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October 2012

Editor Says 28th October 1958: The day when Angelo Giuseppe

Roncalli, an elderly Patriarch of Venice , was elected Pope.

He took on the name Pope John XXIII, one that was so

dear to him because it was the name of his father as well

as the humble parish of his village when he was growing

up.

Pope John XXIII was seen by many as a 'transitory' Pope

because he was 77 years old when he was elected. In fact,

many did not expect much to be done by him. On the

contrary, his nomination was a turning point in the history

of our Catholic Church as well as the world.

Pope John XXIII became the first pope since 1870 to make

pastoral visits in his Diocese in Rome. On his first

Christmas Day celebration as a Pope, he visited sick

children in a hospital. He even went to Rome's Regina

Coeli prison to celebrate mass with the inmates. He told

them, "You could not come to me, so I came to you." He

won the affection of many for his warmth, humility and

sense of humour. A man who never forgot his humanity.

A priest who was always for the people. A Pope who

strived for dialogue with the world rather than to

condemn it.

Most importantly, this 'transitory' Pope left a legacy when

he called for an Ecumenical Council which is known as II

Vatican Council. He wanted the Council to open windows

of the Church, which had been shut off from the world for

far too long, and let in some fresh air.

From this Council, liturgy was revised, ecumenism was

encouraged, and a new approach of dialogue with the

world was emphasized.

Pope John XXIII, known also as the Preacher of Peace,

lived his life as a peacemaker. In October 1962, he

helped to prevent a war between Russia and United

States by his message to the leaders, ' “I beg heads of

state not to remain insensitive to the cry of humanity:

peace, peace. Let them do all that is in their power to

save peace; in this way they will avoid the horrors of a

war, the appalling consequences of which no one could

predict. Let them continue to negotiate….”

When Pope John XXIII was chosen, people regarded him

as a 'transitory' Pope. Well, God sees beyond. He saw

the potential in this elderly Pope that no one could see.

'...God sees not as man sees, for man looks at outward

appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.'(1 Samuel

16,7)Wise words from the Bible! It is so easy to judge by

appearances, and admire all that sparkle and dazzle.

Reflecting on the life of this great Pope, I realised that

we should open our eyes and see that in each person,

young or old, weak or strong, there is a potential of true

goodness, and capacity to make the world a better

place.

On 11th October 2012, the Church started the Year of

Faith to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the II Vatican

Council. Let us remember the humble person who gave

the Council its spirit and inspiration.

“Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams.

Think not about your frustrations, but about your

unfulfilled potential.

Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in,

but with what it is still possible for you to do.” ~Pope John XXIII

Verbum Dei Missionaries Singapore

73 Taman Mas Merah Singapore 128195

Tel: 62740251 Email:

verbumdeispore@yahoo.com.sg Website:

www.verbumdeisingapore.org

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Verbum Dei Family Day

7th Oct 2012

Disciples from Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday gathered to share, catch up, discuss, plan. The afternoon

started with Sandra, Gary, Yvonne, Monika and Desiree sharing on the Taiwan Asian Disciples

Encounter held in September. Maria Jose also shared with all the happenings that took place in the one

month of the IV Congress ( Loeches, Madrid) by showing photographs and introducing the new

government of Verbum Dei.

The next part of the meeting was to plan and project for Verbum Dei Singapore. Disciples broke into

groups to discuss the following questions:

What is your vision and projection for Verbum Dei Singapore?

What is the vision and projection for Sat/ Sun/ Tues Disciples group?

How can Sat/ Sun/ Tues Disciples group achieve and work towards a more vibrant growth in

community?

The fruit of the discussion was that everyone expressed the desire for even more growth, more

expansion.

Above: Sandra giving brief summary of the

Taiwan Disciples' Encounter.

Below: Maria Jose sharing on the IV Congress

that took place in Madrid.

Gary and Yvonne sharing their experiences in Taiwan

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“A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A

dream you dream together is reality.”

― John Lennon

Discussion in small groups

and then all gathered to

present ideas to whole group

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Preparation for Family Mission Trip to Tagaytay, Philippines

19th October 2012

We are organising our very first Family Mission Trip Tagaytay from 5th to 9th

December. We had our first meeting where all the participants who have signed up

for the mission trip gathered for first briefing.

Sandra going through the purpose and

schedule of the mission trip

Adeline sharing her experience of mission trip

she participated in Tagaytay 10 years ago

Participants of the Family Mission Trip

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Little Disciples

In the month of October, we celebrate two important days: Children's Day (5th October) as well as World Mission Sunday (21st October).

And so we are proud to feature our Little Disciples in this ViDa Issue. Let us listen as they share with us something special about themselves and their wise words they want to other children in this month of Mission! Enjoy!

I want to be a teacher like

my mummy. I want to teach

English to little children too.

I love Jesus and Mary. I like

to sing the song, 'Mary is our

Queen'.

Hannah Lee, 4 years old

I want to visit Australia because it is a

cooling place. I want to tell all children

that Jesus is your Shepherd. Everyone is

his sheep and if one is lost, He finds it and

he will not be angry.

Therese Lee, 6 years old

I like to eat eggs and

chicken wings. I want to

tell all the children that

God is our Father and

he loves everyone. I

love Him too!

I like to do art work and

swim. I want all children

to know that Jesus is our

Light and he takes care

of us. He gives us our

wonderful toys, just like

Bear Bear!

Edith Lee, 5

years old

Samantha Koh, 6 years old

I like to go to school.

Some nights, I pray to

Jesus with mummy.

Jesus is my best friend.

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Purple, gold and silver

are my favourite

colours. I pray to

Jesus every night. I

love Jesus a lot!

Neil , 5 years old

Francesca Ng, 6years old

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Garage Sale

Fund Raising Activity For Verbum Dei

Singapore

28th October 2012

Pre- Preparation for the day!

Our young chefs baked chocolate cookies to sell for our fundraising.

They took over three days to bake 100 containers of yummy cookies.

Meanwhile, the parents had the task of tying ribbons to decorate the

finished products. They raised $1000 for the fund raising! Well done!

People donated things from clothes to household

items to computer gadgets to kids' toys, etc.

Friends and disciples came over to the house two

days before the sale to sort and price the items.

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THE day!

In the early morning, helpers

setting up for garage sale.

And the buyers started coming

and buying...

The cashiers' section

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After a long morning, it was lunch time! Getting energy

for more action in the afternoon

Packing up at the end of a hard day's work

Seeking solace under a tree from the hot afternoon sun

And so, we ended the day tired but happy for the sunny weather and the fruitful

sale. We are also thankful to the Verbum Dei Family who helped us in so many ways to make this garage sale possible. A big

thank you too to the National University Science and Engineering students who came to help us on the day of the sale.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!