By Christine Cyrill
KUCHING — Holy Trinity Church, Kenyalang came alive on 30 November 2024 with an Advent and Christmas-themed evening prayer and celebration.
This special gathering was inspired by the Church’s sacred and solemn tradition of evening prayer, known as Vespers (from the Latin word “vesperi”, meaning evening), a part of the Liturgy of the Hours.
Imbued with the desire to spread “hope” (“spe” in Latin) through singing and sharing, the event themed around Psalm 89:1: “I will sing the Lord’s great love forever; I will speak of His faithfulness to everyone.” Young Catholics from different places met up and enjoyed the night with Jesus—the reason for the season.
The evening began with the celebration of Sunset Mass. After a short break, the youths gathered to pray Vespers, accompanied by some reflections on Advent. The evening then transitioned into a time of singing and sharing, with a live acoustic performance by St Peter’s College seminarians, and youths from St Stephen’s Bau further enlivened the gathering with their special ‘Music Game’.
Interwoven between those musical segments were inspiring faith testimonies given by Aaron Wong, Eva Simrenjit Kaur and Brother Joseph Uvarajah. Their sharings highlighted Advent as a season of HOPE, with God’s love as its foundation.
They also highlighted the role of Jesus as the assurance of eternal joy and peace and source of our hope, inviting everyone to be “home” to others for us to share hope. How? By providing love, comfort and light, especially to those in darkness, as an embodiment of Christ’s presence. The blend of singing and sharing that evening created an intimate atmosphere of community and connection.
Young people from various youth groups such as SEEKERS, Holy Trinity Church Youth, Alumni of Kuching Archdiocese Youth Apostolate (AKAYA) and Kuching Campus Ministry (KCM) prepared food and drinks for all to enjoy. They offered chicken rice, hot dogs, fries, pastries as well as Christmas-themed chocolate drinks to enhance the evening.
There were also merchandise stalls run by the Kuching Archdiocesan Youth Commission (KAYC) and St Mark’s Church Youth which offered unique items such as 3D printed rosary cards and ’emotion treasure boxes’ filled with the scripture passages that give reassurance in times of need.
The evening concluded with rector of Holy Trinity Church, Fr Eugene Maglasang, SDB giving a message and imparting to everyone God’s blessing. With smiles from everyone, the evening ended with the resounding message of the night—that faith and fellowship are powerful tools for inspiring hope.
