A Special Moment

On the feast of the Epiphany, the 7th of January 2001, the Franciscan Friars of the Custody of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei were entrusted with the pastoral care of the parish of St Ann, a semi-rural parish situated 10 miles away from the city of Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia.
At a Sunday Celebration of the Eucharist, in the presence of the then Auxillary Bishop Rt Rev John Ha and the Minister Provincial of the Province of the Holy Spirit, Friar Stephen Bliss OFM, the rector of St Ann’s, Fr Simon Poh handed the care of the parish to Friar Arul Sagayaraj OFM, the first Franciscan rector of St Ann’s.
In his homily, the Auxillary Bishop mused that "the handing over of the parish to the friars will be an ongoing process of pastoral care of the friars for the parishioners of St Ann." It was an historical moment for the Custody, for it was the first time that the friars branched out from Singapore and accepted an offer by the Archdiocese of Kuching to care for some 16,000 parishioners