Phaik Kee Teoh was born near the mouth of the Perak River in Malaya on the eve of the Pacific War. She spent her babyhood in the jungle where the women had to hide to escape the predatory behaviour of undisciplined enemy soldiers. Her birth registration shows she was the second twin. Because of harsh conditions in jungle life, she was fed on rice gruel; there was no milk. According...

When Portuguese missionaries arrived in what is now modern-day Kerala, India, they came face-to-face with an ancient community of Christians dating back to the ministry of the Apostle Thomas. They encountered a Church with a Syriac liturgy, Persian bishops, its own unique form of administration and religious practices which, while Christian, also reflected the Indian cultures amidst which th...

As another year comes to a close we will see the usual back and forth commentary about the cost of fireworks displays in all the major cities of the world to herald in the New Year. The largest display in Australia is put on in and around Sydney Harbour with approximately seven tonnes of fireworks launched. It is estimated that 1.6 million people watch the fireworks at vantage points ...

Warren Masilamony, a graduate of Wilfred Laurier University in Ontario, Canada, moved to Australia in 2010. He has travelled to 17 countries and now works as the broadcasting and production co-ordinator at WTV, Perth’s local community television channel. Mr Masilamony tells Juanita Shepherd about his favourite sport, the best thing about Christmas and the power of Jesus Christ. What adv...

My teenage niece wanted to study religious education in high school but was discouraged by her dad, who said it did not carry much weight, like science. My unbelieving brother-in-law chipped in, saying there was no point in studying something if you don’t know whether that something even exists. How can I help her? We can begin by saying that your brother-in-law is right as regards the p...

By Anne Pitos The transition from adolescent to adult is arguably the most difficult phase of our lives that we, as individuals, have or will face. It marks an ‘in-between’ time when our physical, emotional and spiritual selves endeavour to make sense of the world and the expectations of society and peers. It is a time when we truly learn about the balance between freedom and respo...

A brief shower of rain early in proceedings did little to dampen the enthusiasm of parish priest Father Vinh Dong and parishioners as principal celebrant Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB celebrated Mass in honour of the 25th Anniversary of All Saints Church, Greenwood on November 24 this year. Assistant priest Fr Quynh Do and resident priest Fr Tam Lai also assisted with celebration of Mass ...

I grew up in the Dong Nai province in Vietnam. When I was a child my father was very sick. He smoked a lot and this caused problems with his lungs. My mother asked my five sisters, brother and myself to go to church to pray for him. I thought if I joined a convent and became a nun I would be closer to God and I would have a lot of time to pray for my father to get well. So I joined th...

By Joao Albano At the bottom of our garden are several beehives and, since Spring, they have never failed to capture the attention of my gaze and my mind as I watch the bees either rocketing skywards as they leave the hive in search of pollen and nectar or descending just as quickly in haste but with method to return to the hive. It is astonishing that they never collide. To look insi...

Pope Benedict is considered to be one of the leading theologians of his era. The final volume in his Jesus of Nazareth series has just been released. It may yet turn out to be his magnum opus, report CNS’s Carol Glatz and Francis Rocca. The Nativity story, like the whole story of Christ, is not merely an event in the past, but has unfolding significance for people today, with implication...