By Bernadette A. Fernandez
Dec 29 2020
“Christmas isn’t Christmas till it happens in your heart” … and those were the exact words that inspired the youths of the parish of Our Lady of Lourdes to come up with some Christmas-centric projects to help spread and keep the spirit of Christmas alive in the parish during this time of an ongoing pandemic.
With their yearly doorstep carolling being curtailed and discouraged, the senior youth members have initiated and released four Christmas song covers digitally to date, including the 18th century, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel and other classics such as, We Three Kings, both in English and Tamil and The First Noel. Collaborating with members of varying talents, these covers were shot, directed, and recorded inside the homes of some youths whilst adhering to all prevailing guiding directives. These covers can be found and enjoyed by all on their YouTube channel of Our Lady of Lourdes Youth Ministry.
Aside from the above, the youths also commenced a Secret Santa plan both amongst the youth of the parish and particularly for the children of foster homes within the parish’s vicinity. About 60 youth participated in this exercise and approximately 50 foster children are set to receive their Christmas gifts from well-wishing youths and parishioners in the coming days leading up to New Year’s.
Also, be that as it may, during these strange times, the Confirmation class of the parish too decided to try their hand in the performing arts sphere by bringing about a Grinch-themed drama titled The Magic of Christmas. The play showcased the different emotions experienced by the confined youths, particularly the feeling of despondency and the inability to celebrate Christmas with their family and friends at a usual scale. The drama ends with all the youth eventually realising that the joy of Christmas can always be found when hope and faith flourish with love fuelling its embers.
And with all this dynamism from the youth, the core theme of shared camaraderie, albeit in a different setting during Christmastime, continues to bring smiles to many parishioners despite the current circumstances, with many expressing a sense of renewed aspirations for the season and the new year. – Herald Malaysia
