HONG KONG (SE): On July 15, the Diocese of Hong Kong soft-launched its new mobile application, “Connect 同行 [Walking Together].” Designed as a practical digital tool, the app aims to strengthen communication between the diocese, local parishes and the faithful, while providing essential spiritual resources to support daily Christian life. The app supports Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese and English.
Francis Wong Chi-bun, director of Information Technology, said the new app serves as a centralised official platform for accessing Church information and meeting people’s spiritual needs.
He expressed gratitude to the religious congregations, communities and other contributors who provided content for the app, as well as to the more than 30 participating parishes at present.
The platform also features a diocesan broadcast channel for real-time announcements and urgent notices, including security and fraud alerts.
Wong explained that recent population movements, emigration and the growing practice of parishioners attending Mass in multiple churches have made traditional record-keeping increasingly challenging.
The app therefore provides a privacy-conscious means for the diocese to better understand the geographical distribution of the Catholic community while remaining connected with the faithful.
The app offers several key functions to support personal prayer and parish life. Users can receive notifications about diocesan and parish news and events, while also accessing the daily Mass readings, Mass information, scripture reflections and a collection of standard Catholic prayers.
For sacred music, the app provides sheet music and audio files for popular hymnals, complete with a keyword search function. The development team also created AI-generated accompaniment tracks for approximately 600 hymns.
In addition, the app features the complete Bible, with advanced Chinese keyword search capabilities, side-by-side Chinese-English text, and a text-to-speech function that enables users to listen to scripture while carrying out their daily activities.
Users can download sheet music, audio files, prayers, hymns and scripture passages directly to their smartphones for offline use. This allows them to pray, sing or access liturgical resources even in locations with limited internet access, such as retreat centres.
Looking ahead, the diocese plans to expand the app with several new features. These include contact details, local information and Mass schedules for overseas Chinese Catholic communities, helping both travellers and emigrants remain connected with the Church wherever they are.
The development team also intends to broaden the library of English-language and youth-oriented hymns and prayers.
The app is now available for download on both iOS and Android devices, while a Huawei version is expected to be released soon. According to Wong, development took approximately one year, including a six-month testing period to resolve technical issues before the official launch.
The diocese welcomes user feedback to guide future improvements, which can be submitted through a feedback form within the app’s settings menu.
