Retired prelate Cardinal Joseph Zen from Hong Kong recently said amid years of Communist rule in China, human values are being compromised across Asia and the situation can be salvaged only by preaching the gospel fervidly.
“What threatens the continent most today is a humanistic atheism; people who oppose God-to-man, man-to-God. … By looking to the history of China, it's clear that communism has destroyed all human values. So to save human values we have to work hard to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. … We have to preach God because only God can save man,” he said.
The cardinal made these remarks during a conference on the Church’s reach in Asia titled The Mission in Asia: From John Paul II to Pope Francis. He said the task of evangelizing China, like any other country in Asia, depends on proclaiming human values and rights unapologetically.
“So that's what we are doing in Hong Kong. Although we are already a part of China, we still have freedom of speech so we must speak out,” he said, noting while there will not be any immediate result, the Church must still persevere.
He also addressed how Pope Francis has been received in China, saying while the rest of the world has some respect for the pontiff’s arrival, the Chinese government continues to behave stubbornly and refuses to change its rigid religious policy.
“Pope Francis has to work very hard,” the cardinal added, saying that if the Pope chooses to visit China right now, “I don’t see any probability of a success because they will surely manipulate him, because there is no sign of any good will on the part of China.”
According to Zen, the Pope’s continuing push for dialogue has played an important role in the development of the Asian Church and it has also influenced spread of peace around the country. He went on to quote what the Pope had told Asian priests during his visit to South Korea earlier this year.
“In the mass with the Asian bishops, (the Pope) spoke about dialogue, and he said that dialogue has two essential conditions: one is that each one should be coherent to his own identity, (and) the second point is to have this empathy and this open heart to listen. Both the coherence with one’s own identity and the openness of heart are important,” he noted, saying it is “very wise” advice on the pontiff’s part.
Also in attendance at the conference was Bishop Lazzaro You Heung Sik from South Korea, who invited the pontiff to his church in August. He said the Church in Korea, too, is working towards a dialogue like other Asian countries, noting that the dialogue is not superficial but authentic, as the church is sensitive to Christians who live their relation to God on a daily basis. He believes other people would also be influenced eventually if such an attitude was to be fostered by the Church.
Among its current plans, Hong Kong’s local church is backing the demand for greater human rights. For instance, it supported the recent protests carried out by students in response to the limits the Chinese administration had placed on those who can contest the post of chief executive, Hong Kong’s top post, in 2017. The new rules allow only one vote per citizen for pre-selected candidates appointed by the Chinese administration. However, this led to protesters accusing Beijing of denying them their previous guarantee of Hong Kong’s right to democracy.
Photo Credits: UCA News
