A Brief Historical Overview

"So that all parishes of this kind may be truly communities of Christians, local ecclesial authorities ought to foster small basic or so called 'living communities' where the faithful can communicate the word of God and express it in service and love to one another; these communities are true expressions of ecclesial communion and centres of evangelization in communion with their pastors" (Christifideles Laici No. 26)

The Assumption BECs came into being after the Argionomento Renewal of 1976. The need for these communities and the commitment to build them has been and has remained the main thrust of the Peninsular Malaysia Church since the first Peninsular Malaysia Pastoral Convention I (PMPC I) held in 1986. This commitment to BEC building was renewed at the PMPC III that was held in August 2006.

The BECs in Assumption were, in the beginning, organized according to the sections that were found within the parish parameters. They began as families of the area coming together to pray. This offered the community of that area the opportunity to get to know each other and foster closer ties with each other. Soon they were not only getting together for prayers, but fellowship, going on outings, sharing the word of God and many such activities.

Today due to the development and construction of many high-rise buildings, the population density of the area has increased; hence more BECs have been formed. In addition BECs of largerSections have been broken to form smaller cell groups so that there is greater interaction and participation.

Where Are We Today

To date there are 24 BECs in the parish. The focus of the BECs at this point of time, in line with the parish pastoral plan, is to strive to build a close knit basic community, that will become the foundation in the building of the a parish that is unified, through the understanding and practice of the principles of "Brotherhood and Sisterhood". This year the parish has moved to the next step of NIP |New Image of Parishes| which is, understanding of "Church as a Mystery of Communion".

The Assumption BECs are well on the way in achieving the goal of being one united Church. This can be seen by the fact that most of the groups are involved in and carry out a wide variety of activities such as organising prayer meets for the various seasons of the liturgical year, family outings, Christmas parties, and Zone fellowships that bring various BEC groups together, just to name some.

It is not all fun, games and prayer, for many of the BECs are also involved in reaching out to the poor and marginalized. They sponsor families in need as well as reach out to comfort those within their area who have faced the loss of a loved one. The BEC's also support various homes that are within our parish such as Santa Jerome, The Assunta Children's Society, as well as homes in other area such as The Taman Mayang Home for the handicapped and the Welcome Community Home |an AIDS hospice and drug rehabilitation centre| in Batu Arang.

The BECs of Assumption are growing. At times, they may be moving along slowly and may hit sinkholes but by the Grace of God, they will not disappear and be lost. We have to keep on pouring out our energies, give our commitment and take the responsibility for the life and breath of mankind. God Our Father gave us his breath of life and we must share it with our community.