HONG KONG (AsiaNews/Agencies): Bishop Andrew Chan Au-ming was elected to head Hong Kong’s Anglican Church (Sheng Kung Hui) on October 18. The 58-year-old, presently the bishop of Western Kowloon, will succeed Archbishop Paul Kwong on 3 January 2021.
Bishop Chan, was elected ahead of the Bishop Timothy Kwok, of Eastern Kowloon, and the Bishop Matthias Der, coadjutor of Hong Kong Island.
In June 2019, when protests broke out against the now-withdrawn extradition bill proposed by Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, the three bishops co-signed a pastoral letter condemning the attitude of the government towards protesters.
They said the authorities were responsible for the protests and guilty of “ignoring the real worries and fears of citizens.”
However, the three Anglican bishops also criticised the protesters for the 1 July 2019 storming of the Legislative Council building and rejected the use of violence to express dissent.
Bishop Chan will lead a community of about 30,000 members.
