Bengoh elects Baxtor Rujan as Chairman

Mr Baxtor Rujan was elected Chairman of the KGK (Village Church Committee) for a second term, during their Annual General Meeting on Easter Sunday, 8th April 2007. In attendance were Fr Joseph Goh OFM, the Rector, as well as Mr Robert Josem, the Parish Council Chairman. There was also an impressive representation from the larger community for the meeting.

Divine Mercy Service-An Invitation

You are invited to attend a special service in honour of the Divine Mercy this Sunday, 15th April 2007, 3.00 pm sharp, at St Ann's Baruk, to mark the end a 9-Day Novena in honour of the Divine Mercy of Our Lord. There will be recitation of the Divine Mercy chaplet and litany, Liturgy of the Word and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.
Light refreshments will be served thereafter. You are most welcome to bring along a plate to share with others if you like.
Please ask your friends to join us too!
Enquiries: Call us at 082-611757!

Happy Easter!

A very Blessed Easter from all of us at St Ann's!
May the glory of the Risen Lord lighten your burdens and fill you with joy!

Divine Mercy Novena

30-40 people congregated on Good Friday evening to begin the Novena to the Divine Mercy, praying for personal needs abd the needs of the parish and benefactors.

Holy Wednesday

Mrs Anna Dan, a volunteer, busies herself with preparing altar bread for the Triduum, counting and packing thousands of hosts.

Reparing the Shrine

The wooden statue of St Ann at the 'pondok', or little house, or shrine, has literally disintegrated over the years, due to the elements and insect attacks. A new statue of Our Lady, Mary Immaculate will be erected in its place. A smaller, sturdier statue of St Ann will reside at the left hand side. Both will be encased in glass for protection and durability. We will post new photos upon completion.

Children sing Hosanna at Batu Gong

Out of the lips of babes come forth words of praise to the Messiah who entered Jerusalem to suffer and to die for the salvation of humankind. The children at St Paul's, Batu Gong congregated for the annual event on Sunday 1st April 2007, and posed for the camera with palm branches held in their hands.

The Baruk Leaks On

On Palm Sunday afternoon, parishioners gathered for the Sacrament of Reconciliation despite a heavy downpour. It was not a very comfortable experience, as one can imagine from the photos shown...

Lenten Confessions

The 2 photos chronicle a common practice during the season of Lent: Confessions in the villages. In the morning of Tuesday, 27th March 2007, Friars Moses Yap, Gerard Victor and Joseph Goh OFM arrived at Kampung Simpok to hear Confessions from 9 to 11 am, the continued in the evening from 7-9 pm. As Kampung Simpok is a large village, all three friars were heavily engaged in the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the day. The confessions usually start off with preparatory prayers.

Staff Changes and Additions

Sr Hilda Paim SSFS was a catechist in St Ann from 2002 to 2007. Hailing from Kampung Segong, Bau, Sr Hilda served St Ann’s parish with selfless dedication, often foregoing lunchtime breaks to complete her tasks. She was transferred to Bunan Gega in March. Replacing her is Sr Antoinette Sinin SSFS, a native of Singai, Bau. Sr Antoinette was in St Ann’s throughout the 1990s, but transferred to other parts of Sarawak wehere she was involved in parish and catechetical duties as well as formation. Sr Antoinette joined us in February.
John Harry Dan, the assistant catechist who joins us on 1st March as well, spent his whole life as a Telecoms technician. Nevertheless, most of his evenings and weekends were spent in service to the Church. After his retirement in February, his decision to work for the parish was a natural transition.

St Collette's Feast

On Saturday, 10th March 2007, the Catholic community at Taman Greenwood and its surrounding areas came together at Mr Lawrence Asai's home to celebrate Eucharist presided by the Rector of St Ann's. Approximately 100 people were in attendance. This was followed by a fellowship meal.

A Taste of Kampung Faith

Photos show the Catholic faithful at kampung Staang, Penrissen Road, after a Sunday celebration of the Eucharist with Friar Joseph Goh.

Tee-ing Off for St Ann!

Hi friends! The Charity Golf Tournament which was supposed to be held on 14th April has been postponed to 19th May! It will still be held at Kelab Golf Sarawak, Petra Jaya, 93050 Kuching, in aid of the new St Ann's Complex project.
For further information, please contact Mr Dominic Josip at 013-8019392.

RPR and Taman Landeh Celebrate Feastday

On Saturday, 24th February 2007, the Catholic Community of St Polycarp, RPR and Taman Landeh (10-15 minutes' drive away from the baruk) celebrated their feastday with a Celebration of the Eucharist, a fellowship meal, as well as a song and dance. In attendance were Friar Joseph Goh OFM and catechist Emily Ayu.

Celebrating the Family

Some time back, we posted a picture of the Holy Family and a prayer for families (used by the Archdiocese). Today, I thought I'd post a photo of the banner that we are using at St Ann (with 5 languages: English, Bahasa Malaysia, Bidayuh Biatah, Iban and Chinese) with the official logo. Posted here as well is the modified version used throughout St Ann, which also includes a short prayer for the success of the project of the new complex:

O God, in the Holy Family, you left us a perfect model of family life, lived in faith and obedience to your will. We thank you for our family. Give us the strength to remain united in love, generosity and the joy of living together. Help us in our mission of transmitting the faith that we received from our parents. Open the hearts of our children so that the seed of faith, which they received in baptism, will grow in them. Strengthen the faith of our young people, so they might grow in knowledge of Jesus. Increase love and faithfulness in all marriages, especially those going through times of suffering or difficulty, and shed your grace and blessing on all families worldwide. We also ask you to bless the new St Ann's Complex project, that it may be completed soon.

For those of you with 'sharp eyes', wondering why the Paschal candle is present during the season of Lent, the reason is simply because we had Babies' Baptism that afternoon.

Mass for the Sick

Approximately 300 men, women and children turned up at St Ann’s Baruk on Thursday, 15 February, for a Celebration of the Eucharist that focused laregly on the sick. Friars Joseph Goh and Gerard Victor OFM spoke of God’s healing through the Liturgy of the Word as well as through a laying on of hands at the end of the Mass.

Chinese New Year Ang Pow

I found this very interesting explanation on the Chinese red packet from Wikipedia Online:

"A red envelope or red packet (Traditional Chinese: 紅包; Simplified Chinese: 红包; pinyin: hóng bāo) is a monetary gift which is given in Chinese society, more appropriately, the Han people. The name comes from the red envelope in which the money is contained. It is called lai si (also transcribed lai see) (利是, 利市 or 利事) in Cantonese, Ang Pao in Min Nan/Taiwanse and Pung Pao in Hakka.
Red envelopes are often presented on social and family occasions such as a wedding reception or a holiday such as Chinese New Year (in which context it is also known as yāsuì qián, Traditional Chinese: 壓歲錢). The purpose of the red packet is that the red colour of the packet symbolizes good luck. The cash amount contained within is not important but is required to be of an even number as odd numbers are related to cash given during funerals (白金 Bai Jin). During Chinese New Year, a hóng bāo is typically given by married to the unmarried. Any unmarried individual is eligible regardless of age."

Chinese New Year is just around the corner...18th February, to be precise, and once again, the Chinese community, Christian and otherwise, will engage in the exchange of red packets. Christians no longer believe in luck as symbolised by the red colour of the envelopes, but rather in the Divine Providence of the Lord. Nevertheless, red is used litugically for the martyrs, Confirmation and the feast of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps as we exchange ang pows this year, we can remind ourselves of the gift of the Holy Spirit that Christ our Lord bestowed upon his Church after his ascension into Heaven.

At the same time, as we give red packets to friends and relatives, we could also consider presenting one to St Ann's Church Building Fund.

Happy Chinese New Year to everyone!!

Birthdays!!!

We celebrated Sr Anna's and Priscilla Jinang's birthdays on Tuesday, 13th February at the Presbytery Dining Room. Happy Birthday, ladies!!

Priests' Monthly Recollection

As the friars are ministering in a Diocesan parish, they take part in the monthly recollections at the Archbishop's Office, where priests take turn to share and conduct the recollections. Friars Moses, Gerard and Joseph attend these recollections regualrly.

Photos show the priests listening attentively as Fr Jerome Juleng, the Rector of St Jude, Bunan Gega, shares his views.

Some of the Events at our Parish on 11th February 2007

The Sub Parish of Teng Bekap met with Fr Joseph Goh OFM to mark important events for the year (11.30am), the St Ann's Annual Feastday Committee had its inaugural meeting with Fr Gerard OFM in attendance (2.30 pm), The Maintenance Committee met to discuss some infrastructural issues (2.30 pm).