austraLasia 971
(and a special welcome to Sri Lanka readers who join us with this edition)
SDB Crib puts Christ into Hong Kong Christmas
HONG KONG: 23rd December '04 -- Go to CityPlaza, one of HK's busiest shopping mall, and you will see the life-sized figures of Christmas Cribs on full display, thanks to Fr Carlo Socol's Salesian Catechetical Centre exhibition.
The best that HK's shoppers normally see are Santa, Christmas Trees and invitations to lavish dinners, commented Fr Socol. In true Don Bosco style, SCC decided to work in with the local shopping mall, whose manager thought that it would be sufficient to bring some idea of the origins of Christmas to his clientele, many if not most of whom would have little idea of the true meaning of Christmas. The manager may not have known the difference between Manager and Manger, but Fr Socol certainly does, and many local schools took part in the exhibition which, was won by a Franciscan Missionary of Mary school, St Rose of Lima.
Fr. Matthew Chan SDB was the chief judge, and Bishop Joseph Zen SDB the prize-giver. Interestingly enough, one of the prize-winners was a Taoist school, whose teachers decided that the Christmas message of 'universal peace and love' was enough to warrant their participation. The children learnt the story of Jesus' birth and the visit of the Three Wise Men before putting together their prize-winning exhibit.
Full marks, then, to the China Province. This time, what HK's shoppers got was a little more than they saw!
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