Scenes from last year’s procession through Sai Kung town
On the evening of December 18 a procession will wend its way through our town led by a girl on a pony. They will be followed by other children in white with lighted candles acting as angels.
Carla Basto Clark Carla Basto Clark, a Nam Shan resident and Sacred Heart parishioner, said the procession will be enacting the Bethlehem Nativity scene from the Bible. The girl on the pony will be representing Mary. A teenage boy walking beside her will be acting as Joseph. Parishioners will follow.
The procession will start at Sacred Heart Church at 7.30, head down the hill and across the road to the Tin Hau Temple. Then it will cross Man Nin Playground, through the gardens on the other side of Man Nin Road and down to the waterfront. After that they will double-back to the playground and Sacred Heart Church.
A Live Crib will be set up in the Sacred Heart Christ after the procession on December 18. Everyone is welcome It will be the third such Christmas procession and the second involving a horse, on loan from the Jockey Club. Carla said reaction to the Christian event last year was mixed. “We were very quiet. It was amazing how many people didn’t even notice. Others recognised what was happening and their faces lit up. There were a lot of comments. Many people followed, especially children.”
Back at the Roman Catholic Church a Live Crib will be set up. There will be a candle-lit service with food and mulled wine, Carla said. “Everyone is welcome.”
The first such Live Crib was set up 800 years ago by St Francis of Assisi at Greccio Church. It is appropriate to be re-enacting it at the time of the first Pope Francis, Carla said. She is director of a new charity called Ampleforth Centre for Theology and Spirituality Hong Kong Ltd. In partnership with Ampleforth College in the UK, the charity will soon be offering courses for youngsters and adults in Christian theology.
Carla said people are welcome to join in. Children are asked to come in white. She would like those wishing to take part to register because she has to inform the police of numbers. Register through www.acts.hk
Children who join the procession are asked to wear white
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