Feast Day Celebration in Klang and Inaugural Mass in Penang

I was back in my home town in Klang on the 11th and 12th of February to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and also the 9th anniversary of my priestly ordination at my home parish. I was happy to be able to celebrate the Eucharist with Frs Michael Chua and David Arulanatham and the parishioners of OLL.

Despite the rain that Saturday, the feast-day celebration proceeded smoothly and ended with a procession in town. The following day, which was the anniversary of my priestly ordination, I celebrated two Masses and happily recalled that exactly 9 years ago, I stood at this very pulpit and gave my thank you speech.

In the afternoon I decided to treat my nephews, nieces and cousins to a movie. It was a first-time experience for all of us watching a 3D movie, ‘Journey 2 – The Mysterious Island’. Since I was already in KL, I extended my break for a couple more days to celebrate Valentine’s Day with my family and also to visit some friends.

I was planning to leave for Penang on Thursday evening (16th Feb), but something prompted me to leave early in the morning and I arrived in Penang around 10.30am. Just as I was about to go up to my room, I bumped into Archbishop Emeritus Soter Fernandez who told me that they would be celebrating the Inaugural Mass for the new academic year that evening at 6pm. When I heard this, I was happy that I had acted on instinct and left for Penang in the morning for I would now be able to join the priests and seminarians for the Inaugural Mass.

Bishop Antony Selvanayagam of Penang, who is also the President of College General presided over the Eucharist. In his homily he congratulated the students for choosing to offer their lives to serve Christ as priests. “Since you have chosen this path then you have to be prepared to meet the challenges to be like Christ – to suffer, to be rejected and to put to death,” he added.

The students were later welcomed and introduced to all present by the College Rector Fr Gerard Theraviam. This year we are pleased to welcome 13 students - Pre-Initiation Year (5 students), Initiation Year (2 students), 1st and 2nd Year Philosophy (6 students).

Mass was followed by dinner and recitation of the rosary at the grotto.

College General is one of the oldest seminaries in this region. A brief history of College General, since 1665…
PEREGRINATIONS OF COLLEGE GENERAL:
1665 – Foundation of the College at Ayuthia, Thailand
1680 - 1686 – College of the Holy Angels at Mahapram (10 kms from Ayuthia)
1686 – Constantinien College (Ayuthia)
1760 - 1765 – Burmese invasion forced the seminary to move to Chanthaburi, Thailand.
1765 -1796 – The seminary moved to Hondat (now ha-Tien) in Vietnam
1770 - 1782 – Virapatnam (5 kms from Pondicherry, India). Before the voyage to Pondicherry, the college was in Malacca (Peninsula Malaysia) for 2 months. It was closed for 15 years)
1808 – Reopening of the seminary in Pulau Tikus, Penang, Malaysia
January, 1984 till to the present – College General moved to Mariophile (Love of Mary), Tanjung Bunga, Penang).

The Present Staff of College General:

Rt Rev Bishop Anthony Selvanayagam (Bishop of Penang and President of the college)

Rev Fr Gerard Theraviam (Rector)

Rev Fr Julian Leow (Dean)

Archbishop Emeritus Anthony Soter Fernandez (Spiritual Father)

Rev Fr Edwin Paul (Formator)

College General has produced Saints and Martyrs:

Two canonised professors martyred in Korea in 1984 (Sts Laurent Imbert and Jacques Chastan)

Five canonised seminarians martyred in Vietnam in 1988 (Sts Philip Minh, Peter Quy, Paul Loc, John Hoan and Peter Lau)

Fifty beatified Vietnamese Martyrs.

College General Seminary in Penang

Back in Penang Seminary

I have not updated my blog for a long period of time and finally today I have decided to resume my postings once again. My enthusiasm in updating my blog was waning gradually due to certain circumstances. I was not sure where to begin my story line now. Let me take a deep breath! I reached Malaysia on 23rd Dec, 2011. I could not return to India after my Christmas and New Year break due to some issues with my visa and now if everything goes well I pray and hope that I can enter India again in June this year.

At the moment I am staying at College General Seminary in Penang. I have been here since 4th January, 2012 to do my studies through distance learning. I have not discontinued my studies just because I could not return to India. My Dean of Studies has allowed me to do my assignments and send them via internet to the respective lecturers in JDV Pune, India. I was given 3 assignments on Religious Pluralism; Hermeneutics in the Old Testaments; Guided Paper on Christian Anthropology. Thank God I have completed 2 papers within these past 5 weeks and I have one more paper on Christian Anthropology which I need to be complete by end of March. After that the JDV College in Pune will be closed for summer break. During the month of April and June, I shall continue to stay here in the Penang seminary and start doing my research on my final paper (Dissertation). When I return to India for my 3rd semester I shall also take extra efforts to do my final paper and return before Christmas for good. “Insha Allah! It is just a plan that I have in my mind right now.

Ever since I returned from India I felt a little upset for not returning to my college for studies on time. Initially I could not accept the fact that my visa problem is causing me to stay back in Malaysia till June. Then I realised that it is not my will but His will. Thank God, my studies were not interrupted. I must be grateful to my college dean and my lecturers for allowing me to do the distance learning. I am also grateful to the Rector of the College General, (Penang Seminary), Fr Gerard Theraviam and Archbishop Murphy Pakiam for permitting me to stay here in the seminary. During the day, I spend time in the library doing my studies and during the weekends I help out by celebrating Masses in the nearby parishes in the Penang Island and other places as well.

Since I came to the seminary in January, Fr Gerard welcomed me warmly and I was staying alone in the seminary because the students were on their semester break till 14th February. I occupied my time with my studies and assignments. Penang Island is not a new place for me. I stayed here for eight years for my priestly formation (1995 – 2002). Many lecturers and formators have formed my life in this seminary. This college has a lot of sentimental values for me. This seminary and Penang Island have also taught me what is life all about and I have found meaning in my life here. During my seminary days I loved reading spiritual and psychological books. One of the books that really touched my life during my early formation was “Man Search for Meaning” written by Victor Frankl, a psychologist. It was recommended by the late Fr Francis Regis and it was the last book that I found in the bookstore in Penang Island.

Life is moving as usual. The seminarians are now back from their break and I am following their programmes such as rising, attending morning and evening prayers, studies, games, manual labour and other activities. I hope that my daily routine will also serve as an example to our future priests.