Charity Campaign St. Hilary BEC

St. Hilary BEC Charity Campaign

George Selvaraja Joseph

During the month of rosary our BEC St. Hilary (Taman Ampangan Seremban, Negeri Sembilan) planned a charity activity as we journeyed in the rosary prayer. Visiting orphanage home was the call that deepens our common interest. Even though there are few orphanage homes in Seremban town, we decided to go out skirt of the town area. It was “Vivekananda Home Rembau”, situated 27 km from Seremban town. On the 1st of May 2010, we visited the home collecting information on the needs and the situation so that we can make a fruitful visit.

The home “Vivekananda Home Rembau” situated 20 meters from Rembau town. The home was constructed based on village condition - half brickwork & timber wall with a zinc roof. It has 2 dormitories for boys and girls, narrowed office room, bath and a kitchen. The awning covered balcony is the place where the children gathered for food, rest, study and watch television. The home is registered with the district welfare department. The home is managed by Mr. Ramesh Patel with 6 care takers. Children’s ranging from age 2 to 18 years old with total of 52 children resides in the home

A brochure was prepared with the needs of the home and passed to BEC members, Visitation parish members, posting in Visitation face book and friends. Various BEC members donated basic necessities, clothes, school aids and cash. We received these love offerings as far as Kuala Lumpur. One of BEC member shared this with 2 of Muslim sisters during her morning exercise and to our surprise they donated cash for the home and praised the good work of our catholic church.

On 28th May 2010, with Visitation family BEC’s we journeyed to “Vivekananda Home Rembau”, 3 cars with a van carrying a month’s collection for the home need. We were welcomed by the care takers and the children’s. To break the boundaries of uncomfortable among us and the children, we started out with games and talent time. Our children and adults made the activity merrier by participating with the children. All of us enjoyed without barrier of the situation. Prizes were given out to the children’s. The children were served noodles and cakes for tea break. At end of the session we presented ration and cash for the home.

Even though our visit was a half a day event but it made us see life’s appreciation through this children’s. Our visits made us to walk more closely in the path of Jesus Christ in reaching out to those are in need. Our journey will continue in this mission of charity…...

Formation for Myanmarese/ Chin Refugees

A team of 3 Myanmarese pastoral workers from the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur came down to Seremban today to give a talk to 38 Myanmarese/Chin refugees to create awareness of and provide ways to cope with the problems related to displacement, physical and mental health issues.

Refugees are no different than any other person in that they are equally vulnerable to the diseases that affect local communities. But where they differ is that refugees often find local healthcare facilities difficult to access due to costs, fear of travelling to reach those facilities and language barriers.

Refugees know that their safety and wellbeing depend on their accurate reading and careful negotiation of different spaces and landscapes in urban areas.

There are over 28 million people living in Malaysia. Among the three to four million non-citizens are around 100,000 asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons.

Malaysia is signatory neither to the 1951 Refugee Convention, nor to its 1967 Protocol. It has not enacted domestic legislation recognising the legal status of asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons. However, it permits UNHCR to register, determine status and provide assistance to these populations. There are no refugee camps in Malaysia. Most reside in urban areas – the largest numbers in Kuala Lumpur, the Klang Valley and Penang.

Unreliable income, exploitation at work (in particular, in the form of unpaid wages), extortion by law enforcement officers, robbery by local gangsters, the high cost of rent, health services and education, as well as the need to support those unable to find work make poverty endemic amongst refugees in Malaysia.

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Society of St. Vincent de Paul and Frederick Ozanam

The Society of St Vincent de Paul (“SSVP”) is an international Catholic voluntary organization dedicated to tackling poverty and disadvantage by providing direct practical assistance to anyone in need.

The aim of the society is :
1. To help the unfortunate in the most humane way and salvage their destiny.
2. through the ways of grace and witness, bring about our common salvation by participation in the Kingdom of God.
3. Main works: visiting people in their homes, in hospitals, institutions and wherever else they may be found needing aid or comfort.
Like that of its founder, Frédéric Ozanam, the vision of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul "is to embrace the world in a network of charity."

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul was founded in 1833 to serve impoverished people living in the slums of Paris, France. The primary figure behind the society's founding was Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, a French lawyer, author, and professor in the Sorbonne. He was 20 years old when the society was founded and was beatified by the late Pope John Paul II in 1997.

Today, the Vincetians (as they fondly call themselves) celebrate the birthday of their founder, Frédéric Ozanam. Yesterday, the members of the SSVP Conference of Visitation Seremban renewed their commitment to serve the poor and received a special blessing at the end of the sunset mass.

The SSVP Conference of Visitation, Seremban, counts among its many projects and responsibilities the care of 66 adoptee families and the recycling project on the last Sunday of each month. The SSVP Visitation Conference is an integral member ministry of the Parish Integral Human Development Ministry of Visitation.

Those interested to know more about the works of SSVP, please contact Mrs. Lalitha Rozario (012-6438677).

Migrants Easter Fellowship 2010

The Migrant Ministry and Chinese Apostolate of the Church of Visitation jointly organised an Easter Fellowship and Gathering for its migrants from Indonesia and the Philippines. Lunch was followed by several performances, i.e. songs and dances etc.

This event has been an annual affair for the past few years. It usually takes place immediately after the Bahasa Malaysia Easter Sunday service for migrants.

First Parish Event: Formation on Catholic Social Teaching and Lenten Campaign 2010

Friday (February 26, Seremban) A team from the Archdiocesan Office of Human Development (AOHD) were invited to give a formation on the Catholic Social Teachings and Lenten Campaign 2010. 200 participants from 3 language groups were in attendance. Apart from the parishioners of Visitation, Seremban, there were also several participants from the Negeri Sembilan District,i.e. Nilai, Port Dickson, and Mantin.

The participants were introduced to the work and projects of the AOHD. In the morning, they were also exposed to the main themes of Catholic Social Teaching. The afternoon session were dedicated to a briefing and explanation of this year's Lenten Campaign. The participants viewed a DVD production where various priests of the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur, explained the major themes of this year's Lenten Campaign, which is based on the various parts of the crucifixion.

Catholic Social Teaching

Love for widows and orphans, prisoners and the sick and needy
of every kind, is as essential to the Church as the ministry of
sacraments and preaching of the Gospel.

(Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est, no.22)

What is Catholic Social Teaching?


Modern Catholic social teaching is the body of social principles and moral teaching that is articulated in the official documents of the Church issued since the late 19th century and dealing with the economic, political, and social order. This teaching is rooted in the Scriptures as well as in traditional philosophical and theological teachings of the Church.

Does this mean that Catholic Social Teaching was non-existent before the 19th century? The answer is No. Catholic Social Teaching is as old as the Church and even predates the Church (i.e. Hebrew Scriptures). However, it was only in the late 19th century that such teachings began to be articulated in a systematic way in the official documents of the Church.

Catholic social teaching has been called "our best kept secret," "our buried treasure," and "an essential part of Catholic faith."

"Far too many Catholics are not familiar with the basic content of Catholic social teaching. More fundamentally, many Catholics do not adequately understand that the social teaching of the Church is an essential part of Catholic faith. This poses a serious challenge for all Catholics, since it weakens our capacity to be a Church that is true to the demands of the Gospel. We need to do more to share the social mission and message of our Church."

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions
U.S. Catholic Bishops

Basic Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

1.Human Dignity - The person is sacred, made in the image of God.

2. Common Good and Community - The human person is both sacred and social. We realize our dignity and rights in relationship with others, in community. How we organize our society -- in economics and politics, in law and policy -- directly affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to grow in community.

3. Option for the Poor - The moral test of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members. The option for the poor is an essential part of society's effort to achieve the common good. A healthy community can be achieved only if its members give special attention to those with special needs, to those who are poor and on the margins of society.

4. Rights and Responsibilities - Human dignity can be protected and a healthy community can be achieved only if human rights are protected and responsibilities are met. Every person has a fundamental right to life and a right to those things required for human decency – starting with food, shelter and clothing, employment, health care, and education. Corresponding to these rights are duties and responsibilities -- to one another, to our families, and to the larger society.

5.Role of Government and Subsidiarity - The state has a positive moral function. It is an instrument to promote human dignity, protect human rights, and build the common good. All people have a right and a responsibility to participate in political institutions so that government can achieve its proper goals. The principle of subsidiarity holds that the functions of government should be performed at the lowest level possible, as long as they can be performed adequately.

6. Economic Justice - The economy must serve people, not the other way around. All workers have a right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, and to safe working conditions. They also have a fundamental right to organize and join unions. People have a right to economic initiative and private property, but these rights have limits. No one is allowed to amass excessive wealth when others lack the basic necessities of life. Catholic teaching opposes collectivist and statist economic approaches and also rejects the notion that a free market automatically produces justice.

7. Stewardship of God's Creation - The goods of the earth are gifts from God, and they are intended by God for the benefit of everyone. How we treat the environment is a measure of our stewardship, a sign of our respect for the Creator.

8. Promotion of Peace and Disarmament - Catholic teaching promotes peace as a positive, action-oriented concept. In the words of Pope John Paul II, "Peace is not just the absence of war. It involves mutual respect and confidence between peoples and nations. It involves collaboration and binding agreements.” Peace is the fruit of justice and is dependent upon right order among human beings.

9. Participation - All people have a right to participate in the economic, political, and cultural life of society.

10. Global Solidarity and Development - We are one human family. Our responsibilities to each other cross national, racial, economic and ideological differences. We are called to work globally for justice. Authentic development must be full human development. It must respect and promote personal, social, economic, and political rights, including the rights of nations and of peoples.

Visitation Parish Event
Tomorrow, February 26, we will be having our first Parish Event of 2010, a formation by the Archdiocesan Office of Human Development (AOHD) on the Social Teachings of the Church and the Lenten Campaign.

Christmas Campaign for the Poor - Car Wash

Our parish youth hard at work washing cars for the Christmas Campaign for the Poor.

Christmas Campaign for the Poor 2009 - Flea Market and Food Sale (November 28-29)

Christmas Campaign for the Poor 2009: Give a Gift that Matters

We are all familiar with the old cliche - "Christmas is about giving." Some people spend ridiculously large sums of money to buy expensive gifts for each other.

This Christmas, our Parish invites you to a different way of giving. A giving that will make a difference in the lives of those who really need it, not those who have too much in excess. This Christmas, GIVE A GIFT THAT MATTERS!

The Christmas campaign for the poor, since 1968, has been responsible for mobilising parishioners from all walks of life to raise funds in order to reach out to the poor and needy. It has been made up of many dedicated individuals who have braved muddy and usually inaccessible roads to reach out to some of the poorest of the poor.

Visitation wants each of you to be part of this campaign this year. Reaching out to the poor is not a specialised job. Rather, it is the vocation of every Christian. Jesus invites you to lend a hand. Be involved in some way or other. Get involved in your BEC to raise funds, visit the poor, make a commitment to reach out to them throughout the year, get involve in our Flea Market (November 28 & 29), teach your youth and children to make sacrifices for the poor, support our team of fund-raisers by getting donors, etc.

There is always something to be done and someone needed for the job! Please contact Charles De Lima (IHD Chairman) at 012-6016981 or Mr. Jerome (PCC Chairman) at 012-3308071.

Integral Human Development Ministry - AGM 2009

Most people often mistakenly think that the Integral Human Development Ministry (IHD) is just another new fancy name for ministry to the poor. Certainly, a very essential aspect of this ministry is its option for the poor, but it is also so much more.

The IHD is a process that involves:

• Promoting the good of every person and of the whole person, especially of the poorest and most neglected in the community
• Where every person meets their basic human needs
• Where all persons are empowered to free themselves from everything that is dehumanising.

Therefore the whole orientation of the IHD demands that the human person be regarded in a wholistic sense, he is not just to be reduced to his physical and financial needs. Wholistic development calls us to pay attention to his social, spiritual, economic, emotional, mental and physical conditions too.

The IHD of our parish is an umbrella commission that has 9 component ministries: St. Anthony's Meal Project (feeding the poor), Migrants and Refugees Ministry, Parish Ministry of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs (PMEIA), Orang Asli Ministry, Urban Poor Ministry (IJ Sisters outreach to the urban poor in Kampung Pasir and its vicinity), Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Prison Ministry, Visitation Emmaus Centre of Counselling (VECC), and the Human Resources Ministry (job placements and referrals).

At yesterday's Annual General Meeting (October 2), the following persons, were appointed and elected to the Board of Management of the IHD Commission:

1. Chairman: Charles de Lima (reappointed)
2. Vice-Chairman: Alfred Selvam
3. Secretary: Melinda Ong
4. Treasure: Lalitha Rozario

Immigration: Making Catholicity Tangible

Vatican Aide Notes How Migration Helps Ecclesiology

BRASILIA, Brazil, SEPT. 16, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Immigration makes the nature of the universal Church visible, according to a Vatican aide who was reflecting on migrants and catholicity.

Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers, spoke about immigration and ecclesiology when he addressed the third international conference on migrant ministry, which opened today in Brazil.

The prelate affirmed that immigration, which he called a "sign of the times," can be a chance for local Churches to live and feel the ecclesiology of communion and mission spoken about in "Lumen Gentium" from the Second Vatican Council.

The pastoral care of migrants "contributes to making visible the genuine physiognomy of the Church," he contended.

"Also through them," the archbishop added, "God's plan of salvific communion can be carried out among peoples."

Archbishop Marchetto further observed that immigrants themselves have the "privileged though painful opportunity of coming to a greater sense of belonging to the universal Church, beyond any particularity."

He recalled how "Lumen Gentium" teaches that the Church exists as universal and particular, without contradiction.

And the Church's pastoral program with immigrants must be carried out "in hierarchical communion with the bishop, the clergy, the laity and the religious," the archbishop said. He added that a concept of "mission" must also be taken into account.

"Mission is not only carried out in the so-called mission territories, traditionally in Asia and Africa, given that today the inhabitants of the different continents move, and with them, moves the mission," he observed.

"The Church becomes the history of a people on the way who, starting from the mystery of Christ and the circumstances of the people and groups that make it up, is called to build a new history, gift of God and fruit of human liberty," Archbishop Marchetto said. "This is the thread of the history that enters in God's order, in the paschal mystery of death and life, and also the thread of the joys and sorrows of migrants, pilgrims on earth."

Infant Jesus Sisters and the Learning Centre in Kampung Pasir

By Sr. Theresa Chua, I.J.


The I.J. Sisters of Seremban community decided in the early 1980s to be more immersed in the lives of the people of Kampung Pasir area which was then one of the biggest squatter areas in the town. The Centre was originally a barren little wooden hut, standing precariously at the edge of a river, half a kilometer from the main road, and accessible only by a mud path through tall lallang and bushes. The abject poverty of the little hut and its simplicity with no electricity nor piped water (it only had a well), could not have been more challenging for the Sisters and the volunteer teachers.

A number of years later, the ‘hut’ slowly grew into a modern, white-washed building with its own compound and fence, and electricity supply. By then the river changed its course so that there is now a safer distance between the building and the river. The road leading to the Centre was also tarred.

Today, the Centre caters for the educational needs of 40 children here by conducting remedial classes for children from Nursery to Secondary levels and other human development programmes. Bi-monthly birthday celebrations and other festive seasons are also held to provide opportunity for leadership training.

The volunteer teachers are retired teachers mainly from the Convent schools in town and others who have a heart for the poor children and want to share life with them. All these teachers are truly committed and some of them have been with the Centre for more than 8 years.

We are proud to acknowledge that we during the past 10 years, we have among the young, 4 who have graduated from tertiary level. Two of them who are still in Kampung Pasir come back to offer their time and knowledge whenever they are free and feel very much part of the Centre.

The white-washed wooden building has been replaced by a double-storey brick building which caters for the educational needs of the young around this area as well as serving as the Formation House for the young women who would like to search for God’s will as IJ Sisters.

Monthly formation sessions are held for the volunteer teachers to deepen the Spirituality of this ministry to the deprived young in this kampong.

The Sisters are truly grateful to the support of the benefactors from the Visitation Parish as well as other well-wishers of Seremban.

The IJ Sisters see this ministry as a call to be with this group of God’s people, sharing their lives with them and to continue to experience the Providence of God which does not fail to guide them in this challenging mission.

The encouraging and supportive role of the priests of the parish is an added sign of living in communion of Spirit in mission to the poor in Seremban.

May God continue to lead all in this way of living the spirit of faith, hope and love in Christ.

(Those wishing to contribute or be part of the IJ Sisters' ministry to the Urban Poor, are invited to contact Sr. Theresa 06-7655099)

Forum on Freedom of Information

A forum/workshop on Freedom of Information entitled "Right to Information" was held in Visitation Hall today. This event was jointly organised by Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) and Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ).

What is freedom of information? Why is it important? One of the United Nation's earliest resolutions asserts, "Freedom of Information is a fundamental human right and ... the touchstone of all freedoms to which the United Nations is consecrated." The Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines it as, "the freedom to hold opinions without interference, and to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

Information is power. If disseminated, shared and made accessible to others, it empowers them. On the other hand, information or rather the withholding or distortion of information cripples persons and the society in general.

The objective of this workshop was to create awareness among the public of this basic right to information and to propose a way forward to facilitate the promotion of this right, namely through the promulgation of a Freedom of Information legislation.

The speakers/ trainers who spoke to the participants were Claudia Theophilus, who is a journalist working with Al-Jazeera, and Noel Dass a researcher at CPPS, ASLI.

Call to Be Human, Call to be Holy, Call to Solidarity

Recollection for IHD Ministry Members, August 22


“Ministry can be for us a great source of blessing as well as a great source of temptation,” said Rev. Fr. Michael Chua, as he spoke to the members of the Integral Human Development (IHD) Ministry of the Church of Visitation, Seremban in a one day recollection that took place on August 22nd. During the sessions, time of prayer and small group discussions, the 40 over members of the various ministries under the IHD umbrella were led to reflect on their vocation and the challenges thereto.

The story of Jesus’ baptism and the ensuing narrative on his temptations in the desert were used to highlight the central point that our call is not defined primarily by what we do but by our relationship with God. Being “called” and being “chosen” is synonymous to being named “the Beloved of God,” our truest identity. The temptations of Jesus are invariably temptations that lead one to believe that our identity and self-worth are defined by possessions, popularity and power, the three fundamental temptations which all others can be collapsed into. In contrast to the temptations of the devil that may accompany every ministry, Jesus calls us to humility, powerlessness, vulnerability and poverty. This is practically embodied by the Church in its promotion of the evangelical counsels of obedience, poverty and chastity.

The call to ministry is ultimately a call to be human, for “to be fully human is to be fully divine.” Therefore, the ministry of IHD is a crucial reminder that any ministry in order to be holistic must address every aspect of a human person that is integral to him, be it spiritual, physical, social, psychological, material etc. The call to ministry is also a call to Christian holiness. In the OT, we have the idea that in order to effect a relationship with the divine, it was necessary to isolate things and persons from their ordinary use. But the mystery of the Incarnation in the New Testament gave an entirely new perspective to this understanding of holiness. And so in Christianity and the NT, the sacred is realized not by isolation but by communion between God and man effected by the initiative of God reaching out to man in order to share His life with him. Such an incarnational model of a life of holiness will then result in a paradigm shift that views itself as a life that embraces freedom rather than mere obligation; a life that immerses itself in the world rather than one that withdraws from it; it affirms life rather than negates it; it is dynamic rather than static; its about being (the Beloved of God) rather than doing something in order to earn that accolade. This sacred action ultimately leads and even compels man to communion, the third aspect of ministry. Ministry is a call to communion, solidarity, compassion, vulnerability, collaboration and finally to community.

At the end of the day, the members of the IHD ministry were invited to recommit themselves to the goals of IHD process, namely, a ministry that promotes the good of every person and of the whole person, especially of the poorest and most neglected in the community, where every person meets their basic human needs and where all persons are empowered to free themselves from everything that is dehumanising. In order to do this, they need to undergo several paradigmatic shifts, from viewing the human person in a fragmented way to one that recognizes the unity of his whole being; from seeing ministry as mere maintenance to one of mission; from individualism to solidarity; from regarding the objective of their work as mere hand-outs to one which will engender holistic change; and finally from viewing their ministry as social work to one which genuinely promotes integral human development.

The IHD Commission of the Church of Visitation is made up of the following ministries, Society of St. Vincent De Paul, Tuesday Meals, Urban Poor Ministry, Migrant Ministry, Orang Asli Ministry, Human Resource Ministry, Prison Ministry. Emmaus Visitation Counselling Centre, and Parish Ministry of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs.

Hari Orang Asli Kampung Sebir

By resolution 49/214 of 23 December 1994, the United Nations General Assembly decided that the International Day of the World's Indigenous People shall be observed on 9 August every year during the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People. The date marks the day of the first meeting, in 1982, of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights.

The Desk for Orang Asli Affairs at the Archdiocesan Office of Human Development (AOHD) organized the first local celebration of this event under the title “Hari Orang Asli” in Kampung Orang Asli Tekir, Jalan Labu, Seremban in 2007. After a lapse of one year, the Orang Asli community of Kampung Sebir, Jalan Labu (located about 6 km away from the last venue), organized and hosted this year’s celebration on the 9th of August 2009. The event not only showcased the community’s rich culture in dance, song, games, art and craft but was also an opportunity for the older generation to inculcate in the younger members of the community a deeper appreciation of their heritage and traditions which are threatened by both modernization and globalization.

With the support of the Integral Human Development Ministry of the Church of Visitation, Seremban, this year's event has also been an occasion to bring together the members of the community that hail from different religions, Catholic, Protestants, Muslims and Traditional Religionists. It was an authentic exercise of both the dialogue of deed and life (culture), which led the denominational and religious barriers to be set aside while allowing for the deeper roots of culture and tradition (adat) to bridge the divide.

The theme for this year's celebration is "The Jungle and the Land: Hearbeat of Indigenous Peoples" resonates with their struggle. The residents of Kampung Sebir has been fighting a long–standing battle to preserve both their traditional heritage and reservation lands from encroachment by outsiders. The ongoing activities of a nearby quarry have caused irreparable damage not only to the surrounding environment but also to the health and livelihood of these people. In this matter, the multi religious members of this small community of Orang Asli are united in defending their legitimate interests against these encroachers. They recently had their land surveyed by a license surveyor to determine the actual boundaries of their reservation land which has apparently confirmed such encroachment. The next stage would be a legal battle to regain what is rightfully theirs.

This year’s celebration also saw participants and visitors from neighbouring Orang Asli Villages, such as the previous hosts, Kampung Tekir and another settlement along the road to Mantin, Kampung Belihoi, thus strengthening the bonds of friendship and culture between the three different villages.


Traditional handicraft weaved from recycled paper.


The Batin of Kampung Sebir with the children of the village