Bishop Antony Selvanayagam, the president of the seminary presided along with twelve other Arch/bishops. Close to two hundred priests concelebrated. The Responsorial Psalm was composed and sung by two seminarian cantors. In his homily, Archbishop John Ha drew from the theme and noted how in fidelity, College General were one with her martyrs through time, suffering persecution in profound faith and total commitment, and keeping true to the Father’s name, come what may.

The Apostolic Delegate, representative of the Vatican, His Excellency, Archbishop Salvatore Penacchio, also read from the speech of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of State to the Vatican, imparting the Apostolic Blessing from the Holy Father to the students, their teachers, families and all those participating in the celebration. Then came Yang Berhormat Chow Kon Yow, representative of the state government - who thanked everyone for their support they had extended to the new elected representatives in the recent general elections. Thereafter, Fr. Edwin Paul, Rector of College General expressed his gratitude to all the lay people for their sterling assistance. Everyone burst into laughter when he remarked that without lay assistance, the seminarians would have been exhausted and joined the ranks of the martyrs themselves. Finally, Bishop Antony Selvanayagam delighted everyone with heartwarming stories of the times in College General.

Tribute was also paid to the several MEP Fathers who returned to celebrate this momentous occasion with us. Indeed, even those who were in a wheelchair, like Fr. Andrew Volle, MEP, was not deterred. They were given thunderous applause. Leon Gomez (CG 1964 – 1969) summed it up most appropriately. “I feel it is very, very enriching – the roots that I belong to, it is a long heritage. Although the MEP introduced us to the faith, the Asian side of it, is strongly blooming. Even though it is a European priest, the people in Asia are very grateful to the people who phased themselves out. We accept with our own calibre, the people of Asia. We are proud to be part of it.”

Fr. Johnson Fernandez, Holy Trinity Parish, Singapore thought that the whole celebration was “well organized.” He particularly liked the Liturgy, which he thought was “very, very well done especially the choice of songs.”

II: JOYFUL REUNION DINNER OF THE ALUMNI
In the evening, the atmosphere turned distinctly convivial, as the Great Hall was transformed into a Banquet Hall with lilting background music. The grounds themselves were filled with lights giving everything a most festive atmosphere. The evening was reserved exclusively for the alumni. Those who had left the seminary or clerical state were invited to bring their families and children along, and some did. Basically, all were made to feel as part of a great, big, family and the atmosphere was like that of a family reunion, full of laughter, banter and merriment. Fr. Joseph Gapitang, (CG 1974 – 1979) Cathedral of St. Francis Xavier, Keningau, Keningau Diocese, Sabah put it very well: “Very enriching, beautiful, bringing back old memories. I am really happy to meet so many of our alumni. There is no feeling of ‘strangers.’ All one family.”
Everyone was treated to a sumptuous spread of Penang fare. The evening also saw the return of the College Band, “The Hot Sems”, and the crowd cheered as they played through medley after medley of songs. Many of the alumni were taken down memory lane as old pictures of the seminarians and priests from the old seminary in Kelawai Road and those in Mariophile were movingly projected on the wall of the Great Hall. That evening also saw the grand launch of a special commemorative issue of Sinaran 2008. Finally, a great big cake was wheeled out in the shape of the College Crest, and all Father Rectors present and past were invited to cut it. Everyone watched as Archbishop Murphy Pakiam, Archbishop Emeritus Soter Fernandez, Mgr. James Ghanapiragasam, Fr Francis Anthony and Fr. Edwin Paul sauntered over and joined hands for a marvelously symbolic gesture – one of solidarity, faith and thanksgiving - everyone realized that the time honoured tradition of the seminary was being preserved, and the torch, being passed.

Time simply flew past, and the days spent together simply evaporated. Along the page sides are some of the comments made by the alumni of their joyful reunion. All said and done,
Archbishop Nicholas Chia of Singapore summed it up best: “Pray that College General will function well.”