A Display of Force

I am capable but not confident. That is why I have been caught unprepared. For eight years, I have given up the idea of becoming a permanent deacon. The call from God caught me unprepared when I accompanied the Vicar General to Shung Tak to celebrate her Golden Jubilee in 2008. Yesterday, I only intended to attend the ordination ceremony of 4 permanent deacons. Again, I was caught unprepared to walk along with all other aspirants and candidates in a procession to enter the Cathedral. After 17 years of hard work, the Vicar General must be very satisfied to see this long queue of procession. Leading the procession were altar boys and girls from the parishes the 4 deacon designates have served. We, the aspirants and candidates followed. Then the 9 permanent deacons, 59 priests and the bishop. It was truly a display of force, a coup de foudre.

13 Deacons and the Vicar General

It was 2:10 p.m. and I was on the bus approaching the Cathedral. I delayed my lunch because I expected the ceremony to last for more than 2 hours. The telephone rang. It was Cosmas. On the phone, he told me to meet him in the sacristy as soon as possible. In fact, the sacristy is not big enough for so many concelebrants and deacons. Everybody gathered and changed their vestment in a bigger room on the ground floor of the parish building instead. I saw that my deacon companions had all put on their alb. I clumsily put one on. Joe Lee, one of the aspirants, helped me tied up the cincture (girdle). We were singing the entrance hymn even outside the Cathedral. But by the time I put my step on the marble of the porch, I was totally absorbed and truly felt how much I aspired to serve God and the Church.

In the monthly deacon meeting this afternoon, many of us shared how much we were touched and moved throughout the ceremony yesterday. On top of many rounds of applause, there were a lot of joyful tears. The ordination liturgy was beautiful and lifted up our hearts. In particular, the 9 deacons were seated with the bishop at the altar to highlight their role as helpers of the bishop while the concelebrants seated below. Unlikely previous occasions in which only one representative delivered the valedictory speech, each of the 4 deacons made their own one by one. They thanked many people, especially their wives and family members for their support. The wives and one younger sister (because one of the deacons is single) also shared with the congregation how they accompanied the deacons in their search and formation. It was heart warming. When it was time for peace greeting, the newly ordained deacons embraced the 9 deacons whole-heartedly. As for me, I was very much moved when I sang the hymn Suscipe Domine by St. Ignatius. Lord, I surrender my all to You, my capability, my will and my freedom. I was uncertain but now I am more determined.

The gospel readings of the last few weeks help me see better. The Good Samaritan tells me to break out of my egocentricity. Do not ask, like the teacher of law, "Who is my neighbour?". Rather, put yourself into the shoes of the needy and ask who the neighbour of the needy is (Luke 10:36). Do not ask, like Martha, Jesus to tell Mary to help out. Rather, choose the good portion to come close to Jesus (Luke 10:42). Again, this morning, Fr. Martin Ip explained the seemingly egocentric passage and pointed out the altruistic message behind.
And I tell you, Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened (Luke 11:9-10).
Ask not for our own good. Rather, ask for the needs of the needy. Abraham bargained with God, perhaps for his nephew Lot (Genesis 18:23-32). But he was trying to save other inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah as well. Abraham's plea was not at all selfish. Similarly, when it is beyond our capacity to help, pray to God and He has promised to answer our pleas.
The quotation from one of the wives of the newly ordained deacon was particularly enlightening.
But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him," (1 Corinthians 2:9).
God has reserved for us good things we even dare not to dream of! I worry about my health conditions. But one of the deacons has undergone heart bypass surgery. One of the deacons' wife is suffering from cancer. These I learned in the sharing meeting this afternoon. My DM is trivial! The Vicar General made a passing comment, which sounded very reassuring. When we take up the deacon office, God will grant us extraordinary graces to overcome all obstacles to fulfill our duties. Amen.

Dear Lord, You have prepared and equipped me to serve You for so many years. It is high time I took my step forward. Steady my legs. Amen.

The Priority

Before rehearsal, we sat together for a Bible sharing of about half an hour to study the gospel reading for the Sunday Mass today. After such a preliminary exercise, we would be better able to understand the homily of the priest. The passage today is the famous story of Martha and Mary in the gospel of Luke.

When Jesus passed by a village, Martha invited him to stay in her house. She extended Jesus her hospitality, making dishes, serving Jesus busily while her sister Mary sat at Jesus' feet, listening to his teaching (Luke 10:39-40a). Martha complained to Jesus.
Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me (Luke 10:40b).
Then Jesus made the following famous answer.
Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things;
one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her (Luke 10:41b-42).

Wulstan, my son, started off sharing with us the worries and cares he had recently gone through. Of course, he could not hide his elation of finishing his 4-part Mass in which he had written 12 amen's into the Gloria! By the way, we plan to sing it during the parish feast.
James Chan, the elder, said he had already chosen the good portion, pointing to his girl friend sitting next to him.
The organist, James Chan, the younger, began to philosophize. He said that when solving problems, we tended to do a lot of unnecessary things, missing out the most crucial step. What an interesting observation!
Sun, the altar boy, thought the family was the good portion. He was able to appreciate the hard work his parents had done, without which he would not be able to enjoy the good company he was enjoying.
Beleen, the girl friend of our president, made an observation which none of us had ever thought about before. She admired the directness of Martha who had no problem in voicing her complaint. True, out of courtesy or fear of offending people, many of us are reticent about the unfair treatments we receive.
Kenneth brought up the traditional interpretation of the story, explaining the two different spiritualities of mission and contemplation.
Joe focused on the second half. Whatever we had chosen, it should not be taken away from us.
Of course, we did not have time to explore what Jesus meant by "the good portion" which we would leave for the priest to explain in his homily. We finished our sharing with the hymn "Of my hand I give to You, O Lord". I was touched.

Fr. Milanese celebrated the mass in which more than 30 catechumens joined the Rite of Acceptance. He began his homily by pointing out the peculiar background of the story. It was a Jewish society. No respectable rabbi would accept the invitation of a woman into her house without a man in it. In this particular story of Luke, Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary, was not mentioned. He was not in the house. Jesus' acceptance of Martha's invitation was unconventional. It could even be scandalous. But Jesus was known to be unconventional and had no fear of scandals. He came to break down all kinds of barriers we erected among ourselves. He was happy to mix with Pharisees and tax-collectors, sinners and the sick. Jesus wanted to share his eternal life with them and with us.
Fr. Milanese extended his welcome to the catechumens. They had chosen the good portion --- the salvation of God. They needed to continue to deepen their relation with Him through prayers and reading of the gospel. In the rite, each catechumen would receive a sign of the cross on his forehead as well as a copy of the gospel.
Turning to the traditional interpretation of the spiritualities represented by Martha and Mary, Fr. Milanese expressed his disagreement. He did not think that Martha represented the missionary type of spirituality and Mary the contemplative. Whatever they did, they did it with the same aim. Both of them did whatever they were doing to come close to Jesus.
But has not Jesus already come to us? Why busy ourselves with unimportant things? This is what we should learn from the contrast of these two great women. Set our priorities right. Some people are talented in running businesses. Some are talented in evaluation and reflection. Do whatever we feel comfortable to do, but do it with one aim --- getting close to Jesus.

Dear Lord, You come to bring us eternal life. You invite us to go to you to unload our burdens. I pray for my friends who are suffering from family problems. Save their families and their children. Amen.

Fifteenth Ordinary Sunday (Year C)

I have not written for a few days. It is because I need to spend more time reading. I feel very dry and have nothing to offer. Therefore, from now on, I will write once a week. What use is it just knowing the truth? Act on the truth.

Today, we read the famous story of the Good Samaritan. Jesus told this parable in response to the challenge of a Teacher of the Law. The scholar knew the law very well. Yet, he failed to see in the proper perspective and act accordingly. Here is the challenge he posed to Jesus.
And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (Luke 10:25)
I have always thought that "eternal life" is a New Testament concept. I have been wrong. The idea of "eternal life" appears once in Daniel.
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt (Daniel 12:2).
everlasting life חַיֵּי עוֹלָם
ζωὴν αἰώνιον (Daniel 12:2, Luke 10:25)
Therefore, Luke did not put words into the mouth of a scholar of the Old Testament. The scholar's challenge was a legitimate one.

Unlike the story in Mark, the Jesus in Luke did not give the answer directly. Instead, he asked the scholar what the Law talks about. Here, we come to the famous quotation from Deuteronomy and Leviticus.
And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." (Luke 10:27, Deuteronomy 6:5, Leviticus 19:18b).
"with all your mind" is an addition in the Greek era.
Jesus' answer was very straight forward and truth is embedded in the simplicity.
And he said to him, "You have answered right; do this, and you will live." (Luke 10:28)
Knowing does not bring us eternal life. Doing does.
The story would have ended here. But how could Luke, a good story teller, let this golden opportunity go? He continues to explore the psychological blind spot of the scholar. What prevented the scholar from doing the right thing? The scholar got the perspective wrong.

But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" (Luke 10:29)
Then Jesus told the well-known parable of the Good Samaritan. In the end, Jesus asked the crucial question to bring the scholar back to the proper perspective.
Which of these three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers? (Luke 10:36)
"Who is my neighbour?" is ego-centric. The focus is no us and not on the needy. That is why the perspective is wrong. "Who is the neighbour to the victim?" is altruistic, is other-centered. This is the proper perspective.

Before I leave, I would like to explore a bit to speculate why the priest and the Levite did not lend a helping hand.
One of the more popular explanations is that the priest and the Levite cared more about their priestly duties than the needs of the victim. They did not want to become unclean by touching the bleeding man, thus making them unable to perform their priestly duties for a certain period of time. I find this explanation unsatisfactory.
Firstly, all of them were leaving Jerusalem. They were going down the road, from Jerusalem to Jericho. Therefore, it was unlikely that the priest and the Levite were on their way to perform religious duties. Still, it does not rule out the possibility.
Secondly, priests and Levites had to handle sacrifices. They were responsible for butchering the sacrificial lambs, cutting them up and removing the fat etc. Who else in the Temple should do this, if not the priests and the Levites? Moreover, priests had to examine lepers to determine their illness and pronounced them unclean. To a certain extent, priests always got in touch with uncleanliness. They should enjoy some degree of immunity. Therefore, it is unthinkable that they should refrain from touching and helping a bleeding man, leaving him to die helplessly alone.
More likely, the road was infested with robbers. They saw the bleeding man and perhaps it was a trap. They did not want to fall victim to robbers and left the scene as soon as possible. Of course, nobody can tell. It is pure speculation. The truth is we should lend a helping hand whenever the situation demands.

Dear Lord, help us to go out of ourselves and generously love our neighbour. Let us love You more. Amen.

New Age Movement

Traditionally, educators work on five areas: virtues, intelligence, physique, sociability and aesthetics. As a Catholic Diocesan school, Shung Tak cannot be satisfied with doing just these five areas. In fact, all Christian schools should work on the spirituality dimension as well.
Rev. Fr. Thomas Kwan offers a "Spiritual Education" program for secondary schools. This is a most welcomed move for us. The program is an outgrowth of a spiritual theology course Fr. Kwan was preparing for a post graduate program in the Chinese University. It dawned to Fr. Kwan that instead of serving a few elite graduates, it would benefit more people if the materials were disseminated into secondary schools. However, in doing so, he has to tune down the religious aspects to make them into arousing inner consciousness instead. So far, so good. But there lies the danger of luring teachers and students into gnosticism. As a priest who has gone through rigorous theological trainings, Fr. Kwan is able to guard himself against this danger. However, for teachers and students who have no such theological background, it is another story.

I was not aware of this until one day I read one of the proposed major concerns of our school. It reads "To help students achieve spiritual enlightenment to lead a healthy life." It looks innocent enough. But "spiritual enlightenment" is pregnant with New Age ideas which are incompatible with Christian faith. Unwary school administrators would inadvertently incorporate heretical practices into the school policy. It is a murky story and I have no intention to handle it here. Way back in 2003, the PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR CULTURE & PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE had already issued a document, a Christian reflection on the "New Age" to encourage pastoral workers to meet this new challenge. Interested readers should take a look and read it patiently.

Today, 4 colleagues and I attended a workshop conducted by Fr. Kwan to work out the teaching plan for the new academic year. One of the colleagues shared with me that it is impossible to evaluate the effectiveness of what we plan to do. We have no way to decide whether the improvement shown by students is the result of the implementation of "Spiritual Education" or the result of natural growth. This reminds me of a passage in Hosea.
And she did not know that it was I who gave her the grain, the wine, and the oil, and who lavished upon her silver and gold which they used for Baal (Hosea 2:8).
God instructed Hosea to marry a prostitute who went after other lovers. This marriage was a symbol of the relationship between God and Israel who turned to idolatry. Though Israel was unfaithful to God, God would not forsake her.
and I will sow him for myself in the land. And I will have pity on Not pitied, and I will say to Not my people, 'You are my people'; and he shall say 'Thou art my God.' (Hosea 2:23)
Therefore, when we implement "Spiritual Education" in our school, we cannot leave God out of the scene.

Dear Lord, guide our steps so that our students may grow in greater awareness of Your loving grace. Amen.

Fourteenth Ordinary Sunday (Year C)

This morning, Fr. Martin celebrated the 11 a.m. Mass, which was also the Year End celebration for the Sunday School. The readings today are not at all easy for children to understand. For example,
Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves (Luke 10:3).
How would you tell the children and their parents that Jesus sent them out into dangers?
Whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace be to this house!' 
OK! It is politeness. Fair enough. But ...
And if a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon him; but if not, it shall return to you (Luke 10:5-6).
What does "son of peace" mean? What would happen to me if my peace should rest upon them? Would I be put into danger?
How would you explain the gospel reading of today to the children and their parents?

Fr. Martin resorted to telling the young audience some interesting facts about Japanese golden orioles. Golden orioles are song birds of a shy type. Their songs are flute like screech. Japanese farmers would pick up newly hatched golden orioles and bring them home to breed. They have to pick them up before the baby orioles hear other birds chirp. The farmers don't want their songs "contaminated". They would breed them with a mature golden oriole so as to teach them pure oriole songs etc.
What lesson could we draw from this practice?
Well, first of all, Fr. Martin reminded his young audience to be watchful of their companions. If their peers are good, they will do good. If their peers behave badly, they will follow and their parents will be deeply upset.
However, they are not passive recipients of whatever is fed into their eyes and ears. Fr. Martin reminded them that they would also influence their friends. Do good and your friends will follow your example.
Jesus usually gave his audience surprises in his parables. I think Fr. Martin has captured the true spirit of Jesus' saying. Yes, his disciples should be lambs in the midst of wolves so as to transform the wolves into lambs! Lambs are not defenceless after all. They are powerful lambs that are capable of taking away the sins of the world, of saving the wolves. So be it. Trust in the Lord. Let us be lambs in the midst of wolves.

Dear Lord, we have faith in You but not enough. Help us believe more and trust in Your saving grace. Make us courageous enough to let go and to be lambs in the midst of wolves. Amen.

Feast of St. Thomas 2010

Today, the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle. I have written twice the three incidents of Thomas mentioned in the gospel of John before. Today, I would like to write something about Fr. Thomas Law who teaches us Liturgy in the Seminary.

Fr. Law was ordained a diocesan priest in 1979. He is now the Parish Priest of the Mother of Good Counsel Church and the Supervisor of Ng Wah Catholic Secondary School in San Po Kong. Though he is well-known for his speciality in Church Liturgy, Fr. Law talks more about his dealings with the youngsters in his school and parish. He serves them with the Salesian spirit.

Fr. Thomas Law Kwok Fai

His hair turned silvery very early in his career. That probably is resulted from his being overzealous with his work. His voice has become coarse as a result of long years of passionate lecturing. He has too many good things that he wants to share with us. How much he wants us to lead a quality liturgical life.
He is knowledgeable and peppers all his lectures with PowerPoints, videos, pictures and music. You cannot fall asleep in his lessons because he keeps stimulating all of us with audio-visual aids as well as sarcastic jokes. These jokes help air his frustrations over other priests who, for "pastoral" reasons, fail to make the liturgy a life-uplifting encounter with the Risen Lord.
Every time he finishes his lecture, he would humbly ask us whether we are able to benefit from what we have gone through in the last two hours. Yes, we do benefit a lot, not only from the knowledge he imparts, but also from the passion he radiates. We are infected and our hearts glow.

Fr. Law is generous with us, whether it be the teaching materials or his time. He is totally dedicated and is ready to empty himself like the sacrifice on the altar. He is a living liturgy.
Though an expert in liturgy, he is able to retain the flexibility to adjust for the benefit of the congregation. He knows Latin but he does not condone the use of Latin in any liturgy. He wants the congregation to understand and participate fully in what they are doing.

Thank you, Fr. Law for your teaching in words and actions.

Dear Lord, I thank You for choosing Fr. Law to serve Your fold. May he continue to inspire more all us to meet You in the Liturgy. Amen.

Photo credit: The picture is download from Fr. Law's blog.

On Social Justice

The Catholic Church opts for the poor. This is her position on social justice. She is carrying on the prophetic tradition. In the current situation, a prophet speaks for the poor and the under-privileged. A prophet takes up the role of the conscience of the society.

It is hard to believe how the poor are exploited. Read this.
saying, "When will the new moon be over, that we may sell grain? And the sabbath, that we may offer wheat for sale, that we may make the ephah small and the shekel great, and deal deceitfully with false balances,
that we may buy the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, and sell the refuse of the wheat?" (Amos 8:5-6)
To buy the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals! How we can reduce a human being to a pair of sandals!

Recently, a legislator said that the minimum wage of workers should be set at twenty Hong Kong dollar an hour. He stirs up a barrage of outcries and is nicknamed "Twenty Dollar Cheung". At present, the monthly salary of a domestic helper stands at $3850. Let us add $2150 for housing, transportation and food etc. to make up $6000 a month. Divide it by $20 per hour. It means a worker has to work 300 hours a month in order to earn this wage. Roughly, it means a worker has to work 10 hours a day, 30 days a month at this wage level. Imagine the quality of life of such a worker! Will he be able to feed a family of four, if a meal for one costs $20? He needs to spend 4 x 2 x 30 x $20= $4800 per month! How much is left for housing, for transportation and for school fees etc. He has to reduce spending on food! No wonder the public is outrageous!

The legislator ran restaurants. When one of his restaurants, in which I happened to hold my wedding banquet, was wound up, he was supposed to pay wages and severance payments etc. to his employees. But as a legislator, he knew the labour ordinance well. Instead of digging into his own pocket to pay the employees, he applied for the Protection of Wage for Insolvency Fund (PWIF) to pay his employees. He did not spend a single cent. The taxpayers paid for him! I learned this from the lips of a retired labour officer. Now, I understand more the truth of the complaints of Amos. Society has changed. You don't need to buy the needy for a pair of sandals. You buy them without spending a single cent. The taxpayers pay for you! No wonder businessmen are eager to gain admittance into the legislative chamber. No wonder the democratic camp fights really hard for the abolition of functional constituency through which "Twenty Dollar Cheung" got admitted into the legislative chamber.

Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky (Psalm 85:11).
Dear Lord, how will You carry out Your righteousness for the needy in Hong Kong? We long for Your faithfulness, as a deer thirsts for fresh running streams. Amen.

We need more convincing people

What the (political) world needs now is more convincing people, people who are able to persuade the crowd with their words and actions. Not only do we want eloquent people, but we also want people of action. In ancient times, these were saints. In Biblical times, these were prophets.
We finished the 21-hour Patrology seminar today. We have learned a lot. Fr. Victor Aguilar from Macau, helped us build a link between our religious practices today with what is described in the New Testament. The Age of Church Fathers is the missing link. These Church Fathers responded to the crises of the day and left us with their teachings, church organization and liturgy etc. In time of crises, God would raise, for the Church, many outstanding saints. A greater enthusiasm for monasticism would also appear. Many people would seek deeper union with God through a solitary life or a cenobitic one.

Not everybody is called to be prophets. Each one of us is gifted in different ways. God only wants us to make good use of the talents He has given us. In the case of prophets, they must be prepared to be unpopular. Many times, prophets worked behind the scene to divert God's intended punishment. For example, Moses prayed to God to spare the rebellious Israelites who had made a golden calf to lead them out of the wilderness (Exodus 32:11-13). In reading Amos 7, we find the Amos did the same.
First of all, God showed Amos that He intended to send locusts to eat up all the crops. Amos intervened.
I said, "O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee! How can Jacob stand? He is so small!"
The LORD repented concerning this; "It shall not be," said the LORD (Amos 7:2b-3)
Then God showed Amos that He intended to consume them with fire. Amos intervened again with similar words.
Then I said, "O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee! How can Jacob stand? He is so small!"
The LORD repented concerning this; "This also shall not be," said the Lord GOD (Amos 7:5-6).
God had chosen well. Amos loved his own people. A prophet should love his own people without seeking rewards or gratitude from them.

Indeed, Amos was not welcomed by the people in authority. Here, we find an exchange between Amaziah the priest of Bethel and Amos.
Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words." (Amos 7:10)
Amaziah expected the King to take action to remove Amos from Israel. More than that, he took the matter into his own hand and persuaded this trouble maker to flee.
And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there;
but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom." (Amos 7:12-13)
This is my turf. Don't mess it up. You are not welcomed here. Go elsewhere.
Of course, Amos did not leave. He stood his ground and continued to convey God's message to Israel.
The Democratic Party will stand their ground and continue their fight for universal suffrage. But they need to be more convincing. They need to back up their words with actions.

Dear Lord, without Your mandate, our voices and actions are feeble. Stand by us to build Your Kingdom on earth here and now. Amen.