Serangoon/Montfort/St Gab History

  BÉCHERAS Édouard (1879–1957) Fr Becheras as a young priest 3 July 1955, Fr Beceras celebrating his sacerdotal golden jubilee .  On October 7, 1957, aboard the ocean liner Vietnam , shortly before arriving in Aden, Father Bécheras returned his soul to God. Born on August 5, 1879, in Arras-sur-Rhône in the Ardèche, Father Édouard Bécheras was the second of four children. He studied at the village public school. Very early on, his parish priest, Abbé Viaugard, noticed the promising disposition of his altar boy and gave him his first Latin lessons. In September 1894, young Édouard entered the Sainte-Barbe minor seminary in Annonay. In October 1899, he was admitted to the major seminary of Viviers, where he remained until he was called up for military service. In 1902, he was incorporated into the 61st Infantry Regiment in Marseille. In September 1903, he entered the seminary on Rue du Bac. Ordained a priest on June 29, 1905, he received his assignment to Malacca and departed for...

Henri Duvelle was born on 14 August 1874 in Montmorency (Val d’Oise), France. He entered the Seminary of the Missions Étrangères on 31 August 1893. He was ordained a priest on 27 June 1897 and left for the mission of Malacca on 25 August 1897.  After studying the local language, he served in several pastoral roles in the Malaysia–Singapore mission: as parish priest of Bukit-Mertayam in 1898–1899, vicar in Malacca from 1900 to 1904, parish priest of Batu-Gajah from 1904 to 1906, and parish priest of Ayer-Salak in 1907.  In 1920, with the help of  the Sultan of Johor,  Sir Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Abu Baka r,  he began the construction of the   Church of the Immaculate Conception in Johor Bahru . It was blessed by Bishop Barillon at the end of 1921. At the time, there was only a wooden bridge connecting Johor and Singapore (the Causeay was not completed until 1923) It is likely that Fr Duvelle was also parish priest at the Church of the Nativity of the B...

 The Founder of Montfort School/ Holy Innocents' English School Alcide, Émile LAURENT   (21 May 1884-1 Aug 1916) Chinese Name: 老 / Lao (Mémorial (Miss. en Asie)) Fr. Laurent was born on 21 May 1884 in Bléquin, in the Diocese of Arras, Department of Pas-de-Calais. He was the only boy in a family with seven or eight daughters. After completing his primary education, he went through the course of secondary studies at the minor seminary and then proceeded to the diocesan major seminary, where he received minor orders on 9 July 1905. His mother and his doctor opposed his departure ad exteros because of his frail health. He therefore obtained a position as a supervisor in an orphanage located in the countryside; his health improved, and he then set out for Paris. On 15 September 1906, Mr Alcide Laurent entered the Seminary of the Paris Foreign Missions. He was ordained subdeacon on 21 December 1907, deacon on 14 March 1908, and priest on 27 September 1908. He received his assignme...

  Joseph JEANNEQUIN (Father J: The Solid Man from Lorraine)   2 July, 1926– Dec 24, 2019 A very precise daily routine, appointments that must not be changed—yes, but funerals can disrupt things—even when it is a superior from Paris coming to visit us. He will have to wait until a free slot opens up. Punctuality and order. The countries where he served changed—B u rma, Cambodia, Taiwan, Singapor e —but Joseph Jeannequin remained the same: the solid man from Lorrain e , walking at his own steady pace, never rushing, always calm. In accordance with ecclesiastical etiquette, he always wore black socks and well-polished black shoes, even when many others went barefoot in sandals… and it was hot near the equator. He would say with a smile: “In Burma, I brought my own cutlery when visiting villages in the delta!” He listened more than he spoke, unless it was about his favourite subjects: Burma and Baccarat . “I was given a Baccarat chalice for my jubilee.” He enjoyed meeting peo...