November 28 marked the groundbreaking ceremony and site blessing of the Catholic Hub, Singapore Archdiocese’s upcoming spiritual oasis that will ensure that organizations, parishes, and other church groups can fuel the growth of the church through a wider outreach.
Cardinal William Goh, together with priests from the various parishes and Spiritual Directors of the Archdiocesan organizations, shoveled the earth at the site as a symbol of breaking the ground to mark the beginning of the Catholic Hub’s construction before proceeding to bless the site and the workers who will be working on this project.
He asked everyone’s prayers for the building of this spiritual oasis. “May it be brought to completion with God’s protection and be a place where greater depth of communion can happen between collaborators to facilitate the transformation of hearts and minds for the glory of God,” he said.
The archdiocese has been working to build a more vibrant, evangelizing, and missionary church. In sharing the Good News, the archdiocese is bringing the hope and love of Christ to vast numbers of people.
Within the church today, however, there are currently no premises large enough for church-based organizations and communities to hold their activities on a large scale. After much study, the archdiocese concluded that the Church’s largest freehold site at 49 Upper Thomson Road could optimally be used to house major Archdiocesan organizations, a convention center with overnight retreat facilities, a home for senior clergy, and more for the long-term needs of the Church.
“Beyond physical infrastructure, such a Catholic Hub can bring about a greater depth of communion. The facilities and organizations located there will enable collaboration for a more effective witnessing of the gospel to the people of Singapore and reap economies of scale,” the cardinal said.
Catholics of all ages can gather to benefit from different programs within one venue. In recognition of the site’s rich history, several existing buildings have been identified for conservation.
With this, a heritage center is planned in one of them to showcase the seminal work of the Catholic community these past 200 years, reach out to the broader community, and serve future generations of disciples.
“This vision for the Hub is the result of years of discernment. I am deeply grateful to the building committee, project consultants, and archdiocesan organizations who have been part of the development of this project. Once completed, we hope it will be an icon of communion in mission, bringing together clergy and laity, working together to renew and strengthen the evangelizing and missionary spirit of the Church in Singapore,” Goh said.
“We trust that God, who has guided us through the years, will continue to bless and direct the development of the Catholic Hub. May it be a place of God-encounter for all who come to serve and worship here,” the cardinal said.
Singapore has a population of about 5.7 million people and is home to people of many religions and ethnicities. Most Chinese people are Buddhist, while most Malaysians are Muslim.
About 15% of people are Christians. There are about 360,000 Catholics in 32 churches in the Archdiocese of Singapore, which covers the city-state.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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