Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Kuala Lumpur (Agenzia Fides) - The Catholic community in the area of Sarawak, in Malay Borneo, is celebrating the arrival of the first missionaries in this rain forest area 125 years ago. The missionaries were British Mill Hill Missionaries of St Joseph’s Missionary Society who arrived in 1881. An anniversary Mass in Kuching was presided by Apostolic Delegate Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio and concelebrated by Archbishop John Ha of Kuching and emeritus Archbishop Datuk Peter Chung, numerous priests, religious and about 1,000 lay people were present.
Mass began with a procession and a welcome ceremony of local music and dance performed by young people in traditional costumes.
Archbishop Pennacchio said Pope Benedict XVI sent special greetings and his apostolic blessing for the occasion recalling that the first announcement of the Gospel “was a historic moment for Borneo”. The Church took root and developed thanks to the generous labour of missionaries, sisters and lay people dedicated to the evangelisation of the local people.
For his part Archbishop John Ha thanked the young people for the “warm and colourful welcome”, remembering all those who in the past 125 years worked for the human and spiritual development of the local people, celebrating the Sacraments, teaching catechism, organising works of charity and guaranteeing pastoral care even in the most remote forest villages.
The first group of Mill Hill Missionaries set out from England for Borneo in 1881. Fr. Thomas Jakcson, Fr. Edmund Dunn and Fr. Aloysius Goosens sowed the seed of the faith overcoming serious hazards and many difficulties, living side by side with Iban, Bidayuh and Melanaus peoples. In 1894 in Kuching the missionaries built a church and opened a first St Joseph’s School run by women missionaries the Franciscan Sisters of St Joseph and Sisters of Saint Teresa. Vocations flourished and the first local priest Fr. Joseph Chin Ting Huong was ordained in 1932.
The archdiocese of Kuching has an area of 19,173 sq km, and a population of one million including 153,000 Catholics gathered in 10 parishes. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 18/1/2007 righe 31 parole 334)
