By Bishop Stephen Chow Sau Yan, SJ
“Bishop, can you pay more attention to us, not only to the youth?” “Bishop, besides young people, what are other groups have you pastored?” Haha, these and other similar questions have come to me directly and indirectly in the last few months. The power of the social media! My quick but sincere response to these concerns is “not to worry.”
What might have given the impression that I have neglected the other age groups could be my exposure in social media, especially through the Boiling Point, a social medium set up for our Youth Ministry at the diocese level. On top of these exposures could be my intentional appeals to provide more pastoral care to young people in the earlier days of my episcopacy.
Of course, these actions do not mean that I have neglected the other social groups, except that our youth ministry has set up a more effective platform. This is the challenge of our media era, i.e., repeated exposures shape or even create reality. In fact, with my vicars general, I have reached out to academic institutes, NGOs, the Police, and the Correctional Services for the young and the not-so-young. I have also joined efforts with those visiting elderlies and homeless people and listened to struggling parents with children of sexual minorities….
Yet, I sincerely hope that our adults and elderlies can understand the rationale of my emphasis on the youth and come out to support our efforts whenever opportunities arise. The more we can reach out to connect with the other age groups, the more secure and energized we can become. In fact, different age groups have different sets of challenges but also distinct resources to benefit the others. On the contrary, the more we focus on ourselves, especially when we repeatedly ruminate over our own suffering, the more depleted we can become.
I pray that it will not be long before my advocating for ‘encounters’ between young people and elderlies will take place. Years of research have confirmed that adolescents and the elderly are best fits among the different age groups. Members of the two groups can mutually benefit each other when they start listening to, learning from, and showing their care for each other. On the one hand, there is so much our young people can learn from elderlies about the legacy, culture and human touch of Hong Kong, which should form an important part of their own identity, not to forget their living wisdom. On the other hand, our elderlies can, in turn, be energized and consoled by the presence, sharing, and caring assistance of young people, especially for their social connections in this digital world.
“Elderly people rich in wisdom and humour do so much good for the young! They save them from the temptation of a sad worldly knowledge devoid of the wisdom of life” [General Audience of Pope Francis, May 25, 2022].
Furthermore, if both parties feel the time is right, let them listen to each other with empathy about what they have gone through since 2019. Let that deep and non-judgmental listening start the healing process between the two parties, the first among the many in Hong Kong.
However, the prerequisites are our young people must not assume elderlies have to agree with their perspective. Moreover, elderlies should not assume a mentality of “I know better since I am a lot more experienced with life than you, youngster.” True encounter requires the engaging parties to meet each other as interesting equals, hearts yearning for deeper connection, and someone who deserves their attention.
To be honest, I am already a beneficiary of the “JoyYou Card” scheme. It would be silly of me to forget the elderly. Yet we cannot deny that our future would only be bleak without young people. On the contrary, without the elderly, our young people would be lost and even more vulnerable to exploitations.
O Lord, please help our young people reach out to our elderlies with loving respect and help our elderlies receive the young ones with open arms and guiding hands. Most importantly, teach them to encounter each other so as to co-create a better and more sustainable future for all! Amen.
+ Stephen Chow, SJ
