I am the vine; you are the branches...

On 10th October, members of our Children Ministry in Montalban met together for a Day of Recollection at Tandang Sora. It was a timely meeting as 34 of the youths gathered to deepen in their identity and relationship as a community of faith. The theme of John 15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches" was chosen to highlight belonging to their belonging to Christ and the church. As members of the local church and their own group, they were challenged to live in mutual love and support for one another through teachings, sharing groups and activities.
The day culminated with the celebration of the Holy Eucharist and the reminder to be thankful for all that God has blessed us with through the Church and in one another.
Teaching sessions ...
Sharing in groups...

Celebrating the Holy Eucharist ... Having fun... games and of course food!

Reaching out in Singapore

At the end of September, Esther was in Singapore for a short outreach to members of the National Evangelization Team and the Archdiocesan Commission for Missionary Activity (ACMA) Lay Missionary Formation participants. She faciliated a two day workshop on Innner Healing which drew around 30 participants. At the session, Esther highlighted the impact of events at the various stages of psychosocial development. Recognition of the negative impact of some of the events through memory or through the power of the Holy Spirit is the start to inner healing, followed repentance, release and the renewal of our minds.

“I realized that the person I hadn’t forgiven and therefore my healing was incomplete, was myself?” shared Elizabeth Tay. Another person shared, “I am now beginning to realize the root of my “problems” – this is the beginning of the healing process.

On a separate session, Esther shared with the ACMA Lay Missionary Formation partipants on Mission spirituality and encouraged them to be the link to Christ as missionaries. Below is an excerpt from an article written for the ACMA website...

Becoming the link to Christ

One of the participants commented at the end of the talk “Now I see more clearly, the difference between being a missionary and participating in social mission”

So what then, is missionary spirituality?

“Missionary spiritually spirituality is not just the way we pray, but the way we live, make choices, live out our values” continued Esther. She reminded her audience that there are always two aspects to being a missionary – the missionary is called by God and is sent in the power of the Holy Spirit. Being a missionary is a way of life and not just an irregular, spasmodic event

A missionary is a person who brings hope, life, love and joy. He/she is a person of the beatitudes and is called to be a saint. Holiness is a pre-requisite because this is the way we attract people to Jesus.

With over 80% of the population of Singapore yet to embrace the Good News, Esther reminded those present that they also need to consider their home ground as a mission field.

read more...

Our Korean outreach...

By Denzil Rodrigues

We arrived in Korea on the night of 10^th August 2010 to the warm welcome of ICPE Korea, led by Titus. The following day, we went straight into preparations for the two major upcoming outreaches.

The first event was the 3 day Korean Youth Day in Uijeongbu Diocese. On the first day, Titus and Domi gave a session on Sexuality for the youth whilst Carol and I performed a skit for the session. The next day, we organized sessions of workshops for the youth. We took turns to perform skits, to give short teachings and testimonies.

Our second outreach was the School of Evangelization in Kkottongne (Flower Village). In collaboration with ICPE Korea, the event drew thirty participants, including youths, adults, families and elderly couples. We had Praise and worship sessions, teachings, skits ,cell groups and prayer ministry sessions. Some of the participants shared that they experienced a major breakthrough in their life in the event. It was very touching to see them reconcile with each other during the ministry time. Even during the sessions of Praise and Worship, there was such joy to praise God. During the event, we also helped to minister to four children of the participants. I enjoyed playing with them even though I could not communicate in Korean and relied mainly on gestures.

As it was my first time in Korea I was blessed to see a new culture, to meet new people and to eat different kinds of food. I also experienced the warm greetings of people whom I would meet or pass by.

During the outreach, we experienced God’s providence in our fundraising efforts for the trip. We managed to raise the required US$800 through the sales of our home made cards and through the sponsorship of generous benefactors. We thank you for your prayers, support and participation in our mission in Korea! God bless you all!