Rorate Caeli

The Motu Proprio in Singapore

Riposte Catholique
February 24, 2015

We have previously discussed the application of the Motu Proprio in Asia (with Hong Kong ). Mass in the extraordinary form is also celebrated in Singapore.

The country comprises a single diocese erected in 1972 to approximately 300,000 Catholics with 31 parishes and 141 priests. 4 diocesan priests regularly celebrate Mass in the extraordinary form.

Father Duncan Wong, a priest of the Fraternity of St. Peter who comes from Malaysia, had taught at a Catholic school in Singapore before entering the seminary. When he came to visit friends after his ordination in 2003, he celebrated the Mass and it aroused the interest of many of the faithful. (The SSPX has a presence in Singapore, see below *).

A loyal community eventually developed ... and today numbers 200 regular worshipers. In 2013, the Archbishop of Singapore, His Excellency William Goh Seng Chye, accorded to the faithful Saint Joseph church, a historic church in the center of the city.

* The Society of St. Pius X has been established in Asia for fifteen years in Singapore, which is also the headquarters of the Asian District (3 priests reside locally).

(Source, in French. The current issue of Regina Magazine devotes several pages to the Singaporean community)