Holy Week begins for Catholics

ALOR SETAR – Yesterday, the Catholic community here celebrated Palm Sunday together with Christians around the world marking the beginning of the Holy Week leading up to Easter Sunday, a celebration to commemorate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Yesterday, the Catholic community in Alor Setar celebrated Palm Sunday together with Christians around the world marking the beginning of the Holy Week leading up to Easter Sunday, a celebration to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Parishioners congregated at St Michael’s Catholic Church in Jalan Langgar with palm leaves in their hands to commemorate Palm Sunday which marks the day Jesus rode a donkey’s back into Jerusalem while being greeted by cheering crowds bearing palm leaves, according to the Bible.

Christians were seen gathered in front of the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes church grounds raising their palm leaves as the priest, Rev Fr Vincent Paul, said the opening prayer and sprinkled Holy Water to bless the palm leaves and the congregation.

Procession waving palms

The unusually large crowd jam packed the small church for the solemn feast day which is also known as Passion Sunday.

Catholics gathered at St Michael parish

It is a normal practice for Catholics to place the blessed palm leaves at the altars of their home. They sometimes hang it at the entrance of their homes for the whole year.

The palm leaves will then be retrieved the following year to be burnt. The ashes are later collected and marked on the foreheads of the church members on Ash Wednesday.

Home altar with blessed palm leaves
Palm leaf at the house entrance
Dried leaves from the year before to be burnt
Priest blessing the youths

Years ago, the Pope declared Palm Sunday as the “World Youth Day”.

In conjunction with this day, Rev. Fr Vincent Paul called upon all youths present to approach the altar at the end of the day to give them a special blessing.

 

Dave Jean Kameron

A final year medical student & a ICFJ Fellow , that’s affectionately known amongst his friends as the walking encyclopedia – Mr. Wiki! Growing up in the ‘ghetto’ of KL vis a vis Sentul, gave him the first hand feel of the realities of being a Malaysian at grass roots. Perhaps, this was what brought about that desire for change, equality and justice? 10 years in advertising provided the perfect playground for his equally amazing left brain.Today, a stringer for MalaysiaKini, happy father of 2, a good husband and oak like faith in God is indeed living the dream of slums to success, and hence sees hope and possibility for everyone... a blip by Sherril Netto