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September 2019

Pope Francis appoints 13 new cardinals
 (Saturday, 14 September 2019 )

HONG KONG (Agencies): Archbishop Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta will be the new Asian bishop to join the College of Cardinals as he featured in the list of 10 cardinal elects announced by Pope Francis on September 1. The pope has announced an imminent consistory, where he will create a total of 13 new cardinals, with three of them over the age of 80. Cardinals above the age of 80 are not eligible to vote in a conclave to elect the pope.   
 
Cardinal...

Timor Leste hosts Claretian youth assembly
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

HONG KONG (SE): Young people from Asian countries served by Claretian Missionaries have gathered in Timor-Leste with the theme for a week-long assembly to renew their commitment as Christ’s witnesses. The Asia East Youth Gathering (AEYG) took place from August 5 to 11 in Dili, the capital of Timor-Leste,  with the theme “The solidarity of Christ impels us: go, sell, share and follow.”
 
The gathering is held every two years and is the third such event...

‘Lunatic’ divorce bill draws backlash in Pakistan
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

ISLAMABAD (UCAN): Pakistani Church leaders and activists have slammed the latest draft bill on Christian matrimonial laws for using offensive and derogatory terms.
 
On August 20 the federal cabinet approved the Christian Marriage and Divorce Bill 2019. One of its provisions states that among the grounds for divorce can be if “either party was a lunatic or idiot or a minor at the time of marriage.”
 
The bill also directs the court to act on the...

Migrant children will suffer most under new US detention rule
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

WASHINGTON (CNS): Bishop Joe Vasquez of Austin, Texas, the United States of America (US), chairperson of the US bishops’ Committee on Migration, said on August 23 that he sees “heartbreaking consequences for immigrant children” in a final rule issued by the Trump administration that allows the federal government to hold immigrant children in family detention indefinitely.
 
The new rule was jointly issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)and the...

How we can save the planet and ourselves
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

The ongoing burning of the rainforests in Brazil under newly elected president, Jair Bolsonaro, is an indication of the destructive power of a dictatorial leader. He is allowing thousands of hectares of rainforest to be cut down and burnt. Toxic fumes engulf many Brazilian towns. He is changing the forest into grazing lands for beef production. 
 
It is disastrous, it adds to global warming as the rainforest absorbs huge amount of CO2. Billions of cattle raised for beef...

Protests no excuses for denial of migrants’ holidays
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

HONG KONG (SE): As protests against the now-suspended extradition bill have spread to wider districts during weekends, a migrant rights group has expressed its concern about employers denying workers’ holidays under the pretext of worrying about their workers’ safety in different areas. 
 
In a statement on August 28, the Filipino Migrant Workers Union said it respects the rights of Hong Kong people to defend their autonomy under the principle of One Country...

Sunday Examiner bags Titus Brandsma Award for promoting dialogue
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

HONG KONG (SE): Geneva-based International Christian Organisation of the Media (ICOM) in a communiqué dated August 30 addressed to Cardinal John Tong and Bishop Joseph Ha announced that the Sunday Examiner of Hong Kong has been chosen for this year’s Titus Brandsma Award, the International Award for Promoting Dialogue. 
 
The award is a recognition for the efforts of Kung Kao Po and the Sunday Examiner for upholding ethics and...

Bell rings for healing
 (Friday, 6 September 2019 )

Over 40 Catholic and Protestant churches rang the bells together to call on the faithful to pray for Hong Kong at one’o clock on September 1, the last day of the summer holiday. 


At the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception, Caine Road, parish priest Father Dominic Chan Chi-ming (left) led a prayer session for God’s help to lead people to walk out of the crisis caused by the now-shelved...

Hong Kong’s Catholic places of faith and Church-government relations
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

By Ayako Fukushima 
 
This September, I am publishing an academic book titled, Building Catholic Churches in Hong Kong, in Japanese language through Kyushu University Press. This is the outcome of 10 years of research and my thanks go out for kind support from many Catholics in Hong Kong (I am hoping to publish English version in the near future). My major interest has always been the church building, church architecture, or place of faith....

Thousands boycott class for city as new school year begins
 (Saturday, 7 September 2019 )

HONG KONG (SE): “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” read one of the placards held up by one of student protesters as they knelt on the ground at St. Francis’ Canossian College on September 2, on the first day of the new school year. The students were staging school boycott in an act of defiance, calling for the government to meet the protesters’ demands, including the ouster of Hong Kong’s chief...