the altar girls spoilt the show. I wish you luck in the liberal diocese that you are in.

Dear Thomas,

Thanks for your comment, although it is apparently tinged with extreme right notions.

I can appreciate it if you, like Cardinal Arinze, disagree with having altar girls. But to go further than Arinze by labeling a diocese "liberal" just because it has altar girls is rather preposterous.

Do write to the Holy See and tell them what a grave mistake they've made in permitting altar girls. When/if they do change their minds about it, I'm very sure my bishop will obey.

Thanks!

The fruits would be known many years to come when your diocese need more permanent deacons

Bishops or priests has the right to refuse altar girls if they want to and not a blanket norm or must.

If they are so obedient , then why are not complying with the GIRM or other matters as Rome asked.They picked and choose. One fine example is Gregorian Chants. Where are they? Even you said so

Likewise like communion in the hand is only an indult asked for by our Bishop conferences and can be taken back anytime.
I am not extreme right for your info but neither am i stupid to accept whatever the hierachy tells me.

Thomas,

Is the permanent diaconate to be reinstated simply because the Church lacks priests, or is it because we need to be true to the Sacred Tradition of the Church?

For your information, the Keningau Diocese in East Malaysia was one of the first Dioceses in Malaysia to have had altar girls. And it remains one of the few Dioceses in Malaysia to have the highest priestly vocations.

I'm neither arguing against nor in favour of altar girls. As far as I'm concerned, the Church (for whatever reason) has permitted it. Rome has spoken, the case is concluded.

But maybe you're right to not accept whatever the hierarchy tells you to; this was exactly what I was taught as a Protestant.

so one day the hierachy tells you that abortion is not a grave sin. Would you agree?

Rome has spoken but it is the Bishop or priest that makes a decision to accept the novelty. It is a different issue all together. Do you want me to post the Canon law on the matter?

Why not give examples of KL archdiocese or penang diocese which so far refuses to accept altar girls instead of keningau?

Are you justifying a novelty since you commented permanent diaconate is tradition.

Anyway I have written many times to your Lordship on the Summorum Pontificum for the extraordinary form. Yet to get a reply. That is obedience to Rome as it is a Moto Proprio

Poor Bishop Chan ..he was so against altar girls

His Lordship Paul Tan could wear the cassock and skullcap, or even the Roman chasuble with maniple for all I care, but what he allowed was truly lamentable

Sherman, I see that you are sitting on the fence with your support of altar girls. Are you scared?to rebuke is also Christian charity you know. That is the problem nowadays all in the spirit of political correctness.
I would die for Peter if I a have too and I am just a Catholic who fights for my church. Am i wrong compared to all the liberals like cancer who are destroying the church internally. Who are the Protestants? You tell me.

There are some important things to fight/labour for in the Church, and I do not make these concerns private. In fact, my concerns are often made known so openly that they are published in the press (e.g. Herald, UCANews, etc) by journalists.

The only thing is, altar girls is not one of those concerns. But really, if it's something of grave importance to you, by all means. Like I said, you can write to the Holy See on this. My bishop is not perfect, but he isn't disobedient. I may not always fully agree with him, but I do make it a point to respect and obey him as a cleric and as one of the faithful of the Church.

My only point in this correspondence is that you need to learn OBEDIENCE. To claim obedience to Mother Church and yet be speaking out against a bishop without any sense of respect is quite telling of a deficiency in your "sensus fidei", really. For where the bishop is, there is the Catholic Church.

Dear Sherman,
I had bowed down and kiss your Lordship hands many times. I use the word Lordship didn't I. How many of the faithful has actually done that?obedience is correct if not contrary to the faith. Have your Lordship has shown obedience by following the liturgical rubrics correctly?have your Lordship been obedient to the Pope by following his summorum pontificum or for that matter allowing it?lead by example and he is a respected apostle.

I am sure you know that some of seminarians from Keningau are ex altar boys aged between 25-35. The product of altar boys at the altar. Altar girls was only introduced to keningau diocese only about 2 years ago and the real fruits of vocation would only be known 30 years from now. That is a fairer comparison