Throwback NBVM/SCIC Parish Assembly 2025
On the 23rd of February parishioners of over 200 people participated in the annual parish assembly at the pastoral centre of NBVM. The event started with an opening prayer followed by the sharing of the Gospel of Luke (5:1-11) by our parish priest Rev Fr. Dominic.
After the sharing of the Gospel reading, Rev Fr. Dominic highlighted some key points during his homily that encouraged and advised us as we begin this new year with new plans for all ministries and all parishioners of the church.
Here are some key points shared by Rev Fr. Dominic:
On the Boat Together
- We are one Church and one people of God.
- Stay in the boat. Don’t abandon the boat and Jesus will guide us as he’s always in control.
Put Out into the Deep
- As we serve in our parish, we may face failures and challenges but, we must trust in the Lord Jesus and deepen our relationship with Him.
- Be disciplined in carrying out the mission that Jesus has entrusted to us.
- Go deeper in faith and do not be afraid.
A Big Catch, Full of Fish
- With God nothing is impossible.
- When we bring our intentions to Jesus, it will turn out to something great and beyond our expectations.
Shout for Help
- We need to work together in our ministries, within our families and at work.
- Assist one another and/or invite others to be our partners to work together and to help each other.
- Support and encourage one another when in need or in doubt.
Realisation, Conversion, Follow
- Change, and things become better when we put Jesus first in our lives.
- Move forward don’t look back in the past.
Rev Fr. Dominic ended his homily with a short message that is “to lead together as a team and not alone” as an encouragement for all parishioners to practice and imply in our daily lives.
The event continued with an introduction of the theme for this year 2025 which is the Jubilee Year of Hope/Pilgrims of Hope. The session carried on with some new announcements and updates such as the introduction to the museum ministry which is a new ministry in our parish in regards to the opening of the House of St. Joseph that was held earlier this year. A new line-up of the Parish Pastoral Council was introduced, as well as the new committee formation: Reconciliation Committee was introduced to resolve any misunderstanding within the ministry.
Gerald Anand, the new chairman of the Parish Pastoral Council led the first part of the event with the announcements and updates and ended with a token of appreciation for those who recently participated in the painting of the mural in the compound of NBVM.
A short video presentation of the past year’s events (Recap of 2024) was shown to all the attendees and was reviewed after by Gerald on behalf of all ministries. For the BEC’s was presented by Sharmen Glen (BEC Head). Both leaders shared some feedback of accomplishments and challenges that were faced in the past year events and the Finance Committee also showcased a detail break down of the financial status report in 2024 and the budget for 2025 of our parish.
Feedback of Ministries & BEC’s:
Ministries
- Joy – Fundraising of the House of St. Joseph, Ministry support collaboration, Growth and new members, Community building and social events, Spiritual growth and formation, Outreach and service & Long standing service.
- Challenges – Lack of musicians of the Choir/Music ministry, Difficulty in predicting attendance for prayer meetings and discussions, Limitations in providing food, ration and other small assistance.
BEC
- Joy – Gatherings are being held after a long hiatus at inactive BEC’s, Number of members increased due to newer residential areas coming up, Members within BEC’s got to know each other better during joint fellowships within zone, Inactive BEC’s are beginning to have regular meetings, Election of BEC’s spark new fresh leaders.
- Challenges – Language barrier
Based on the accomplishments and challenges that were covered, for this Jubilee Year of Hope in 2025 newer suggestions for all ministries to partake in was proposed which are to conduct pilgrimage, recollection (retreats/seminars), social mission activities (outreach programmes, recruitment, introduce ministry). All ministries were encouraged to consider these suggestions as part of their plans for 2025.
The final part of the assembly was opened to a Q&A session which all attendees had the opportunity to ask questions or share their thoughts/suggestions in areas where the parish can grow and improve. Many thoughts and suggestions were shared by the attendees and were taken into consideration by the leaders. Rev Fr. Dominic also shared some advice in response to the questions and concluded the session with a closing prayer.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” – Proverbs 3:5-6
By EMILY VALENTINE