Reported by Clementi Wong
Photo by Parish SOCCOM
Sandakan: When the Diocese of Sandakan celebrated the Chrism Mass along with the renewal of priestly vows, the main celebrant, Bishop Julius Gitom, was accompanied by priests of the Diocese of Sandakan as concelebrants: Fr. Simon Kontou, Fr. Christopher Ireneus, Fr. Dafrinn Diwol, Fr. David Garaman, Fr. Stephen Esguerra, Fr. Stanley William, Fr. Raymond Lee, Fr. Arthur John and Fr. Nicholas Ong.
In his homily, the bishop recalled that the Chrism Mass is a joyful vocation to be a priest. He shared the thoughts of the late Bishop David G. O’Conell, Los Angeles, about the Chrism Mass: “It is a special opportunity to remember the weakness of the priest and therefore to make him constantly humble and rely on God.” Since the hands of the priests were anointed with chrism oil, this is a reminder that a priest is a sacramental instrument to do the Lord’s work of offering sanctification. When ordained, a priest should pay attention to how he speaks the words of God on his lips. This adds a voice of confirmation to the scenario when Jesus was baptized that he is the chosen one, as today priests have been ordained, meaning they are the chosen ones.
Bishop Julius took the opportunity to remind his fellow priests and himself to always pray in order to depend on God’s love and mercy.
Finally, Bishop Julius also asked the congregation to pray for one of the priests of our diocese, Fr. Marcellinus Pongking who passed away a few months ago and also pray for Father Thomas Makajil who is still undergoing treatment in Kota Kinabalu.
