“A man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” (James 2:24)

The team behind the packing of the Lunar New Year goodie bags for the transnational families. Photo: Youth of CSC.

In celebration of the Lunar New Year, youth from the Catholic Spirituality Centre (CSC) and their friends collaborated with the Archdiocesan Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (ACMI) to reach out to about 21 transnational families (family units consisting of a Singaporean spouse and a foreign spouse). The youth of CSC raised funds to prepare goodie bags which included hongbaos or red packets for the children.

It was the first such event for them. Amanda Chan, the event organiser, said, “Being able to bring a bit of Lunar New Year cheer to these families and seeing the joy on their faces at their doorstep was really heart-warming. This is truly what it means to spread God’s love to others.” Jerome Koh agreed. “We could tell they were very pleasantly surprised!” And Kelly Tan said, “Although our conversation was brief but, as she received our goodie bags, I felt received by her as well.”

Friends of CSC youths also found the experience enriching. Alvita Ardisara shared, “Visiting the families reminded me that every migrant family has their own unique circumstances, and we were blessed to converse with one of the families (despite our broken Mandarin) and learn a bit more about their situation.”

Sister Sylvia Ng, FMM from ACMI’s Case Management and Pastoral Care team, had conducted a formation session on Jan 20, 2022 to brief the youth in preparation for the outreach which took place on the weekend of Jan 22-23, 2022.

ACMI hopes that more young people, both individuals and communities, will be inspired to step forward to make a difference in the lives of transnational families.

Published on Catholic News on Feb 20, 2022.