Fr. Andrew Kim came all the way from Korea to celebrate the ordination anniversary mass of the three priests he had worked with one and a half years ago. He was excited and felt very much at home in our parish. This young priest has a lot of fans in Tuen Mun. In fact, he is currently holding a special kind of Korean ID card and passport, indicating his special status as half Korean and half alien. Perhaps it is the usual practice of a missionary priest. Perhaps he treats himself a half Hongkonger. Indeed, he requested a parting gift of a subscription of the local Chinese Catholic weekly magazine, the Kung Kao Pao. His heart truly finds its home in Hong Kong.
Fr. Martin Ip did not co-celebrated the 11 a.m. mass with him but took up the homily. He spared Fr. Kim the burden to address the congregation. Fr. Martin jokingly said that he deprived Fr. Andrew's opportunity to speak so that he had an even greater motivation to return soon to speak. We had a good laugh and the atmosphere was jovial. Then Fr. Martin turned to the two healing stories in Mark.
Jairus was one of the rulers of the synagogue (Mark 5:22). The fact that his name got recorded in the gospel showed that Jairus must have occupied quite a high status in the early Church. In contrast, the bleeding woman remained anonymous (Mark 5:25). She might not have contributed much to the building up of the early Christian Church. Disregarding their future contribution to the church, Jesus satisfied their unique needs. In short, Jesus has made them whole, restored their losses and transformed their lives. Jesus is our Master of Life, the fountainhead of our well-being.
Fr. Martin invited a member of one of the youth groups in our parish to share her encounters with God. She is called Christina. She is suffering from cancer. Undergoing chemotherapy, this young lady has consequently lost all her hair. She is very positive in her view of life, though we don't know whether she has always been like this or she has become positive after this illness. She admitted that when she knew of her situation, she wept for 10 to 15 minutes. But she knew that crying would not change the situation and it would make the life of her parents harder. She decided to hand her life over to God to help her go through this difficulty.
There was a huge chapel in the hospital at which she underwent treatment. She loved to spend her time, sitting alone in the chapel to pray. She gained much consolation and strength in the tranquility of God. She visited other patients whose courage to endure hardship encouraged her a lot. There are many who are immobilized, who have been battling against cancer for many years. She thanked God for her failing some tests and hence her chemotherapy session was delayed for one week, making it possible for her to be baptized in the presence of us all. Now, her relationship with her family, her friends, her instructor and fellow catechumens is much enriched. In short, she feels herself totally transformed by the love of God and men. She is confident that she will overcome because she has handed her life over to God. She is learning to love God more than her life. Her sharing was very touching and edifying.
Fr. Patrick made an announcement for those of us who did not attend the banquet last night. Brien, my ex-colleague in La Salle, quitted his Chinese Panel Head position to enter the Holy Spirit Seminary this September. He has been responding to God's call generously for the last couple of years. He has been spending a lot of time taking care of the Christian formation of the young LaSallians, instructing a catechumen class in the parish, working as a committee member in the Parish Council etc. The parish broke the news at the banquet last night in a gesture to support the Year of Vocation. Brien has all my supports. I am proud of him.
The youth choir has prepared a song and it was premiered last night at the banquet for the three priests. Twenty five years ago, a hymn "As a Deer" was written. It was based on a few lines in Psalm 42. When I first sang it in March, I wept. I wanted to share it so I asked Wulstan to translate the lyrics into Chinese. He did a wonderful job in including nearly every verse of the original psalm. He finished it in the Feast of the Birth of John the Baptist and we dedicate this hymn to the three priests. Here is the lyrics and my prayer.
像小鹿渴慕甜美溪水，我靈衷心渴慕祢。
我的心與靈魂願跟主共行，縱千千百里。
我要向天主高聲唱：「吾主天主我救援。」
我的心與靈魂願跟主共行，縱千千百里。
為甚麽將我遺忘？我怎麽為何應擔起壓迫？
受冤屈、眼淚流，但一心祗冀盼得主引領。
祢領我制敵得勝，我一生當堅信聽命。
依恃主，我的天主，祢恩光照永。
為甚麽憂苦？為何悲傷如冰中添雪霜？
但看見主面顏，我終於找到再生的志向。
讚美祢賜予生命，耶穌基督，恩愛慈祥。
願我不再徬徨，共天主一起愛歌歡快唱。
像小鹿渴慕甜美溪水，我靈衷心渴慕祢。
我的心與靈魂願跟主共行，縱千千百里。
我要向天主高聲唱：「吾主天主我救援。」
像小鹿渴慕甜美溪水，我靈魂深深愛祢。我真的渴慕祢。【詠42】
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