By BSL Soccom
LABUAN – Just as 16 April 1857 marks the official date of the founding of the Labuan mission as the first mission in Borneo, once again Labuan became the very first parish in the Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu to receive the Malaysia Pastoral Convention (MPC) Cross on Aug 12, 2025. The significance of the MPC Cross making its first stop at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament, Labuan is linked to the fact that the Catholic faith was first brought to the then North Borneo through the arrival of Msgr Don Carlos Cuarteron to Labuan in April 1857. The MPC Cross was brought to the parish by the Archdiocesan ‘Perjalanan Salib’ team led by Fr Rhobby Mojolou and accompanied by Fr Sunny Chung and Fr Isidore Gondilou. Also present were several Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (FSIC) and laities.
Although the arrival of the Cross was on a weekday and it was raining, nevertheless, the spirits of the parishioners were not dampened as a crowd of approximately 200 gathered as early as 5.00pm. After the 6.00pm Angelus prayer, by God’s grace, the rain subsided to a very light drizzle and this became a window of opportunity for parishioners to gather at the church compound to witness the handing over of the Cross. With the sound of the church bell ringing in the background, the Archdiocesan ‘Perjalanan Salib’ team brought the Cross to the compound of the church and before the Cross was passed on to the parish, Fr Rhobby addressed the crowd stating that the Cross is a sign of Christ’s greatest love for humanity. The Cross was then handed to the Labuan Parish Pastoral Council (LPPC) members with parish priest, Fr Thomas Madanan in attendance. The LPPC chairlady, Jocelyn Yeo, then expressed the joy of the parish in receiving the Cross and pledged to pass on the love of Christ to all its parishioners. The Cross was then brought in procession into the church under the accompaniment of the choir singing, ‘Lift High the Cross’.
The 7.00pm, Eucharistic celebration was presided by Fr Thomas and concelebrated by the other priest. In his homily, Fr Thomas reflected on the tremendous love of God for humanity by Christ’s total self-giving on the cross. The theme for the arrival of the Cross is to ‘Celebrate’, wherein the parish is delighted and honored to have received the Cross. While the Cross stays until Aug 23 in Labuan Parish, various programs for different age groups were prepared for parishioners. Parishioners were invited to ‘Listen’ and reflect on the meaning of the Cross and its relevance on the Family, Church, Ecology and Society. Towards the end of the journey, parishioners were exhorted to ‘Walk’ in the Light of the Lord.
A pot-bless fellowship was held after the Eucharistic celebration with a welcoming address by the LPPC chairlady, Jocelyn Yeo. In her address, she described the Cross as the heart of the Catholic faith, a sign of God’s greatest act of love, the altar upon which Jesus offered Himself for the salvation of humanity. In the Cross, suffering is transformed to victory, death into life, despair into hope and every time the Cross is looked upon, it reminds us of Christ’s own words, “whoever wants to be my disciple, must take up their cross and follow me.” She went on to explain that the Cross is one of nine crosses making their way across Malaysia and all the nine crosses will be united into a single cross during the MPC in September 2026 as a powerful sign of synodality. It is hoped that by the moving of the Cross, hearts would be drawn closer to Christ and to one another.
Fr Thomas then thanked the Archdiocesan team for delivering the Cross to the parish and expressed his hope that with the series of programs lined-up throughout the duration of the Cross in the parish, parishioners would have a deeper understanding of the significance of Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross and draw greater participation into the life of the church and its mission of saving souls.
