By Bishop Stephen Chow Sau Yan, SJ
I have never seen myself as a writer and still do not. Writing is not something I have enjoyed since childhood. Why? As I remember, my English and Chinese language teachers never recognised my writing efforts. The experience has stayed with me, reaffirming my belief that I am not a good writer.
It was not until I began to share my homilies with friends after realising that public Masses were unavailable because of the pandemic. I had to challenge myself to put my ideas in the form of articles. Then came the request to contribute an article each month to Sunday Examiner. Oh well, at least it is not every week!
No one told me that being a bishop, I should take up all the liturgies of Holy Week, including homilies! Thank God that I was under quarantine in a hotel room for 14 days upon returning from Rome. Those days were not bad. I was, surprisingly, enjoying my time there, which made me amazed at my ‘hermit’ and ‘homebody’ potential, i.e., enjoying being with myself in a room, not needing to socialise with others except through the Internet. Interestingly, an unexpected but significant benefit from the quarantine was the time and the space to start the drafts of my Holy Week homilies!
Such is life. When I thought I was incompetent at writing, God used that incompetence to make it a service to others. It is not that I have mastered the writing, but I can handle it, and God provides. I dreaded spending 14 days in “incarceration,” but the experience was surprisingly productive, enjoyable and even a blessing in disguise. God was there with me in my solitude and through friends, who had brought me supplies and comfort snacks. They were angels to me.
Despite experiencing liturgical fatigue from Holy Week, it did not deject me as I had great support from different teams and individuals. The Cathedral liturgical team, the Diocesan Liturgical Commission, the Diocesan Audio-Visual Centre, deacons, etc. Thank God for these angels!
Indeed, we can find God in every aspect of our lives, even in areas we least expect. Moreover, God can use our limitations as platforms for His glory among us, well beyond our imagination! What is needed is our openness and availability to work with God. Do not limit God with our lack of imagination, worries, rigidity, and negativity. God of many surprises wants to take us out of our cocoons and open our eyes to help us see reality from God’s perspective. After all, we are created to share God’s love and eternal life!
