The Archdiocesan Ecumenical and Interreligious Department (AEID) which was mooted by the then Archbishop Soter Fernandez was officially launched on 24th February 1993 at the Holy Rosary Church. AEID was headed by the late Ecclesial Assistant Fr. Rajoo whose enthusiasm, dedication and diligence contributed in no small measure to its rapid progress and development. The committee headed by Gary Yong and parishioners from other churches were sent for local and overseas formation and training programmes in Bangladesh, Thailand and the Philippines.
Some of the founding members of AEID comprised parishioners from the different t parishes from the central district. To name a few: Franklin Goonting, David Ng, Dr William Lau, Margaret Tan, Dr Rozilini, Lilian Liew, Anthony Fernandez and the late Alex Chandrapillai. AEID was soon elevated to Archdioscesan Ministry of Ecumenical & Interreligious Affairs (AMEIA) two years later. Subsequently, HRC Parish Ministry of Ecumenical & Interreligious Affairs (PMEIA) was formed. It was headed by Dr William Lau and initially assisted by David Ng, Lilian Liew, Dr Rozilini, John Bosco, Raymond Poh and Margaret Tan.
Some activities of PMEIA:
-
7-week, now reduced to 4-week Understanding World Religions seminar
-
Ecumenical Week celebrations in 1996 and 1997 with Protestant and Ecumenical Churches
-
Talks on Inter-marriage and Life Hereafter
-
Representing the Catholic Church in interreligious forums, seminars and conferences , in the Malaysian Consultative Council for Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST) and the Christians Federation of Malaysia (CFM)
-
Hosting followers of other religions at HRC
-
Helping other parishes form their respective PMEIAs
-
Organizing interreligious dialogue formation and training.
This year, 2013 is auspicious for PMEIA at HRC: we see the dual celebration of the 110th anniversary of our Holy Rosary Church and the 20th anniversary of the birth of the Archdiocesan Ministry of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs in Kuala Lumpur.