Malaysia has a candidate for sainthood. While many claim they have no clue of who Sybil Medan Kathigasu is, others have brief recollections of her in their History textbooks.
Sybil is also the only Malayan woman to receive the British Crown’s George Medal for covertly supplying medicine, medical services and refuge to resistance fighters from her home (a shophouse in Papan, Perak) for years during World War II.
Her legacy is also found in Roman Catholic cathecism books, a movie (Sybil Kathigasu – Apa Dosa Ku), a book she penned “No Dram of Mercy”, while a chapter is dedicated to her in a new book, “Agent of Change – Essays on the life and times of Archbishop Emeritus Tan Sri Murphy Pakiam.”
(The former archbishop who grew up in Batu Gajah, Perak where Sybil was incarcerated during the war, had a strong desire for her to become Malaysia’s first saint, because of his growing years and stories of her faith and courage which were relayed by family and friends.)
“Apart from my dad serving her medically while she was in prison, I feel strongly that Sybil should be made a saint as she has served as a faithful person who sacrificed so many things for the church’s sake and the community around her at the time can attest to it,” Archbishop Emeritus Murphy says in “Agent of Change.”
“Why I chose Sybil,” says Cardinal Sebastian Francis in the book , “is because she is a woman, a lay person (and not a cleric), a wife and mother and also a professional.”
“For the Catholic church,” notes Sebastian, who is also Bishop of Penang, “we are unique and are not taken up by stories of courage.”
“We (the Penang Diocese) have commenced with the collection of data and initial steps for the process of canonisation of (a saint from our soil).
“It is pretty obvious from the initial data that I have received and other sources of information that Sybil was a courageous freedom fighting heroine and we are reasonably convinced that we should proceed with (her canonization).”
A movie titled “Sybil” is also reportedly in the making, while an opera “Solace of Papan” is set to open in Selangor this month.
The road to sainthood is a long, complex and expensive one and all help is needed in crafting a memorable and meaningful “brand” for potential candidates.
What qualities and characteristics do or did our potential saint embody? How can we best represent Sybil’s life and achievements through branding?
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