For the past 10 years, several Legionaries of Christ, mostly members of the community of teachers from Rome, have been working apostolically in China and, especially, in Hong Kong, which is a special administrative region of southern China, composed of a peninsula and several islands.
Thanks in part to this apostolic activity, on January 23rd, 10 people from Hong Kong and Macau joined the Regnum Christi during a concelebrated Mass by Fathers Joseph Tham, LC, Thomas Montanaro, LC, and Marco Cho, LC.
Father Marco Cho, LC, preached the homily and, based on the Gospel passage of the man with the withered hand, recalled that “Jesus wants to enter our lives to heal us,” and added: “The Regnum Christi is, for us, the response through which we give Christ the opportunity to enter into us, into life, the soul, and the heart. For us, the Regnum Christi is the response to the vocation of love and the vocation to love.”
In the last decade, the Legionary fathers have given spiritual and academic conferences. In the academic field, courses on bioethics and business ethics have been offered; in the spiritual field, retreats, marriage conferences, and Bible studies have been preached. Additionally, they have engaged with clergy, university students, and entrepreneurs.
The population of Hong Kong exceeds 7 million inhabitants. All traditional Chinese religions are practiced there. Due to the strong influence of Confucianism, ancestor worship predominates. Only about ten percent of the population practices Christianity. Of that ten percent, approximately half are Catholics and the others Protestants. “Laypeople seek deep formation and a stronger spiritual life to participate properly in ethical, social, and political debates according to the Catholic faith,” commented Father Joseph Tham, LC.
Since 2010, Father Joseph Tham, LC, a native of Hong Kong, has been collaborating as a visiting professor at the Holy Spirit Seminary College, where he periodically offers a curriculum course on bioethics. Additionally, he holds several positions within the diocese, such as Fellow of the Bioethics Resource Centre at the seminary, counselor of the Diocesan Commission for pastoral care of people with same-sex attraction and their families, and chaplain of St. Justin Fellowship of Catholic Scholars.
Several priests have also been able to visit and participate in conferences and retreats in mainland China. Some have accompanied pilgrimages as chaplains to the Holy Land, Poland, Spain, Italy, and Greece. Others have also accompanied young people to World Youth Days since 2013. Moreover, several young people of Chinese origin have joined the Legion, both at the vocations center and the Novitiate.
In the area of formation and accompaniment of entrepreneurs and professionals, several retreats and training meetings have been organized, both in Hong Kong and Rome, as well as in the Holy Land. Many of these entrepreneurs, in addition to their own apostolates, collaborate in the apostolate through the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum.
“China is currently the second strongest economy in the world. Its influence on the future of the world and the Church cannot be denied. Its cultural and economic leadership carries immense weight. Despite the complicated ecclesial situation, Hong Kong presents itself as a bridge or as an entry door to China […]. Despite the cultural differences and challenges posed by Chinese culture, there is a warm reception of our spirituality and the apostolic methodology of the Regnum Christi. It seems that Providence acts unexpectedly, opening new possibilities at this moment in our history,” commented Father Joseph Tham, LC.
