It will take some time for the Catholic Church to come in terms with the shock it received from Ireland following the results of a May 22 referendum in which 62 per cent of voters said yes to same-sex marriage, becoming the first country to support gay and lesbian marriage via popular vote. It was an emphatic rejection of the traditional understanding of marriage as being between one man and one woman and the Catholic Church appeared to be the biggest loser.

People in Hong Kong have begun preparing to commemorate of the tragedy of the Tiananmen Square Massacre in Beijing on 4 June 1989, and Church groups have organised prayer services to honour the students who sacrificed their lives on that fateful day. This annual remembrance demonstrates the link between Hong Kong and mainland China. 

Today, May 24, we celebrate Pentecost Sunday as well as the feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians. In 2007, Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI, in his letter to the Catholics in China, called for this day to be an occasion for of the whole world to be united in prayer with the Church in China. 

As early as January 23, Pope Francis issued his message for World Communications Day which is marked this Sunday which is also the Feast of the Ascension. Entitled,  Communicating the Family, the message is succinct and down-to-earth.

Once again people in many parts of the world will celebrate Mothers’ Day today. You do not have to remember the date. The media, the shopping malls, businesses remind us with their advertisements touting the different ways to celebrate this day. Expensive gifts and grand banquets are common ways to mark this day dedicated to mothers. 

Although we are more than half way through Lent, we still need to continue to pray, fast, act charitably and repent. On March 5, Pope Francis told a general audience: “We all need to improve, to change for the better. Lent helps us and thus we leave behind old habits….” 

If we can get rid of these habits, we can “look with new eyes at our brothers and sisters and their needs”. In this way, we can see what the signs of the times are saying.

Pope Francis’ universal prayer intention for March is, “That all cultures may respect the rights and dignity of women.” This makes us wonder if today’s society has really achieved mutual complementarity and mutual respect between men and women or not. Do women now enjoy equal opportunity of participation and share in social achievements in the actualisation of their social role? Are they free to speak out in fighting for their own rights?

EVERY FRIDAY DURING Lent, parishes in Hong Kong observe the way of the cross. One of the aims is to learn from the suffering Christ the spirit of loving to the end. It also gives an insight into his unfailing resistance to evil and helps people to unite with him in their daily lives.

“DON’T FORGET TO fast in Lent.” This is a well known catchphrase among Catholics in the lead up to Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of what is recognised as a 40-day period of fast.

More often observed by people trying to give something up for Lent, it can become a struggle of mind over matter in the effort to avoid eating or drinking a favourite delicacy for the long period of time.

THE FIRST WEEK of February is designated by the United Nations (UN) as World Interfaith Harmony Week. It was created in 2010 “to encourage all states to support, on a voluntary basis, the spread of the message of interfaith harmony and goodwill in the world’s churches, mosques, synagogues, temples and other places of worship on the foundational teaching of the love of God and love of neighbour.”