2015-08-13 15:57:00

Hong Kong cardinal appeals to Beijing over church crosses


Cardinal John Tong Hon, the Bishop of Hong Kong has issued an “urgent appeal” to China’s ‎Communist Party chiefs, calling on them to order a halt to an ongoing cross-removal campaign in ‎Zhejiang province.  “I sincerely and urgently appealed to the central government to contact the ‎Zhejiang provincial government and investigate the real situation and stop all illegal cross removals,” ‎the cardinal said in an Aug. 12 statement.  The Chinese authorities should “return to the right path, ‎placing supreme importance on the constitution, ruling the country according to the law, and governing ‎by the law,” he said.  The cardinal also called on Catholics in Hong Kong to pray and fast for religious ‎dignity and freedom in order to share the sufferings of their persecuted brothers and sisters on the ‎mainland.‎

His appeal comes after Chinese authorities on Aug. 11 scotched rumors circulating among Christian ‎leaders and on social media that the 20-month campaign, which has seen the removal of more than ‎‎1,200 crosses, would be halted.  The appeal also comes less than a week after Hong Kong's Anglican ‎archbishop, Paul Kwong, called on Chinese authorities to halt cross removals in Zhejiang province, ‎which is home to an estimated 2 million Christians, including 210,000 Catholics.‎

Observers on social media have criticized Hong Kong's Christian leaders, accusing them of dragging ‎their feet in issuing responses to the cross removals. Soon after the Catholic diocesan weekly, Kung ‎Kao Po, posted Cardinal Tong's statement on its Facebook page, blogger Anthony Yuen left a message ‎saying the appeal was too slow in coming.  “Hasn't the response come a bit late?” he asked. In response, ‎Sister Pauline Yuen of the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception said the cardinal's ‎statement was “better late than never”.  (Source: UCAN)‎








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