HONG KONG (SE): Bishop Stephen Chow Sau Yan, SJ, celebrated his first Chrism Mass as head of the Diocese of Hong Kong at 11.00am on April 14, Holy Thursday.
Unlike the previous year, government anti-pandemic social distancing measures were still in place, so the celebration could not be held at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, but was streamed online.
Bishop Chow was joined by Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing; former bishops of Hong Kong, Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun and John Cardinal Tong Hon; along with eight priests representing the deaneries and fellow priests of the diocese.
“We are called to synodality through our own ministries in collaboration with the different capacities among the People of God,” Bishop Chow said in his homliy.
“We are called to journey together in our fraternal spirit discerning for the direction which the Spirit wants us to move,” the bishop said, noting, “We are living in an ever-changing context so that the discernment has to be continued and ongoing, as a body through in-depth, respectful and emphatic listening to each other and to the Word of God as well as through our sincere dialogue.”
Bishop Chow cautioned however, “We should be aware of the temptation to working for our own kingdoms our domains and our interests. What the people of Hong Kong needs from us is shepherds and not KOL [key opinion leaders]— shepherds who are all the more realistic as well as transcending – not stuck in a specific time or space and not being shepherds without the smell of the sheep.”
The bishop said that the shepherds need to be “all the more visionary with spiritual horizon, but not elitist, energy sapping nor esoteric spirituality. All the more for inspirational communication, instead of mainly condemnation or cynicism. All the more with hopefulness that is based on faith in our loving God, rather than being examples of helplessness and hopelessness. We are ministers of Easter hope! All the more for experiences of love, forgiveness, and reconciliation, not animosity or condescendingness.”
Bishop Chow concluded exhorting, “My dear brothers, let us work together, accepting each other in the spirit of Unity in Plurality for God’s mission entrusted to us.”
