Image via WikipediaI am back after a two week break in Kajang and the land of my birthplace. The well-needed respite from the parish was certainly welcomed.
In the meantime, with the solemnity of Ss Peter and Paul in the Church's liturgical calendar today, marks my 7th year in the priesthood and I continue to shake my head, as always, for having survived all these years in this ministry. It has its ups and downs and offers many opportunities to stretch my limits and even my sanity that this ministry can certainly qualify as one of the challenging 'jobs' in the universe (just my humble opinion)!
Seven years is nothing compared to my peers who have been at this half their lives and still have their heads firmly fixed on their shoulders, weathering the storms over their own years of serving, especially now in a world that has seen decline in priestly vocations and a general aversion to things religion.
It is a great challenge to be in this situation as a priest of today. Seven years is certainly not enough of experience to seriously or adequately handle the many issues of the faith that, in view of the current happenngs in the world, is seeing itself questioned and even mocked. Today, knowledge is power and all things tend to gravitate around this scheme that there is a great scramble to acquire such position. The Church of today finds itself in a very challenging role to account reasonably for its existence and, more importantly, to account for her mission to the Gospel of Christ which the apostles Peter and Paul had started on admirably during the pioneering life of the early Church years.
With my seven years in the priesthood, I have reached another milestone, after finishing my 2-year tour of duty in Rome and now grappling with the intricacies of life here in the parish of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. If there is any knowledge which I have acquired over the years, it is the knowledge that I still am an amateur in this ministry and the only constant is still change and taxes.
If only life could be simpler....
If only life could be simpler....
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5 comments:
hearhear! X3 and many more years ahead
Hello Fr Aloy,
Congrats on your seven years in priesthood (Don't really know which date your anniversary is)!! Thank you for being here for all of us. Aiyah, you can make it lah. You have been doing well so far.
Sometimes, I wonder why you are always so calm. How I wish I can be like you. Priesthood may be tough beyond our laypeople's imagination. Nevertheless, you are not alone. You have God who is with and in you. You have all of us supporting you. You also have the patron saint, St John, to pray for you all priests. If you are tired, we carry you on our shoulders. If we are tired, you carry us lo (Some of us may be too heavy for you. But, I believe your spiritual muscles are strong enough to carry anyone of us lah. Joking!). That is when we come together as body of Christ with Jesus as our head.
Continue to enjoy this dark chocolate experience of priesthood with its bitterness intertwined with sweetness which give your life an unique and interesting flavor. Life is short. Just do yoru best and leave the rest to God. We are always with you too. C'est la vie!!
With Love,
Elena
Alamak! I was just reminding myself on Sunday that it's gonna be THE DAY soon, and when THE DAY, I -cleanly forgot about it-!
I'm still thinking it's like 20-something of June today when I suddenly realise, oh no, it's 30 June already!
Happy anniv! 7 year itch? ;)
Thank you for all your sacrifices in serving us. Elena has put it so well to re-express it would risk plagiarism. I can only say I agree with her, 'ditto'.
The word verification required to enter this comment is 'insiser' and it has prompted me to encourage you to 'insist' on what is right in the wisdom that you have been endowed.
May God bless you and give you strength and stamina in your ministry.
Hi Fr Aloy,
Welcome back and Happy 7th Sacerdotal Anniversary.
As you work towards your 8th anniversary, may our Lord Jesus continue to walk with you.
In our prayers,
Sharon & Nick
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