Handing over of Parish Administration to Bishop

The official 'Handing over' ceremony was held at Shalom room at 8.30 pm. Fr. Robert Daniel in the presence of the PPC officially handed over the parish administration to his Lordship, Rt. Rev. Sebastian Francis who will be the administrator of the Parish for next year until the new parish priest, Fr. Francis Andrew takes over in December 2015. Fr. Francis Andrews will be on sabatical leave to Kent, England.

Farewell to Fr. Robert

Fourth Sunday of Advent 2014

Vice Chairman, Mr. Gerard Yeo giving the fatewell speech on behalf of Mr. Alex Poh

At today's mass, the parish bid a sad farewell to our beloved parish priest, Fr. Robert Daniel, who will be leaving us in a few days' time to take up his new posting as parish priest of Our Lady of Lourdes, Ipoh. After the thanksgiving hymn and post communion prayers, the PPC Vice-Chairman, Mr. Gerard Yeo read the farewell speech on behalf of the Chairman, Mr. Alex Poh who was indisposed.
Here is his farewell speech:

"REVEREND FR. ROBERT DANIEL, Rev. Sisters, and my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Peace be with you!
We have been through this many times before, but when it comes down to that last moment - a moment to say goodbye, we are unable to handle it as well as we thought we would. Our much loved parish priest, Fr. Robert, is moving to a new parish - Our Lady of Lourdes in Ipoh, the biggest parish in the Penang Diocese. He will celebrate his last mass hear in Kota Bharu next Friday, 26 December 2014.

We accept this move to the new parish as a common and regular practice in our Catholic Church that priests move within their diocese to serve another parish after a set amount of time. A little change, a little pain,but eventually a transition considered beneficial for the priest and parish alike. It is a thoughtful and orderly process that is classic for Catholics. Yet, I must confess that Fr. Robert's impending departure is very painful for us. However, we are consoled by the fact that he has laid a very good foundation for us to build upon.

Father's departure is not completely unexpected. He has been with our Church for more than six years. He will leave behind a legacy - spiritual thoughtfulness rooted in deep Catholic faith, our Agape Room, our new Church interior, our splendid Fatima Hall, our 5-star toilets and the beautiful Church landscape. If he were to stay a bit longer, he would have seen through the completion of the Fatima Columbarium. The renewal of our Church speaks a lot about his mission, hard work and vision. The joyful welcome extended to all, manifests the living presence of Christ in our midst.

Fr. Robert is able to relate to all of the parishioners. His homilies are so discerning, and he is able to relate the Scriptures to everyday life. He never reads or uses notes for his homilies;they come straight from his heart. The atmosphere of Mass is filled with deep reverence. He is passionate in all he does within the parish. and this is reflected in his homilies. In Fr. Robert, is found a model of someone sincerely and profoundly tapped into the richness of the Catholic faith, which in turn, made us want to deepen our relationship with Christ.  He knows what life is about, its joys and struggles. because he is a religious man of prayer, He knows what God's love is about, full of mercy and hope, healing and filled with joy. It is a great combination for preaching - knowing God and knowing people.

His leadership stems from his love for God and for his parishioners. We thank you Fr. Robert for your Truth and courage to speak the truth. You are a compassionate man, a friend to the sick and needy, but you stand like a rock on matters of principle. This is called integrity. Leadership has never been about popularity. Under Fr. Robert, the Church is a Church, not a business. It lives and breathes the Grace of God to all of its wounded and imperfect parishioners. We shall never forget the love, kindness and support which Fr. Robert has shown us. and of course his tolerance and forgiveness of our many imperfections. Amen to that!

I am sure that Fr. Robert's good work will still live on even after he leaves our parish. We shall always remember his faithfulness, constancy, zeal and dedication to his priesthood and his love for Mother Mary. This morning, we have an opportunity to celebrate his good work and to remember the great bonds of friendship and love that he inspires throughout the community. I am proud to say that Fr. Robert is our priest and our friend. Many of our parishioners will miss him, no doubt at all. We ask God to bless him abundantly as he begins his mission at his new parish.

In conclusion, please allow me to thank
The Food organising committee, the annual Family Christmas Organising Committee, the gracious Flower ladies, the musicians and youth choir, families and individuals who have sponsored the food and desserts, Lastly, I would like to thank each and everyone of you for making this farewell Christmas party such an unforgettable experience.
Please continue to grow and glow in love and beauty, graciously and gracefully.

Thank you and God bless.

Yours in Christ,
Alex Poh
Chairman, Parish Pastoral Council 2014

Fr. Robert giving his farewell speech

Fr. Robert in his farewell speech, thanked the people in the words of St. Paul to the Phillipians:

"Dear brothers, sisters, friends, young people,

"I thank my God, each time I think of you and when I pray, I pray with gladness." These are the words of St. Paul to his people in Phillipians.

It is truly an honour, a privilege and I am  truly joyful for having spent 6-7 years of priestly ministry in this community. I am truly edified and have grown through the many challenges which could become the stepping stones for me to minister to my new parish in Ipoh. Whatever I have truly experienced here in Kota Bharu, cannot be reproduced or reinvented elsewhere, for Kota Bharu and the community of Fatima remain unique and special. I am glad to have experienced that uniqueness and speciality of this community.

You have been there in every thought, plan, activity and prayer that I raise up to God. You have been there when I called you, invited you, and included you to be part of the Church. You were with me all the way in every step that I took in building this community. You have witnessed to Christ. You have been part of my ministry and my life as a priest. Thank you for everything that you have given.

I would like to thank the Parish Pastoral Council, represented through various ministries for your ardent, fervent and dedicated service as well as your care for the people and me. All your efforts will be truly blessed. I would like to convey my deepest appreciation to Mr. Alex Poh - (though regrettably, he is not able to be here on this occasion) - for his exemplified leadership and for the love of the community, which I will treasure. I would like to thank the FMM sisters for collaborating with me in my ministry. Your support, ministry and prayers are truly essential to the Fatima Community. I would also like to thank the young people from various universities for all the concern, sharing and love shown to me during my stay here. I want to see you as great people doing great work for God. Be brave, adventurous and embrace the world in all its totality, for it is in the world, God is to be found, that is in the human faces and in His Creation.

Last but not least, I am not only sent on a mission by my Bishop, to my new parish in Ipoh. I am sent by you also. You are also part of this mission. What I have experienced, whatever inspired and unfolded in and through this Fatima Community, will inspire and help me to be open to a greater world and God. Thank you and God bless. "

Yours in His Service,

Rev. Fr. Robert Daniel

Friday, 19th December 2014

The special farewell cake, rolled out by the 3 BEC coordinators, 

Fr. Robert cutting the Farewell cake.

Fatima Parish Christmas Party 2014

"Come, Share God's Love"

That was the theme for the Fatima Parish Christmas and Farewell Party 2014, organised annually and this year specially to bid farewell to our beloved Parish Priest, Fr. Robert Daniel.
The party began with the MC's Dr. David Pereira calling upon Fr. Robert to say the opening prayer and to welcome all present. A huge cake was wheeled in by the 3 Coordinators of the BEC's, Marianne Lim, Mary Martin and Flores from Kem Desa. Fr. Robert then cut the cake to the cheers of all present, and the Party began.
Boisterous carolling by the Youth choir welcomed the arrival of Santa and Satarina to the delight of the children present. Dance presentations from the kem children and demonstration 'Diabolo" were greeted with enthusiastic applause and the nativity play by the youths and KCYS was creative and made more interesting with the dance of the Angels in yellow!
Soon it was makan time, with a variety of dishes - roti jala, indian curries, glassnoodles, besides the usual fried noodles and karipaps. Ice cream for all donated by Mr. Ong. This was followed by Games for children, teens and adults all participating happily. The highlight of the party was none other than a Dance Presentation by the Parish Dance Group under    our dance instructor, Dr. David. Everybody were delighted to join in the ballroom dances.
All good things must come to an end and many lucky people received prizes from lucky Draw. We would like to thank the organizing committee, under the leadership of the BEC's coordinators. May Fr. Robert remember this beautiful farewell party and continue to pray for us as we wish him all the best in his new parish.

The Registration Committee under Rita Poh doing a fine job

Chistmas Carolling by the Youth Carollers setting the merry mood of the Christmas Party rolling

The young and bigger children engrossed in their games/competition

Posing for a quickie foto in the middle of their game.

Couples trying to stand on the smallest footprint - a folded newspaper.

Fr. Robert was the star of the day!

Santa and Santarina arriving to deliver goodies

Posing with the Clown was a favourite 

The 'Yellow Angels'  in action during the nativity play - adding a creative and colourful touch 

Participants in the games pause for a pose

Enjoying the sumptious food and icecreams

Prizes for the winners of the smallest footprint couple

Santa Claus receiving his lucky prize

My! My!, our  beloved FMM Sisters were real lucky! 

Last but not least, the luckiest MC - receiving her own prize from Fr. Robert!

Christmas Penitential Service 2014

 2nd Sunday of Advent

The Beautiful Advent wreath

Fr. Thomas Koo, Fr. Joseph Arulnathan and Fr. Victor Louis concelebrating Mass

Three priests from the North Deanery of the Diocese of Penang came to say mass and to hear our Christmas Confessions in preparation for Christmas. They were Fr. Joseph Arulnathan from Church of St. Francis de Sales, Setiawan, Fr. Victor Louis from The Church of Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Butterworth, and Fr. Thomas Koo, CDD, from the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Kulim


.

Fr. Arulnathan delivering his homily

                 
In his homily, Fr. Arulnathan spoke of St. John the Baptist who lived in the desert, and preached 'repentance' to the Jewish people. He was the 'Voice in the desert which cries,"Prepare in the wilderness, a way for the Lord' as written by Prophet Isaiah in the Old Testament in the First Reading (Isaiah 40: 1-5.9-11) We too need to prepare our hearts to receive Jesus this Christmas, by going into our 'spiritual desert' to experience God's presence.

The parish would like to thank all the 3 priests who came all the way to help us in this Christmas Penitential Service.