PENANG (UCAN): The 176-year-old Church of Saint Anne in Bukit Mertajam, the Diocese of Penang, Malaysia, a popular pilgrim centre, was elevated to the status of a minor basilica three years after being granted the title by the Holy See making it the first one in the country.
The Malay Mail reported that the solemn declaration was proclaimed on January 9, followed by a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Goh William of Singapore.
“Be hospitable, welcoming, inclusive. Be respectful so that people can truly encounter God’s face, God’s mercy, and love in and through us,” Cardinal Goh said in his homily.
The cardinal observed that St. Anne was “a great intercessor, a great model” for every individual.
He stressed the influence of the minor basilica among the non-Catholic people in and around the region who “have turned to this shrine to ask for help in their desperation. [Which] is truly a beautiful sign of harmony.”
Archbishop Wojciech Zaluski, apostolic nuncio to Malaysia, Bishop Sebastian Francis of Penang, and Archbishop Julian Leow Beng Kim of Kuala Lumpur were also present together with other bishops and dignitaries.
Be hospitable, welcoming, inclusive. Be respectful so that people can truly encounter God’s face, God’s mercy, and love in and through us
Cardinal Goh
Chow Kon Yeow, chief minister of Penang, Steven Sim deputy finance minister, and Yeoh Soon Hin from the Malacca State Executive Council were also present.
About 2,000 clergy and faithful from Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Thailand, Pakistan, and New Zealand, along with representatives from the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Taoism also attended the ceremony.
During the ceremony, the Bible Society of Malaysia unveiled the Identity: Identified–Youth New Testament Bible, specially designed for youths in collaboration with the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences.
Reverend Matthew K. Punnoose, the society’s general secretary, said that the Bible aims to “help young people discern their calling in life.”
He said that the youth movement of the Bible Society themed ‘Come follow me’ was an “ongoing movement for young people to see God’s guidance and help in making good decisions about life and faith.”
If you look at the testimonies, the church has [affected] everything under the sun, from people overcoming financial difficulties to finding jobs, finding their life partner, and having children
Bishop Sebastian
Its elevation to a minor basilica permits Saint Anne’s Church to display symbols that are specific to its status.
The church is now permitted to display the ombrellino — a silk canopy that is designed with traditional papal yellow and red coloured stripes. It also gets to display the tintinnabulum—a bell that is mounted on a pole and carried along with the ombrellino on special occasions.
The logo consisting of the papal ombrellino, open Bible, papal cross keys, white lily, and its green leaves along with the words “Saint Anne, pray for us” was displayed at the church.
The papal cross keys symbolise the continuous relationship between the minor basilica and the pope.
Earlier, Bishop Sebastian Francis of Penang said that his application to elevate the church to a minor basilica was due to its ability to draw crowds from all levels of society.
“If you look at the testimonies, the church has [affected] everything under the sun, from people overcoming financial difficulties to finding jobs, finding their life partner, and having children,” the Herald Malaysia Catholic weekly reported Bishop Sebastian as saying.
He added that the church’s elevation is something that’s “not about religion, it is about life. It is about spirituality. It is about blessing us.”
“That is why I decided to name St. Anne as a shrine of harmony, to instill, to ingrain and impress the bond of humanity among all of us,” the bishop said.
The Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments in Rome issued a decree on 5 September 2019, based on Bishop Sebastian’s request, which granted the title of Minor Basilica to the Church of St. Anne.
Father Adolphe Couellan from the Paris Foreign Missions Society, established the original shrine in 1846. In 1998, a larger church was built adjacent to the original with a seating capacity of 2,200.
The annual feast of St. Anne in July draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims and visitors from Malaysia and neighbouring countries.
