For photos of events from 2019 onwards, kindly refer to our parish's official Facebook page.

For updates on Sahabat Orang Asli (SOA) outreach mission, click here.

LAUNCHING OF LENTEN CAMPAIGN 2026 - 21ST & 22ND FEBRUARY 2026

Fr Aloysius Tan launched the Penang Diocesan Lenten Campaign on the 1st Sunday of Lent masses in SMC. A short video by Caritas was shown before the launch with the theme for this year being "Hope in Action". Apart from donations to our diocese's lenten campaign, Fr Aloysius highlighted other initiatives within the parish where all may participate either individually or as a group (Ministry or BEC). Details of the initiatives are listed below. (Please click below to read in pdf format.)

CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS - 16TH & 17TH FEBRUARY 2026

Fr Andrew Wong, CDD concelebrated the Chinese New Year Eve mass with our parish priest Fr Aloysius Tan on 16th February 2026. For more pictures of the CNY Eve and CNY day celebrations, please refer to our official Facebook pages.

VISIT BY PENANG CHESHIRE HOME - 8TH FEBRUARY 2026

Our parish of St Michael, had the honour of welcoming visitors from the Penang Cheshire Home, Cerebral Palsy Association of Penang, Sekolah Pendidikan Khas Jalan Hutton, School for NeuroDiverse Children, Caring Rehabilitation Society of PWD Penang together with their carers and scouts from Penang Cheshire Home Scouts from 62nd George Town South, on the morning of 8th February 2026. Three buses and one van full of these guests arrived at around 8.20am in the morning, while the Sunday morning mass was ongoing. The visit was part of the group's 3-day 2-night 18th Penang Cheshire Agoonoree, a specialised scout camp for young people with disabilities or special needs. Hosts from SMC comprising 3 groups of volunteer parishioners were on hand to welcome the visitors and give them a guided tour of our parish and its facilities. There were approximately 40 OKU and 50 volunteers in total. Visitors were first led to the Parish Activity Centre to have a rest and some water, as the group had just departed from their hotel after breakfast. Current PPC Chairperson Ms Jennifer Duarte gave a brief presentation about the history and interesting aspects of our church, including the first class relic of St Padre Pio and the grave of local war heroine, Sybil Kathigasu. Goody bags were also prepared for each guest. The guests were also shown around our Religious Articles Centre, church gardens and interior of the church after the English mass ended. Fr Aloysius managed to greet our special guests after he had finished celebrating the English-language mass. The visitors then took some group photos by the porch and continued on their journey to the Ipoh railway station to catch their train to Taiping.

Click here to read the letter of appreciation which we received from Ms Veronica Pau, Penang Cheshire Agoonoree and Penang Cheshire Home Organising Chairperson.

BLOOD DONATION CAMPAIGN - 1ST FEBRUARY 2026

This year's annual blood donation campaign at SMC was organised by Caritas SMC in collaboration with Hospital Raja Permaisuri Tuanku Bainun, Ipoh and Fatimah Hospital, Ipoh. Thank you to all who generously participated in this campaign. 50 pints of blood were collected in total.

58TH NOTIFICATION & UPDATES FROM THE DIOCESE OF PENANG - 1ST FEBRUARY 2026

Click on the picture to get further details of the latest updates and notifications (in pdf format) from the Diocese of Penang.

COMMISSIONING OF LECTORS, COMMENTATORS & SCRIPTWRITERS - 25TH JANUARY 2026

In conjunction with the Sunday of the Word of God, all serving members of SMC's lectors, commentators and scriptwriters ministries were commissioned by Monsignor Stephen Liew, after the homily in the morning English and Mandarin-language masses on 25th January 2025. Monsignor Liew explained that the Sunday of the Word of God which is commemorated every third Sunday in Ordinary Time, was instituted by Pope Francis. The first Sunday of the Word of God was celebrated on January 26th, 2020. Monsignor Liew reflected that the Word of God is something not only to be listened to but something to be acted upon and lived out. He recounted our Blessed Mother Mary's response to the Word of God she received from the angel Gabriel. He reminded that we are all called to Receive, Reflect and Respond to the Word of God that may come to us in different ways. The lectors, commentators & scriptwriters commissioned in front of the whole church congregation made their public commitment to serve faithfully and responsibly in the spirit of prayer and co-operation within the Church.

PONGGAL CELEBRATION IN SMC - 17TH JANUARY 2026

Click on our official Facebook page to view more pictures from the Ponggal celebrations in SMC.

This year's Ponggal celebrations was a joyful affair with the Filipino Group and other non-Indian parishioners joining in the festivities organised by the Indian Community of SMC. Parishioners of different ethnicities participated in the traditional boiling of rice and milk in new clay pots at the church porch before the sunset mass and watched Fr Konstend bless the boiled "harvest". Fr Konstend also presided over the sunset mass. A choir of Tamil speaking parishioners sang the offertory song in Tamil while a liturgical dance was performed by four youths in sarees. Offertory gifts offered with praise and thanksgiving embodied the spirit of abundance, gratitude and hope for a prosperous future for our parish. The gifts offered were Oil Lamps – the lighting of oil lamps is a sacred act and the light overcomes darkness and brings enlightenment. The freshly cooked Pongal rice was offered to express our gratitude and thanks to God for the sweetness of life. A basket of vegetables and fruits was also offered as appreciation for nature’s bountiful gift. Many parishioners of different races were also dressed in traditional Indian attire in solidarity with the Indian community. The second reading was in Tamil. After mass, parishioners were treated to a delicious buffet feast of traditional Indian cuisine and feted with entertainment by the young children of SMC from the Indian and Filipino community. There was a flower tying competition and fashion show by the children, and award each for the best traditionally Indian attired attendee in the male, female and children category. Thank you to Ms Ritamary and her team of volunteers who made this happy event possible! May these cultural celebrations help foster greater co-operation, understanding and harmony between the different ethnicities which make up our diverse parish community.

CREATION JUSTICE MINISTRY - PSA ON 10TH & 11TH JANUARY 2026

In 2026, let us strive to practice the 7Rs in our lifestyles : Refuse - Reduce - Reuse - Repurpose - Recycle - Redesign - Regenerate. Everyone is encouraged to bring their own bags,crockery and cutlery for meals in SMC.

57TH NOTIFICATION & UPDATES FROM THE DIOCESE OF PENANG - 1ST JANUARY 2026

Click on the picture to get further details of the latest updates and notifications (in pdf format) from the Diocese of Penang.