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For Catholic Education Sunday this year on 12 September, ACCS is inviting students and staff of Catholic schools across Singapore to contribute recordings for a virtual choir, singing the recessional hymn of our live-streamed Mass.
To enable young children to participate, they only need to sing the AMEN, as demonstrated in this video.
Catholic Education Sunday has been celebrated since 2017, bringing together our Archdiocese’s educational community, forming 50,000-over students from nursery, pre-school and primary school to secondary school and junior college.
Despite Covid-19 restrictions, we can still find creative means to maintain our communal ties and worship together from our homes – the domestic church.
With this song, we want to bless all our Catholic schools, religious families, students and educators, as well as the Catholic Church in Singapore, especially in our 200th year.
Instructions on how to participate can be found here, with the four main choir parts: soprano, alto, tenor and bass. Current students are encouraged to wear their school uniforms while singing. Please upload your recordings by Saturday 4 September 2021, 11pm. Late submissions may not be used.
At the turn of the 19th century, when only the nobility and middle class had access to education, St Magdalene of Canossa, the daughter of a marquis and a countess, spent her inheritance providing free education for the poorest of the poor.
She witnessed widespread suffering and unrest in her hometown Verona, caused by the Napoleonic Wars. Magdalene reasoned that educated Christian wives and mothers were the best way to form wholesome families, creating a virtuous society. For her, the aim of education was to lead people to experience God’s love.
In Singapore, the Canossian Sisters, or Canossian Daughters of Charity (FDCC, Figlie Della Carità Canossiane), founded Canossa Convent Primary School and Fatima Home on 15 August 1941, providing accommodation for thirty-one orphans.
Watch the Canossaville 80th Anniversary Commemorative Video here:
After surviving World War II and the Japanese Occupation, the Sisters established the Canossian School for the Deaf in 1956. That year, Sr Natalia Tasca FDCC gathered a group of six to work with her – this was the beginning of the Lay Canossians, who now number over a hundred.
Today, there are about 2,300 Canossians serving in 18 provinces on five continents. St Magdalene wrote that the Daughters of Charity are to be “detached from everything… and ready for the divine service and to go anywhere, even to the remotest Country.” Canossa Children and Community Services (Canossaville) continues the mission began by St Magdalene in Italy two centuries ago.
Learn more about what goes on behind the doors of the Canossian Village here:
The name of today’s feast comes from the Latin assumptionem, meaning to be taken up or received. Mary, as the Ark of the New Covenant, having borne the Word of God, the Lawgiver and the Bread of Life in her womb, is taken up to Heaven by God upon her death (Revelation 11:19).
If the patriarchs Enoch (Genesis 5:24) and Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) were taken up body and soul into Heaven simply for their faith, obedience and zeal, what more the Mother of God herself? As God is outside Time, the saving grace of Christ’s sacrifice could be applied backwards in time to Elijah and Enoch, just as God’s grace applied to Mary’s Immaculate Conception.
This feast reminds us of our mission, to be tabernacles of Christ like Mary. Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:16) and we bear the image of God (Genesis 1:27). What a glorious identity and dignity we possess as sons and daughters of God. Yet, we often fail to live up to our calling. We still suffer the weaknesses of our fallen human nature, and it is easy to forget our eternal end in the midst of the stresses and distractions of life on earth. How then can we cultivate a mindset befitting our true worth and the worth of those around us?
A rich prayer life helps us be mindful of the presence of God at all times. Traditionally, Catholics prayed “mini-prayers” or aspirations throughout the day, calling God to mind. For example: “May the Holy Trinity be blessed; O Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in Thee; my God and my all; as the Lord wills!” Some Bible verses are particularly suited for this mode of prayer: “O Lord, increase our faith (Luke 17:5); my Lord and my God (John 20:28); stay with us, O Lord (Luke 24:29).”
Another prayer tool to keep walking closely with God is the Divine Office, or the Liturgy of the Hours. Just as the Jews pray the scriptures several times a day, so do Catholics (Psalms 118:164). Monks used to pray all 150 Psalms in one week. Since Vatican II, the Liturgy of the Hours was reorganised so that the laity can join in this universal prayer of the Church as well, with the psalms distributed across four weeks. Making a habit of stopping throughout the day to pray helps you re-centre yourself in God and reminds you to offer every thought, word and deed to Him for sanctification.
About half a century ago, Catholic schools in Singapore used to pause at noon to pray the Angelus, a short prayer with three Hail Marys in honour of the Incarnation. Although this has fallen out of practice, you can always revive the tradition with a group of friends, stopping by the school chapel to honour God’s great love. By remaining close to God, one day we shall be with Him in paradise, just like Jesus and Mary.
“Jesus rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven. Then Mary, who received the Word of God and observed it, followed Him: she was assumed body and soul into heaven. Now, that’s God’s hope and plan for each of us: to receive Jesus into our souls, like Mary; to be obedient to Him, like Mary; and to be taken, one day, body and soul into heaven, like Mary.”
~ Archbishop Robert Carlson
Today is the Solemnity of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, when Jesus gave His three closest disciples a peek at His divinity, a confirmation of His identity as the Messiah (Mark 9:2-10). Universalis notes: “The true miracle of the Transfiguration is not the shining face or the white garments, but the fact that for the rest of the time Jesus hid His glory so well.”
In his book The Weight of Glory, C.S. Lewis reflects:
“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare.
“All day long we are, in some degree helping each other to one or the other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all of our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilisations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendours.”
In the stress and hurry of everyday life, absorbed with studies and other activities, it is easy to forget that the people around us, and indeed we ourselves, are destined for, as Loki likes to say, a “glorious purpose.” God created us in His own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26), and Jesus came to redeem us, restoring us to that original image of God, and enabling us to participate in the life-giving love of the Holy Trinity.
By practising little habits of respect and love for one another, we can maintain a sense of our ultimate destiny, allowing God to sanctify every action and moment in our days, no matter how mundane. The Franciscans of the Immaculate greet each other with the joyful words Ave Maria!, recognising the likeness of Mary – the beloved daughter of the Father, mother of the Son, and spouse and temple of the Holy Spirit – in one another. In this way, they also remind each other of their vocation, to become ever more like Mary, bearing Christ to the world.
Similarly, in Asian cultures we are expected to greet our elders; it is considered rude if we do not, which can be difficult for a shy child – but that simple act of greeting is an acknowledgement of the other person’s presence and their human dignity. We stand to greet our teachers as they enter the classroom, respecting their authority as our educators.
Greeting our parents, siblings and friends can be a simple act of love. I used to have an exuberant classmate, Vanessa, who bounded into class every morning with a loud, “Good morning everyone!” Her cheerful greeting set a positive tone for the start of each day, and became one of the rituals which cemented our classroom atmosphere of friendship and mutual encouragement.
What other small but important habits can you think of, which can foster an environment of love and respect in your classroom or at home? How can you help the people around you get closer to Heaven?
Following a successful Catholic Education Conference 2021, we are proud to present a five-part series based on Archbishop William Goh’s address at the conference. In part 5, we contemplate how to build supportive school communities which provide meaning and comfort for students, especially in their times of trial.
The mark of a Catholic school is whether it is a loving community, a community that embraces every human person. Those who are intellectually strong, those who are intellectually weak, those who are financially wealthy, those who are poor – every person is accepted, respected, regardless of race, language, religion. Every person is given the encouragement, that no students should ever give up hope on themselves.
A Catholic ambience means we will keep on encouraging the person – no-one is hopeless. It’s a place also where there is forgiveness. People make mistakes, we are learning, we are all growing, nobody is condemned, nobody is humiliated. We have to treat people gently, be compassionate.
Everybody has his or her dignity. If we need to correct someone, we correct them with gentleness, with firmness.
And also, because we are a Eucharistic community, we are called to share Christian values to make sure the community, the students, are growing in selfless service. Most of all, if they are ambitious – it’s good to be ambitious – but not for yourself, not for one’s glory, but for the growth and the good of the community.
Forging Fellowship
So, this is what the Catholic ambience is all about, encouraging our young ones to help each other. You know, in many schools today, we have some of the students bullying each other – this is where we need to help them to be sensitive, because many are broken also, many are wounded, and this is where we are called to help them to build fraternity.
And what a greater way to celebrate, to help people encounter God, through the God experience: liturgy, prayer sessions, festivals – the Church has many feasts, because it is in the celebration of these feasts, that we come to encounter Jesus.
On founder’s days or patron saints’ days, these are all our heroes that we are called to imitate.
And so, I want to remind you all, be careful, don’t remove all references to the sacred in our schools and in your life, because without God, there will be a vacuum in the lives of our young people. Life is reduced to pleasure, success, but will they find meaning? Will they find purpose? Would they be happy? Will they live a life of fulfilment? That is the whole purpose of education.
Support and Meaning
Not so long ago, our minister Lawrence Wong in 2019, he said, “94 young people between the age of 10 to 29 committed suicide. Of these, 19 were aged between 10 and 18 years old.”
Today our students are very stressed. Two weeks ago, we had a professor from IMH – he was writing an article that, the only way to deal with a loss of faith and the will to live, is to help people to find faith.
He made it clear, those who are suffering from depression are less likely to commit suicide if they have religion, than those without, because those with religion, they have purpose and meaning in life, they have spiritual and emotional support.
We need to provide our young people with a strong Catholic school community and spiritual support, so that they will not feel alone. This is why, my dear brothers and sisters, we need to uphold Catholic schools’ values and our mission, to continue to help these young people to grow, to become great leaders for tomorrow.
Let us go back to basics, let us go back to our founders and learn from them how to bring the Gospel into the lives of our students and so prepare them to be leaders of tomorrow and, most of all, to be people who live life with purpose, meaning and fullness.
Reflection Questions:
- Teachers – do you remind your students that, despite our performance-driven culture, there are more important things than grades, and ultimately success can come in many different ways? How do you care for your own mental and spiritual health?
- Students – how do you cope with the pressures of study? Are you aware of mental health and spiritual supports provided in school and the wider community? Whom can you talk to if you are going through difficulties?
- Parents – life can be stressful juggling work and family duties. How do you maintain your family’s mental and spiritual health? Are your children comfortable opening up to you about their struggles? Do you know where to seek help if you or your family members require more support?
If you need more support in maintaining your spiritual or mental well-being, you may reach out to Catholic Family Life or helplines by various community care organisations in Singapore.
Following a successful Catholic Education Conference 2021, we are proud to present a five-part series based on Archbishop William Goh’s address at the conference. In part 4, we focus on how Catholic schools can provide a space for encountering the Divine.
How can we create this God experience? Actually, “creating” this God experience is a fallacy – we cannot create a God experience, because if we do, then we are artificially creating an experience through a program or technique. It becomes something psychological, as if we can condition a person to encounter Jesus.
If it is through techniques alone that we make God appear and disappear, that cannot be God. God is ultimately free.
A God experience is primarily a gift from God: it is God’s prerogative for Him to reveal Himself or not. It is like in a relationship, it’s up to the person to reveal himself. That is why in the relationship we are not in control; it depends on the person who wants to reveal himself.
What we mean, according to our theme, “to create this God experience” – to create this God experience is really to provide the ambience for people to encounter Jesus, to encounter God in a very concrete way.
Facilitating Encounters with the Divine
To create a God experience is to provide first and foremost, a sacred presence in our schools, that when you enter a Catholic school, immediately you must feel a big difference than when you enter a secular school. When you enter a Catholic school, do you feel there is something different? The atmosphere.
That is why in creating a sacred presence in school, it is certainly appropriate and necessary to have a chapel. Of course, we know that it is very costly to construct a chapel – those schools that have them, praise God for your benefactors.
Even if we cannot provide a chapel, a prayer space, a prayer room is necessary, because students have many issues in their life, they have lots of struggles and sometimes you need to have a sacred space to be alone. Not just to be alone, but alone with God.
God’s Comforting Presence
I’m sure many of you who came from Catholic schools, you all know that. In those times, even in my own life, when I was sad, when I was discouraged, when I was bullied in school, when I failed my exams – sometimes no human words can console you. You go to the church; you just sit there and the Lord speaks to us.
So, don’t ever think that having a prayer room is a waste of money, it is not, but you need to make sure it has a sacred presence. That is why in our Catholic churches we always have the Blessed Sacrament, because somehow when the Blessed Sacrament is present, we feel very different, we know that God is there.
Of course, supplementing the chapel or the prayer room, we should have statues, prayer cards, prayer books. Do you know that when I visited one mosque, even the imam provided a Bible for Christians who need that space to pray!
My dear brothers and sisters, sometimes when we are looking for something, we go to a prayer room and there is a card, there is a prayer book, there is a Bible, and we are inspired.
Daily Inspiration
God comes to us in very different ways – sometimes it’s the placement of inspiring scripture texts in school. These are all important catechesis to Catholics and to those who wish to know Christ. Try to get all the students, and parents especially, to be more involved in the work of catechesis, because it is a win-win situation. The best way we can increase our faith is to impart it.
It is not just all external. When we talk about the incarnational presence of Christ, it is more than all these statues, images and scripture texts. What is more important, is that this must be translated into daily life, and so, for me the mark of a Catholic school, is whether it is a loving community, a community that embraces every human person.
Reflection Questions:
- Teachers – what are little ways in which you can help your students and colleagues build a relationship with God? Are you able to take time out of your day for prayer to deepen your own spiritual life?
- Students – do you have habits or sacramentals which help you grow closer to God during your studies? Are there particular saints whose example helps you in your faith journey?
- Parents – how do you inculcate habits of faith in your children? Is there a prayer space or family altar where your children can spend time with God? Do they have access to the Bible and the lives of the saints?
With all the COVID restrictions, your family might be going a tad stir-crazy these holidays! Here are some suggestions to maintain peace and harmony at home despite cabin fever.
1. Establish a healthy routine and limit screen time.
- Yes, it may be tempting to let the children sit in front of screens all day while you try to work from home, finish housework or have a break. Do not give in to this temptation. Excessive screen time increases irritability, addiction and the chance of worsening myopia. Work with your children to set sensible boundaries around digital technology.
- As better alternatives, give them access to books, crafts, Lego and puzzles. Let them roam free in the nearest library. A love of books will let your child travel far through time and space despite current border restrictions!
- Music is another fantastic outlet for children and youth to regulate their moods while spending some happy hours exploring culture. Learning various instruments or choral singing is excellent for developing discipline, boosting brain power and improving overall well-being.
- If you and your children really need them to have some screen time, there are various enriching activities available online. They can learn a new language through Duolingo, practise their typing skills, or play games involving maths, logic, science and geography.
2. Include your children in your daily routine.
- Research shows that children who are given housework tend to grow into more independent and responsible adults. Have your offspring contribute to the family through age-appropriate tasks. You can make it fun by having laundry-folding races or dishwashing sing-a-longs.
- Instead of leaving them at home while you go grocery-shopping, why not involve them in the process and teach them how to select produce or compare prices? They can simultaneously hone their home economics and maths skills.
- Also, teaching children how to cook from a young age instils the good habits foundational for a balanced diet. It may be more efficient in the short run to do the cooking yourself, but patience with your child in the kitchen will pay off in the long run, especially when they start cooking meals for you!
3. Incorporate exercise.
- Physical exercise is essential to good mental health. Even a short walk around the block can be very beneficial, increasing endorphins and improving your family’s mood. If you live close enough to nature, you can enliven the walk with some birdwatching or plant identification – there are apps available to assist in these educational endeavours.
- Even at home, you can try out online martial arts, pilates or dance classes with your family to get the blood pumping.
4. Take turns with your spouse to have “time off”.
- Particularly if you are both working from home and do not have grandparents or domestic helpers to assist, pre-established schedules can save everyone’s sanity and manage expectations.
5. Remember to pray.
- Making a habit of praying the Divine Office, the Rosary, or just short prayers like the Morning Offering, the Angelus and the Guardian Angel prayer, lets everyone pause and recall the presence of God, helping them see others in a more charitable light. At the end of each day, you and your children can thank God for various blessings received throughout the day, going to bed in a more joyful frame of mind.
Can you think of more holiday tips to share with other families? Do leave them in the comments section below this article.
Following a successful Catholic Education Conference 2021, we are proud to present a five-part series based on Archbishop William Goh’s address at the conference. In part 3, we reflect on parents’ expectations of a Catholic education for their children.
Catholic parents send their children to Catholic schools. For what reason? Because they believe and hope that our schools will continue to help their children to grow in faith, to guide them in their faith, to help them to be moulded in the Gospel values.
Otherwise, why should our Catholic parents send their children to Catholic schools? There are many secular schools today and many of them are doing equally well. We need to do justice to our parents.
Need for a Genuine Encounter
Whenever I walk about, Catholic parents always tell me, “Our Catholic schools are not doing enough for the faith of our children.”
A number of them, because they are so convicted that Jesus is the one who will be able to give them fullness of life, they prefer to send them to the Protestant schools.
The truth is that even our Catholic students, including teachers of course, many of them do not have a real personal experience of Christ in their life, at most some intellectual knowledge – that is the reason why we find that their transformation of life is weak.
The Catholic Ethos
I also want you to remember this: not only why Catholic parents send their children to Catholic schools – why do non-Catholic parents send their children to Catholic schools? They don’t have to, they can choose other schools. This is because, again, they have seen the fruits of children who study in Catholic schools.
They might not embrace the faith entirely, but certainly they approve of our Catholic ethos, the programs, our respect for their faith, and that is the reason why they believe that we will impart these Catholic ethos.
Otherwise, as I have said, I wouldn’t send my child to a school where I don’t believe in the ethos that the school is promoting.
In truth, many parents want their children to be brought up with faith in God and for moral values to be part of their educational formation.
Ultimate Happiness
So, it’s important for us to try to appreciate what Catholic schools can offer that secular schools cannot. Secular schools can offer good academic formation, human education, leadership, but can they offer the meaning and purpose in life? Can they tell you what is life? What is the purpose of life? What are we living for? What is the ultimate goal of all that we are doing?
Only religious schools remind us the ultimate goal is not just in this life, that we have a soul, we have a destiny. Our ultimate happiness is life with God. That is why Catholic schools offer a Catholic ambience, a Catholic way of life, Catholic values, but I think most of all, most importantly we offer students meaning and purpose in this world, in view of the world hereafter.
Reflection Questions:
- Teachers – how do you contribute to the Catholic ethos of your school?
- Students – are there ways in which you can engage more deeply with your faith in school?
- Parents – can you foster a faith-filled environment at home, which spills over into your child’s school life?