MY DEAR PARISHIONERS...

“Carpe Diem!”

As the Confirmation 3 students streamed in for their interview with me, my mind flashed back to scenes from a powerful thought-provoking movie, “Dead Poets Society” (1989). The movie tells of an English Professor, John Keating (Robin Williams), a graduate of Welton Academy, who returns to his alma mater after a teaching stint in London. He wants to open the eyes and minds of the latest batch of the prep school’s overachievers.

On the first day, Prof Keating ushers his students into a room filled with display cases and he encourages them to study the photos on display and to stare into the eyes of those who had walked the halls before them.

Keating: “Now I’d like you to step forward over here. They’re not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they’re destined for great things, just like many of you. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make of their lives even one iota of what they were capable of? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilising daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? --- Carpe --- hear it? --- Carpe, carpe diem, seize.”

“Carpe Diem!”

These are the most important words in the movie! It is Latin for “Seize the day” or more generally, “Live life to the fullest.”

I asked each of the Confirmation 3 students, barely 15 years old: “What do you want to do five years from now?” Some spoke with self-confidence, some were shy, some were modest, and some were ambitious - their parents had pre-ordained plans for their entire life. “Is that what you want or is that what your parents want?”

Later I asked myself the same question: “Am I seizing the day and living my life to the fullest?” My thoughts went to another young man who had perhaps asked himself the same question some 70 years ago. The young man was from Belgium – our beloved priest, Fr Louis Fossion. He certainly lived a full and remarkable life as God’s instrument. Even on the eve of his death, his mind was as clear as ever. When I called his name, he held my hand firmly. Then I read to him Psalm 23 “The Lord is my Shepherd; there is nothing I shall want…”

So what is life? A poster I spotted had these words: LIFE IS NOT A QUESTION TO BE ASKED BUT A MYSTERY TO BE LIVED. We need to ponder over this and seriously ask ourselves: “How do I want to live my life?”

In our columbarium we can all go and see a reminder of Fr Fossion. A giant in faith. A man who lived a remarkable life and remained faithful to the Lord and to his calling right to the very end. What about us? What can each of us give to the Lord? Blessed Mother Teresa once said, “God asks us to be faithful, not to be successful”.

As a Parish community then, let us journey together in faith and in the next three years, we will look at the main theme of FAMILY. We want to be a family of faith, not a family caught up and trapped by the lure of riches and false values. We can all look ahead to working together for the renewal of families, the growth of Small Christian Communities (SCCs), a programme to welcome the return of lapsed Catholics, the Alpha Programme, ongoing talks, formation and lots of prayer.

Our young men and women in the Confirmation class can take heart. What does the Lord require of us? “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8).

I wish all of you a very joyful Advent and a very holy and blessed Christmas.

Our God is faithful!

Fr Andrew Wong
Parish Priest