BUKIT MERTAJAM – For Catholics from Sabah and Sarawak as well as neighbouring Indonesia, celebrating Christmas here in Penang would be bittersweet as they are unable to enjoy the festive season with their loved ones in their distant hometown.
However, the annual Christmas mass held at Minor Basilica of St Anne held in various languages including Bahasa Malaysia, as well as the presence of the close-knit communities of Christian migrants here help make them feel at home.
Scoop today witnessed the BM version of the Christmas mass held at the church, which caters to local Catholics as well as those from Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia. This was the fifth and final mass to have taken place since yesterday, with an estimated number of 14,000 congregants participating.
For Sabahan police officer Conrad Lasius @ Elecius, 28, this year’s Christmas is the first that he celebrates here in Penang as he had always flown back home to celebrate the festive season with his extended family in Keningau.
“I do miss my hometown – but what can we do? I have to celebrate here due to budget constraints. Nevertheless, I am very happy to be able to celebrate here with my family,” he told Scoop after the mass.
This year’s Christmas is also a memorable one for both Lacius and his wife Erralynn Verconnie as they celebrate it with their newborn daughter – Chloe Faith.
“This year came with a lot of challenges but my hopes for next year is for my daughter to be blessed with good health and my family blessed with good fortune.”
Besides East Malaysians, Indonesians also attended the BM mass. One congregant from the neighbouring country, Ariehst, 30, told Scoop that he misses celebrating Christmas with his family in Kupang in East Nusa Tenggara.
Nevertheless, the building contractor found joy in celebrating the birth of Christ at the church here with the Indonesian Christian community in Penang.
Ariehst, who has been working here for five years, is also actively involved in Orang Muda Katolik – a group comprising Indonesian Catholics – which organises a myriad of activities such as performing Christmas carols during the festive season.
As the world braces for the new year in six days, Ariehst hopes that Indonesian Catholics here will be able to spend more time with their faith.
The St Anne church, which welcomes congregants from all parts of the world, was officially proclaimed a minor basilica on January 9, 2023 – three years after receiving the decree from Pope Francis.
The church was founded in 1846 by French missionaries from the Society of Foreign Missions of Paris.
Christmas messages of love, peace and solidarity
For Reverend Fr Bernard Hyacinth SJ, Christmas brings along many messages of love, kindness and compassion for one another regardless of differences.
Speaking to Scoop, Hyacinth said that with all the destruction taking place throughout the world, he shared, “God loves us and how much he wants us to participate in this love so that we stop destroying each other”.
“That is the whole message of Christmas. It is not about Santa Claus, bunnies, or reindeer. It is really about showing kindness and compassion beyond the boundaries of race, religion, nationality, politics, social status, and class,” he said.
Hyacinth also spoke about how Jesus Christ showed mankind how to love, forgive and show compassion to the poor, the marginalised, the single mothers, migrants, refugees, Orang Asli communities, and prisoners.
Hyacinth also said that the clergy members at the Minor Basilica want to communicate the message of the peace brought by Christ: which is to stop harming one another and show care for one another – despite the ongoing destruction worldwide.
“There is so much war and destruction (taking place) with all that is happening in Israel, Palestine, and even our neighbour, Myanmar.
“The message of Jesus is peace. It means stop hurting each other and treat one another as human beings who love God.
“We here in St Anne want to communicate this throughout the year – especially in our country as we are so divided racially, religiously, language, (and along) class (lines),” he added.
The reverend also spoke about the need for the people to protect the environment by putting an end towards acts that are detrimental to the environment.
“We need to start rebuilding (the environment and ) do whatever we can to stop anything that is harmful behaviour to our environment – right down to the rivers, oceans, and the lands.”
Meanwhile, Deacon Dave Kameron prayed that the Russo-Ukraine and Gaza wars would end soon when asked about his hopes for 2025. Speaking to Scoop, he lamented that these wars have victimised the poor, the destitute and those with nobody.
“It is never those who are politicians (suffering). It is (always) those at the bottom, and we pray for them.
“Hopefully all these wars will end and there will be peace in these places very soon.” – December 25, 2025.
