Tet is nearly upon us

Preist, religious and I think those women in traditional dress are financial givers. 

Well, hard to believe time is not slowing down for me.
Retreat has concluded, we return to send off the girls on their reunion with family for the tet holiday (Chinese New Year).
Anne has gone back to Australia for a few weeks and now its just a small community.

The other day we were invited to the parish new year celebrations.
It was great celebrations with the sense that many people have started that journey back to their home place for the celebrations.

After Mass we had a meal and singing. Mary did community proud with her singing.

So I thought I would take this moment to show pictures of the church. This is the one that is next to us. The photos are taken by a local man who is like the parish photographer really. It seems normal to take photos of every occasion including funerals that are often tap onto the end of a mass.
Anyhow, you will get a sense of the church we gather to celebration the Eucharist each day.

I will write more of the happenings in the coming days.

  

Parish Priest

One of the many choirs. 

 
It is hard to capture the sense of the building, its tall with empty like space that cathedrals often have. The design is typical in cross - t - form, with two towers at each side. The bells ring hour, half hour and during mass. They can be heard over the small settlement that has been built up around the church.
Outside ... well that is another story, I will take photos of this. There are a number of stairs to climb just to get into the church. Its about three stories tall. The courtyard has large stations of the cross around it, statues of Mary, Joseph outside which everyone bows to when entering. It is an impressive church in the sense of the building. While the parish itself are still gender segregated with one side male and one female. The only female that are on the altar are singers for psalm, readers. The Eucharist ministers are always male with only those Sisters wearing habit step in when needs be. At times its something out of history books. I have often sat in lectures listening to people talk about the old ways, the ways things were done. Little did I know I would get to experience it too.

So this is the church we are in for now, we move house soon and the church community we join will change once again.... For now though this is the place we gather in thanks.