the default position should the parents not mention God, talk about Him or introduce their child to Him), and then expect, when the choice is put to the child, to decide in favour of becoming a believer. It’s not even a free choice because the deck is stacked against the Catholic position because from childhood, he has been conditioned as an atheist. By not bringing up the child in the Faith, the parent is bringing up the child as an atheist. Faith formation is indeed a life long process and many Catholic parents can tell you that even after years of catechetical formation and family prayer and religious education in the home, a child can still choose to abandon the Faith and leave the Church.

Bringing up a child in the Faith merely sets to default position to that of Catholic. There is and always will be a choice, be it at Confirmation, when the candidate is asked to expressly profess the Catholic Faith or even at every Sunday Mass, when the Creed is sung. Therefore the argument of not giving the child a choice is untenable. The only question is, what do the parents want the default to be. Atheist or Believer?

The last thing I want to touch on is to agree with your point that baptism is not just a ritual but an act of Faith. An act of Faith of the parents on behalf of their child. It is efficacious, like the Faith of the friends who lowered the paralytic through the roof.

If the parents have no Faith, then they are abusing the Sacrament. If they have no intention of bringing up the child in the Faith, then is it abusing the Sacrament as well.

It you note closely, I always mentions bringing up the child in the Faith and not merely baptism, for the remission of original sin is one thing, discipleship and fidelity and an encounter with the Risen Christ is another.

After an encounter with Christ and professing true Faith in Him, one would not just leave because of marriage because God would come first. If the faith one professes is superficial or cultural, then perhaps this might happen and the fault would like with the catechists, be they the parents or the parish priest or the catechism formators.

In brief, I hope that you would consider this points.

Firstly, no parent gives their child ultimate freedom of choice. Parents recognize their duty and responsibility to do what is best for the child.

In terms of eternal life, it also falls to the parents to make a choice. So, the argument ‘Let’s wait for the child to decide’ does not hold water. They can’t abdicate their duty on this one thing while making all the other choices for their child.

Secondly, Faith does not exist in a vacuum. A parent can’t bring up their child as an unbeliever or an atheist (the default position), and then expect, when the choice is put to the child, to decide in favour of becoming a believer.

It’s not even a free choice because the deck is stacked against the Catholic position because from childhood, he has been conditioned as an atheist. By not bringing up the child in the Faith, the parent is bringing up the child as an atheist. Even after faith formation, a child can still choose to abandon the Faith and leave the Church.

Bringing up a child in the Faith merely sets to default position to that of Catholic. There is and always will be a choice, the only question is, what do the parents want the default to be. Atheist or Believer?

Thanks again, Father, for your post.

God bless.

Andrew

Update:

Fr. Wee has deigned to reply to your humble scribe.

I'm attaching his reply, in full, below.

Thanks Andrew for your mouthful comments. :) Yes, you are right in many ways about what parents should be doing for the love of their children. Basically, parents who love their faith would want to share it with their children than keeping it to themselves.

I believe you are aware that raising a child in faith these days are not as easy as the olden days. I am sure you are aware of your friends' struggles, as well as yours, to live the faith and how to hand down not just their catechetical faith but what they lived as Catholics is not an easy task.

Let's continue to pray for parents for I am quite sure it is not easy to be parents these days.

St. Anne's Shrine: The Shrine Church

As part of my continuing series on St. Anne's Shrine, I'm going to focus on the Old Church, the original St. Anne's (well, the oldest one standing, anyway), which is situated in an elevated position at the foot of St. Anne's Hill.

St. Anne's Church was first founded at Batu Kawan, as early as 1833. They were mainly Chinese and Indian. It was from here that the Catholics gradually moved to Permatang Tinggi, Macang Bubok and Bukit Mertajam. By 1840, the Chinese Catholics started settling down at the Bukit Mertajam foothill.

The early priests were all Frenchmen and they visited Bukit Mertajam from Batu Kawan. In 1846, the first visiting priest, Fr. Adolphe Couellan(who also built my original parish Church of the Immaculate Conception, Pulau Tikus. H is buried there.) decided that there was a need for a chapel and built one just below where now stands the hill top St. Anne's statue.St. Anne was (and still is) a very popular patron saint amongst the French. Naturally, the chapel was named after her.

From 1860 onwards, priests residing at Permatang Tinggi chapel took over the visiting to the St. Anne's Parish. In 1865, Fr. Maistre who was the first visiting priest from there, built a bigger second chapel. It was located lower down, closer to where the old St. Anne's church is. Today you can still see the remains of this chapel just behind the well of Saint Anne's water.

In 1869, Fr. Allard came as the first resident priest. Fr. F.P. Sorin arrived in 1875 and he built the first church and it was ready in 1888. Fr. Sorin died on 26th July (St. Anne's Feast Day), 1907, in Teluk Wang and was buried at the entrance of St. Anne's old church.

The stained glass set featuring St. Anne and also a set of three bells from France were installed at the old church in 1896 by Fr. Charles Grenier. During the Japanese occupation the bells were dismantled. Only one of them has been recovered.

In 1938, Fr. Laurent was here briefly and during his time, he organised the first church choir with Datuk Wong Pow Nee as the choir master. That same year, Fr. Joachim Teng took over the parish. It was he who bought the land where the Kim Sen school and the second church are now located.

In 1941, the war broke out and masses were disrupted as the Japanese occupied the church land. The situation was back to normal after the war in 1946.

In 1948, "Emergency" was declared and the old church grounds became a prohibited area due to communist activities. The residents were resettled and church services were held in the Convent.

In 1957, the second church was built by Fr. Thomas Chin. This is the church next to Kim Sen school which has been called the "new church" for the last 45 years.

The Centenary Celebration of the parish was held in 1969 under Fr. P. Grandvuillemin.

Fr. Peter Pang who took over as parish priest in 1977, built a permanent altar shed in front of the old church and also the parochial and reconciliation halls at the old church compound. He also installed the statue at the top of the hill after fire destroyed the shrine there.

Fr. Augustine Wong arrived in 1984. He removed the shed in front of the old church for a clearer view. He also reinstalled the stained glass behind the altar, which was damaged and one of the original bells which was recovered. In 1987, he built the shrine of Our Lady of Fatima at the second church and improved on the parochial and reconciliation halls at the old church. These were used for masses, retreats, and meetings as well. In 1988, the Centenary Celebration of the old church building was held.

The St. Anne's water fonts were altered to what they are today in 1997, soon after Fr. Michael Cheah was assigned as Administrator for the parish.

Fr. Michael Cheah was also the person who put the construction of the new Shrine into motion and completed most of the major buildings before he was transferred.

Msgr. Stephen Liew, the Vicar General is currently the parish priest and has put the final touches to the Shrine which now stands complete.

The gift shop, which you can see below, under the Fifteenth Station of the Resurrection was constructed last year.

With the renovations and restoration complete, St. Anne's Shrine stands to serve pilgrims who seek her intercession before God for many years to come.

PS
The photos were taken at different times. So you can distinguish between the Church during the Feast, when there are ushers all over the place, at at other times, when the Church is tranquil and one can pray in peace.

Previous posts of St. Anne's Shrine
The Blessed Sacrament Chapel
The Stations of the Cross
The Chapel of Reconciliation

Keshure's Baptism

On the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, I had the pleasure of seeing a friend baptized into the Body of Christ, the Church, and be received into full communion with Her. Keshure has been attending catechism classes and hanging out and helping our parish altar servers for some time now, but unfortunately, because of he was not baptized, he could not serve at God's altar.

But through the prayers of his devout mother, his Hindu father had finally withdrawn his long-standing opposition and allowed Keshure to be baptized. We had initially planned for the baptism to take place secretly despite his father's opposition, but at the last moment, permission was granted. Praise God!

The Rite took place in the evening, before Mass.
Here's some photos I took of that joyous occasion.

Although we're supposed to gather at the threshold of the Church, Father decided that we'd just do it inside, at the foot of the chancel.


The expectant Christopher. He was actually quite nervous. But I had just gone through the liturgy with him, so everything went ok, almost.
I had actually expected the Rite of Baptism for Children to be used and so practiced with that, but Father decided on the adult rite instead.


The legion of fans.


The rite begins. Father asks Christopher what he asks of God's Church.


The proud Godparents, James and Gina.


Christopher was asked to bare his heart to God for the anointing of the chest with Holy Oil.


The profession of faith.


The moment. Veni Sancte Spiritus.
I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.





Anointing with the Sacred Chrism.


Clothing with the white garment. In typical fashion, our pastor decided to use his stole instead of the white garment of purity.

Bring that dignity unstained into the everlasting life of heaven.





Receive the Light of Christ.


The happy Christopher.


Receiving the applause of family and friends, now brothers and sisters in Christ.


His proud mother Helen, receiving hearty congratulations.


The Body and Blood of Christ.
Keshure receiving Jesus, His Lord and Saviour for the first time.


Kisses all around.


Mother, sister, Godparents, Father and a busybody (extreme right, in green), lining up for a photo after Mass.


We then adjourned, in true Asian tradition, for a sumptuous dinner cum barbecue.


The following day, the Feast of St. Blaise, Keshure served Mass.
Here's what he looks like vested in an alb.

There's something about Mary

Are you a heretic?
Deny the Solemnly Defined Dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary?
Haven't the foggiest idea what that means?
Don't believe that Mary was assumed, Body and Soul, to be with her Son Jesus in Heaven?

Are you Catholic?
Don't understand why the Church places such importance on Mary?
Can't figure out why there are so many statues of her all over the place?

Then this is the seminar for you!

Thus began the email, entitled 'There's Something about Mary', that I sent inviting some friends to the Marian Seminar that was held on last Thursday, which was a public holiday in Penang.

Conducted by the lively and engaging Martin Jalleh from the Charismatic Prayer Group, the day long session was most informative and entertaining as Martin's quips had all the fifty or so of us in stitches. Our parishioners don't really come for these things. When the same session was held at the Cathedral, which has about the same number of parishioners, about 300 attended, filling the hall.

Martin's talk, Mary in Scripture and Tradition, covered the scriptural foundations of the Church's Marian beliefs as well as the differences between the Catholic concept of Sola Verbum Dei, the Word of God Alone and the Protestant concept of Sola Scriptura, the Written Word of God Alone. He looked at Mary's appearances in Scripture and how she was present at some of the most pivotal moments in the ministry and life of Jesus and the Church including His Conception, Nativity, Epiphany, First Miracle, Ministry, Passion, Death and Pentecost. He also touched on the Marian dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption. He's a brave soul, Martin, to try to cover such complex concepts as the 'stain of original sin' and God saving Mary before her conception in front of a mostly elderly audience of matrons and housewives. But he acquitted himself well.

The session on the Marian Titles such as the Ark of the Covenant was very well received too. But the testimony that Martin gave was the highlight of the event. Martin related that when he prays over people in his Charismatic healing services, he holds his rosary and asks for Mary's intercession. Mary was of course the first Charismatic, being there at Pentecost and being anointed with the Holy Spirit and Fire so there need not be any hesitation for Charismatics to invoke the Mother of God as a 'prayer warrior'!

He also related that praying the rosary and asking for Mary's intercession is a great help in the ministry of deliverance. This brought back to my mind comments made by His Lordship, Bishop Anthony Lee of Miri, who related a particularly difficult exorcism that he and his team undertook. Exhausted after many hours of prayer, the Bishop led the rosary over the possessed and the evil spirit left. The Bishop, who's very Charismatic and heads the Liturgy Commission of the Bishop's Conference, is also a strong Marian devotee.

We also pondered the Marian apparitions from and the message of conversion and penitence that Mary bears to the world.

Hopefully, the session would have informed the Marian Devotion Group members about the strong scriptural roots of Marian piety and strengthened their understanding and devotion to the Mother of God.

A Prayer Request

Today, after the evening Mass, I visited Ian in the hospital. He's only 14, and has a tumour in his brain. The prognosis is not good. My heart bled when I saw how frail he was, with all those tubes sticking out of him. I was told that he had a tube from his brain as well, to drain the fluid that was accumulating. He was very weak and fell asleep when we were praying for him. It was very distressing.

I'm sure that God has a reason for everything and my incomprehension does not make this event any less meaningful in the cosmic plan. But I would like to ask all of you dear readers, to please pray for Ian, that the Lord will be close to him in his suffering and comfort him with His presence.

I would also like you to lift up Ian's family, especially his mother, in prayer, that through this difficult moment, they might draw closer to God and be comforted.

Mary our Mother understands the pain his mother is feeling and through her intercession I asked for comfort for Ian and his family.

Remember, Most gracious Virgin Mary,
That never was it known,
That anyone who fled to thy protection,
Implored thy help,
Or sought thy intercession,
Was left unaided.

Inspired with this confidence,
I fly to thee O Virgin of Virgins, my Mother.

To thee I come,
Before thee I stand,
Sinful and sorrowful.

O Mother of the Word Incarnate,
Despise not my petitions,
But in thy mercy,
Hear and answer me.

Amen.

Do pray for Ian and his family, please.

Five Random Things Meme

Master Joee Blogs has tagged me to list down 5 completely random things about myself. I’m assuming that these are facts that are not self evident, so I’m not going tell you how much liturgical abuse peeves me off =)

Anyway, here it goes.

1) I have an honours degree in Electrical and Electronics engineering and am currently a professional engineer in a multinational US company.

2) I have 5 altars/oratories/prayer spaces in my house, a 4 foot crucifix in my room, 3 statues of Our Lady scattered all over, 2 dozen crucifixes(which I alternate and wear to the office every day) and 1 dozen rosaries, black, shaken, not stirred. [And no, I do not live in a mansion, I live in a single storey 2 room terrace house, with me Gran, thank you very much.)

3) I am a great football (read soccer for you US folks) fan and I support Man Utd. Glory, glory Man United...

4) I don’t own any jeans, I always wear black slacks (that’s trousers for you Britishers) when the occasion warrants wearing long pants.

5) I don’t eat seafood. This is pretty tough to do if you live on an island and where people use seafood in every dish.

I would like to tag Mark the Altar Server of Deus Caritas Est who’s very irenic, Mark the Med Student in Ireland, who does not update his blog regularly and who’s currently in Rome, Paul of Deo Juvante, who’s very Trad, Mr. Smith from the Church Militant =), and Matt Doyle of Lacrimarum-Valle, who's just become a dad.

Update.

Mr. Smith has completed his.

Paul of Deo Juvante has completed his.

Mark of Deus Caritas Est has completed his.