The inaugural edition of the Admirabile Signum Nativity Scene Contest, organized in December by the Macau Catholic Culture Association, was contested by 16 Catholic schools. Magdalene of Canossa School was awarded the jury’s prize and was crowned champion overall, while the Salesian Institute’s manger won the ‘Internet Popularity Award’ polling one third of the votes.
The Senado Square will once again host, on Christmas Eve, a Christmas carol concert. Organized by the Diocesan Youth Commission, the carolling session aims to announce the good news of the birth of Christ and help spread what the true message of Christmas really is.
Christmas traditions are essential, especially when they act as a conduit to God. As Christians, we must always remember to make Jesus our focus and move away from the superficiality of the world.
Celebrating Christmas in the Indonesian archipelago is certainly a unique experience. Christianity has inevitably, over the centuries, adapted to local customs in an intricate process of acculturation.
The conclusions of the diocesan phase of the Synod of Bishops also explains the commitment to a broader communication strategy that is being adopted.
The Portuguese-language catechesis group at the Cathedral Parish recently organized a Christmas meeting at Cheoc Van that brought together about 80 catechists, children and their parents. The initiative, in which the 11th anniversary of the priestly ordination of Father Daniel Ribeiro was also celebrated, should set the pattern for future events of the kind, now that Macau has come to terms with Covid-19.
Bishop D. Stephen Lee Bun-sang requested and Coro Dóci Papiaçám di Macau obliged. The interim choral ensemble sang Christmas carols in Macanese Patois outside the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady on Saturday afternoon. Later, the group accompanied the evening mass at Saint Dominic’s Church. The purpose? To convey a message of hope, in times of crisis and rapid change.
The parish of Our Lady of Carmel has organized a drawing contest as a way to teach the younger generations the true meaning of Christmas. Under the motto “We Celebrate the Coming of the Lord with Peace and Love”, children of catechetical age who attend Sunday School in the only Catholic Church in Taipa, are invited to create Christmas-inspired artworks until December 18. The initiative aims to draw the kids’ attention to the fact that the real meaning of Christmas goes far beyond Santa Claus and exchanging gifts.
The Macau Catholic Culture Association wants the Christmas manger to become a familiar presence in the homes of local Catholics. The organization has launched a competition to choose Macau’s most beautiful Nativity scenes. The association is also selling a 12-day Advent Calendar that allows for the creation of a complete Christmas crèche.
Originally, the balls and the lights on Christmas trees symbolized the hope that nature would eventually overcome the cold and darkness of winter, and produce once again fruits and crops for our nourishment. May those fruits of conversion also bring hope and light to a world that is still in a deep moral winter.