b. Although most faithful have fulfilled their duties in all circumstances of their lives, due to great temptations, challenges and attacks of most various forms coming from daily lives and the present world, it is not sufficient to counter these attacks simply by fulfilling their duties and to reach sanctity in daily lives and to carry out the mission of Christians.

c. There are two hundred and thirty thousand Catholics in Hong Kong, but only one fourth i.e. fifty odd thousand participate in Sunday masses. This figure has remain the same for many years without increasing or diminishing. In reality, there are more than a thousand baptisms of adults and infants each year, which means quite a number of faithful due to various reasons, after being baptized for a period of time, gradually drop out, stay away from the Church and forget their Christian identity, although keeping their faith in their hearts (note4).

c. There is a lack of balance in the strategy of the pastoral work of the diocese. Most of the resources are invested in those one fourth of Christians who are comparatively active and who go to church frequently, while the other three quarters of those “lukewarm” Christians who after being baptized as infants or at school but have now disappeared, or who as adults left the Church after baptism, are actually ignored by the diocese. There is a lack of strategy and system to actively search for and follow up on these faithful.

d. With regard to the distribution of resources, it seems that the diocese overlooked those who can provide direct formation for the laity by hiring more full time or part time laymen in the work of formation.

e. For most Christians who receive formation, the major goal is personal growth in faith, and not so much on the idea of forming a Christian community or carrying out their Christian mission. Most formation courses also seem to emphasize the knowledge of faith but less weight is given to the integration of faith and Christian living or the mission of building up Christian communities. On the other hand, many faithful are not interested in the formation of one’s spiritual life.

f. Some of the faithful after baptism have no idea about life-long formation in faith, so that their contact with the Church and faith depend totally on the fulfillment of duty of Sunday mass. They do not participate in the community life of the Church, rendering their faith irrelevant to their daily life experience.

g. By taking part in the sacraments, we can encounter God. Therefore liturgy becomes the climax and spring of living faith. In the liturgy, we can offer our successes and failures, joys and sorrows on the altar of Christ, asking for His acceptance and receiving consolation. But quite often, the liturgy becomes mere ritual. Most faithful participate in it only because of their duties, without understanding its meaning or the relationship between the liturgy and their lives. In addition, in the liturgy of the Word during Eucharistic celebration, some priests are unable to point out the deep link between the Word with daily living, so that the lives of the faithful receive no nourishment, lacking the strength and support to reach maturity.

h. With regard to courses and activities on Christian formation, the deployment of resources in this area is often proportionately less than those recreational activities, such as the feast day of the parish’s patron saint or parish picnic. At the same time, the nature of parish associations tends towards carrying out of tasks and services. In this way, the faithful cannot get their spiritual formation and nourishment through the parish activities, and therefore, are unable to integrate their reflections on life and respond effectively to the various challenges of daily life.

i. Joining the Church through baptism means joining a community. However, since the parish community is often too big, it cannot effectively carry out the role of community support and sharing. Cardinal Wu has mentioned in his pastoral letter “March into the Bright Decade” in 1989, the function of small Christian communities, hoping that these could be widely spread at all levels in the diocese. After their baptism, the faithful should join a suitable small community, so as to maintain and develop their faith. In an atmosphere of mutual support, through the sharing of the Word, members of these communities grow and mature. The similar background of the members could be a greater help for the forming of these communities, e.g. Christian family communities and Christian neighbourhood communities etc. But most faithful are not aware of the importance of small Christian communities in the formation of faith, and as a consequence, there is still a big gap between actual commitment and participation in these communities and what was advocated in the pastoral letter. Christian faith that lacks community support is often watered down and homogenized by secular values, resulting in the departure from the Church. On the other hand, small Christian communities are facing all sorts of difficulties, e.g. lacking the force of consolidation, lay leadership, materials for meetings, appropriate support, and support from the clergy etc., and tend to end up in a stalemate.

a. Other than fulfilling the ministry of kingship, priesthood and prophet in their living environment, the faithful participate even more actively in different ministries of Church life, e.g. the ministry in the liturgy. At present, in every parish, there are quite a number of faithful taking part in various liturgical ministries, enabling the smooth carrying out of the liturgy, actualizing co-responsibility and the spirit of communion between laity and clergy. On the other hand, some Christians are very much committed to other areas of Church life, rendering it lively and energetic.

b. The ministry of the faithful in the Church is mostly tasks orientated, offering one’s own time to serve the Church. This conveys however an impression that joining a Christian association is to complete some tasks. Gradually, after a few years of commitment in parish work, the faithful feel tired, lacking the energy to deepen their faith.

c. Some Christians organize themselves according to their interests and professions, and render their contribution to the Church, e.g. through drama, dance, music composition etc. They render services to the Church according to their specializations, and take part in some public events of evangelization or diocesan conferences.

d. Some Christians set up associations or companies duly registered with the Government, in order to draw in more resources and strength for the service of the Church. They hire employees, rent their own centres, and provide services for their Christian members and other faithful. Thus demonstrates a growing awareness in some Christians who seek recognition and area of service within and outside the Church, in order to live up to the ideal and mission of faith.

e. A small number of Christians who have accepted greater challenges, have left their jobs and gone to foreign countries as missionaries.

f. There is an increasing number of Christians who after retirement, work even more energetically in the Church. Without the burden of a job, with ample time at their own disposal, and enriched by their administrative work nature and life experience, their services to the Church are given due recognition and growing in importance.

g. Some Christians tend to follow individual clergy when carrying out their ministry in the Church and do not have a clear vision of their mission and meaning of service. Thus, whenever there is a change of clerical pastors, it results in a lack of coordination and disillusion.

h. Although there is a division of labor among different ministries in the Church, there is a lack of cooperation, exchange, sharing and communion. Some tend to concentrate only on their own tasks, and overlook the need of coordination and communion with other ministries.

a. In the Diocesan Catechetical Centre, catechetical teaching courses are offered every year, and up until now there are already a few thousand people who have finished these courses, and are serving as voluntary catechists and Sunday school teachers in parishes.

b. The Diocesan Liturgical Commission has also provided a systematic formation programme for lectors, ministers of the Eucharist and choir members etc.

c. Parish priests and parish pastoral councils usually have a very close working relationship, but parish council members too easily turn their ministry to tasks, relying solely on their personal enthusiasm, and lack community coordination, support and reflection on faith and its experience. Thus after a few years, they show signs of fatigue and helplessness. Sometimes parish priests may not do what they can to establish a close cooperative relationship with parish councils.

d. The Council of the Laity also accepts invitations from parishes to provide training for parish staff or members of associations. At the same time, in its council meetings, sharing on special themes takes place every two months in order to provide appropriate formation for parish council members attending the meeting. Recently it has run training courses on ‘Christian house-steward’ with parish council members and leaders of associations as their intended clientele.

e. Individual communities provide periodic training activities or courses for their members or other faithful, and may partly open its courses for other interested Christians.

The parish can make use of the resources present within the Church and in society, e.g. Caritas or CMAC to hold courses and activities regarding self-understanding (with regard to emotions, personality etc.) and growth in integrity, so that Christian formation is based upon a healthy personality, able to experience concretely their real humanity, and become a healthy and integral person, thus be able to initiate the integration of faith experience (note7).

Pope John Paul II has pointed out: "Christians, in particular, realize that their responsibility within creation and their duty towards nature and the Creator are an essential part of their faith." (Pope John Paul II's 1990 World Day of Peace Message: "The Ecological Crisis: A Common Responsibility" #15) He makes it a point to "remind (brothers and sisters within the Catholic Church) of their serious obligation to care for all creation. The commitment of believers to a healthy environment for everyone stems directly from their belief in God the Creator...... Respect for life and for the dignity of the human person extends also to the rest of creation, which is called to join man in praising God (cf. Ps 148:96)."(#16)

Therefore, works, activities and ways of life in the Diocese, parish and community should adopt the message above mentioned as a clear sign of their testimony as Christians in society.

The formation of the laity in all aspects should also contain the basic elements above mentioned. Especially in the catechetical and other various courses, there is a need to introduce this urgent message of the Pope and the spirit and content of "The Ecological Crisis: A Common Responsibility" in detail, so that the catechumens may seriously learn how to admire, value and respect the Lord’s creation step by step, and to understand the intimate relationship between ‘heaven, earth, man’ and their integral links.

Formation masters, e.g. priests, sisters, teachers and units or communities of formation, such as seminaries, catechetical centers, office of formation of the laity etc. have the grave responsibility to insert the concern for ecology into their curriculum, and consider the addition and strengthening of such courses and training. Courses in theology and spirituality should also include ecology as an essential element. This will involve participation in projects and activities concerned with the environment.

To carry out lay formation effectively is to have practice in life and in action. Therefore, to participate in ecological activities and actions for environmental concern is an important element of formation.

“In various different ways, God has spoken in the past through the prophets, but in these last days, he has spoken to us through his Son”. God sent His own Son, the eternal Word that enlightens all men who came to live among us and has narrated the mystery of God (DV #4). ‘Not to know the bible is not to know Christ’ (St. Jerome).

Among the different areas of formations, biblical formation should occupy an important role. However, many laymen consider biblical formation as something academic. Thus, they tend to lack interest in it or are afraid to take part. We have to point out that for ordinary faithful, the knowledge of the bible certainly serves to penetrate into and to give deeper understanding of the scripture, but it is not foremost important. What is even more important is the open attitude of the faithful, to listen to the challenge and advice of the Word of God regarding their lives. Personal reading or sharing of the Holy Scripture in small communities is most beneficial for their daily sanctification. What is narrated by writers of the bible under inspiration has to be seen as the word of the Holy Spirit. The truth of the Holy Scripture can help us to reflect from the Lord’s viewpoint on our own lives, to find out the will of God, and then to walk on this long path towards sanctity.

The bible is the doctrine of truth revealed to us firmly, faithfully, infallibly by God (DV#11). It is a letter from home full of love from our heavenly Father.

In the Diocese, there are the Biblical Institute and the Holy Spirit Seminary, in which many laity are trained to know the bible. However many believers still do not have sufficient knowledge of the truths in the bible. They do not have the habit of personal biblical reading, nor biblical sharing in small communities. In their lives, the Word has not yet taken on the function of guidance.

The Church has to emphasize anew the importance of biblical knowledge in the life of the faithful, not only in the sense of intellectual knowledge, but also as an integral knowing, especially from the perspective of prayer and spiritual life. This is what affects the laity most deeply. It is the precious experience of God’s encounter with each person. Bible reading, prayer and experience of deep encounter with the Lord can make an important impact on the life of a Christian.

No doubt, there are many methods in bible reading, but one ancient practice worth suggesting to ordinary Christians, is the ‘Lectio Divina’. It is a very effective method. Through reading aloud, listening and sharing the Word, we allow the Word to penetrate into and enrich our lives, enabling our faith to take root. This method does not emphasize technique, and anybody can adopt it. What is needed is an open attitude towards the author of the bible: the Holy Spirit, letting Him operate in us, and then gradually we may find ourselves changed and formed by the Word.

It is necessary to encourage the laity to be guided and nourished everyday by the Word. At the beginning, telephone (e.g. Catholic hotline), internet (e.g. website of the liturgical commission) and writings (e.g. ‘Peace’ monthly magazine) can be used for an increased knowledge of the Word and to allow our lives to be guided by It. In so doing, we may gradually become accustomed to personal bible reading everyday.

It is necessary to make good use of the technology of multi-media or information, so that useful biblical data can be transmitted through practical means in the form of CDs or put onto websites. The faithful can then overcome the difficulty in reading the bible and hence gain interest and strength from the Word. For example, when a person reads the bible by oneself and encounter difficulties in understanding a verse or paragraph, one can have access on the internet to find out the meaning of this piece of the bible by looking for an explanation and ways to put it into practice. In this way, the interest in knowing the Word would be increased.

The Studium Biblicum can also consider printing portable Holy Scripture, comprising OT & NT, so that the laity can be nourished by the Word at all times.

Parishes should invite groups which provide formation on the Word, like the Biblical Association, Biblical Institute etc. to hold courses or activities concerning the bible, and to run follow up programmes, so that the faithful are nourished more by the Word.

Spiritual prayer is a very precious tradition of the Catholic Church, but most of the programmes of faith formation provided seem to be centered around theology and biblical knowledge, ignoring the treasure hidden in prayer. In prayer, God comes close to us and converse with us. In prayer, we also express our piety towards Him. Importance should be given to the habit of personal daily prayer, such as prayers before meals, which once they become a habit, can gradually change us and sanctify us. Every Christian should try his/her best to pray everyday, because to pray is to offer time to the Lord, to be alone with Him; no matter what one tells Him, He will listen patiently, at one’s side.

Periodically, the faithful should find a longer period of time to go to retreats, especially when there is also spiritual direction, so that reflections are made upon the coherence between one’s life and the will of Christ, or the search for His will, and solutions to the difficulties of life be sought. They should look for a spirituality suitable for themselves, in order to be assisted in their sanctification and in their effort of growing closer to God.

Besides silent prayer to God, spirituality can also be expressed in joyful singing such as some communities do. By adoring and praising God through rhythmic music, together with bodily movements, singing and oral prayer, the participants can be totally immersed, and open themselves and get closer to God in another way.

Not only can spirituality deepen our relationship with God, it can also integrate our intellectual aspect of faith, and help us to face the drawbacks of life. In a busy city like Hong Kong, spiritual life becomes all the more important. Since the relentless pace of life is exhausting, the faithful should give greater importance to spiritual formation, and adopt the kind of spiritual expressions suitable for themselves. Everyone has a different role in life, and God enables our sanctification through these life roles. For example, a mother has to discern her own role in life and faith, and make an effort to carry out her mission as she reflects and struggles, praising and glorifying God.

Through the liturgy and sacraments, the faithful can intimately unite with God. Before receiving the sacraments, it is important to prepare themselves spiritually, and to be united with the Lord.

The bruises and wounds we encounter in life have to be healed by the sacraments, especially the falls and failures require the strength of the sacrament of reconciliation. In order to facilitate access to this sacrament, we suggest that in every deanery, a parish should be chosen as a locus for confession, to which are assigned priests rich in experience, those who retired, on every Saturday afternoon during fixed hours.

Faith formation elements can also be introduced into liturgies where there is the highest participation: e.g. Sunday Mass, without affecting the integrity of the liturgy. For example after Holy Communion or before the Eucharistic celebration begins, a few minutes of formation could be included. The content can be either a revision of catechism in a brief and concentrated manner, or an explanation of the different parts of the liturgy, or the meaning of the day’s readings. During liturgy too it is possible to let the faithful share their testimony of the Word in a formal manner, e.g. families could do so on the Feast of the Holy Family, teachers on education Sunday, workers on Labor Sunday etc. It may be better if those giving testimonies are parishioners, and they should have been well prepared. They should have reflected well on the readings of the day, and then they can offer their life experiences as relevant testimony. It is advisable that the priest make a brief conclusion after the sharing. Hence this can be an occasion of formation and reflection on faith and Christian living for those who give testimony.

Catechism is a summary of the Church’s teaching on the Christian religion. The content of faith is very rich. When we acquire faith experience in our lives, we seek for explanations in faith (Faith seeking understanding). The first Christians lived with Christ for a period of time, under His influence. After His departure, they reflected upon this unique experience of faith which resulted gradually in the formulation of different doctrines. Similarly for Christians of today, investigation into doctrines without the experience will result in a faith that is disjointed. Every doctrine has a deep relationship with different aspects of Christian living. But it is sad to say that most of the formation received by the faithful cannot integrate doctrine in their daily lives. At times, this formation emphasizes the intellectual more than experience, and sometimes it causes an external execution of duties, without giving an explanation of reasons behind such practices. Thus, catechetical formation should first of all emphasize the relationship between faith and daily living, and that the outstanding characteristics of Christians is to reach sanctity in life. Faith can easily become doctrine if it does not help us to discover how to sanctify ourselves in life.

Catechism is not a book, nor it is mere talk. It is Christian community listening to the Word of God, which brings forth a big ‘noise’, and makes others hear (note8). Therefore, catechetical formation is teaching how to integrate Christian faith with life, how to be God’s children in life, to become followers of Christ and messengers of the Gospel.

Before announcing the Word to the faithful in the liturgy, it is important that the dynamic force of the Word and the way it changes our lives are experienced by the lectors. Therefore, sufficient preparation, including the sharing of the Sunday readings in a smaller group is most advisable. The Word has the force of changing our hearts. Parishes can consider using various means to encourage parishioners to copy down phrases of the scripture they like most, or to put a phrase of the Scripture as headings on the notice boards. Parishes can consider distributing short comments printed in leaflets, of the day’s readings and illustrate how these are related to daily lives, in order to help the faithful put the Scripture readings into practice.

As people specialized in serving Mass, acolytes can also help explain the meaning of the different parts of the liturgy in various ways to the faithful, for the purpose of integration of liturgy with daily lives. Parishes can try to recruit adults, other than young people, as acolytes. The adult acolytes can, not only lead the younger ones, providing them with assistance with regard to faith and problems of life, but can also lessen the burden of the clergy.

The Body of Christ is a sign of communion and service. A minister of the Eucharist is also a sign of communion and service in the parish. Their formation should include brief training in hospital pastoral work, so as to be more effective in visiting sick parishioners and to be able to understand and accept the suffering that comes with illness.

a. The Catechists: Catechists have a very important ministry in announcing the gospel to the non-Christians. They transmit the message of Christ through their deeds and words to the catechumens. Through building up personal relationships by means of conversations and periodic visits, the catechists get to understand the motives of those becoming a catechumen as well as the challenges they encounter in their lives. Catechists should be the first among others to receive life long formation, in order to improve their standard and a sense of mission.

Collaboration, exchanges and sharing among catechists doing different courses should be increased. Parishes or deaneries can organize meetings of exchanges and sharing of catechists, and hence can appreciate and encourage their contribution to the Church.

Besides hiring more faithful suitable for the work of hospital pastoral ministry, training more laity interested in visiting hospitals (especially those within the parish area) in their free time is also important. It is also necessary to provide periodic training for such activities to, e.g. the Legion of Mary and ministers of the Eucharist, to enable them to carry out their ministry.

For this ministry parishes can promote some laity who are gifted with the charism of consoling and accompanying those who are suffering to be in touch with Christ. These faithful can be grouped together, to be trained in pastoral care and in cooperation with the clergy can provide consolation and support of the parish to the relatives of the dead.

Parishes can encourage the faithful to join groups that visit prisoners, enabling them to understand the plight of those in a special social strata, and gain insight from another angle, into their present social condition.

Because of the serious lack of clergy, it is important to encourage those faithful who have this charism and have undertaken appropriate training, to become parish pastoral assistants. It is necessary to establish once again pastoral teams in parishes, enabling priests, sisters and lay people to promote parish pastoral work along the team model. This is actually an important sign of actualizing lay ministry. The Diocese should reconsider defining the working role of pastoral assistants and the way they should collaborate with parish priests and sisters. The best way to accomplish this is to have them hired, paid and sent by the Diocese, in order to avoid the dislocation caused by changes in parish personnel. As a short-term goal (within five years), every deanery should have one hired pastoral assistant. A revision could be made after five years. Those assistants working in parishes should have periodic sharing and support. It is most desirable to have a person in the Diocese (e.g. one of the vicars general) to be their advisor, so that when there is a problem, he can be their point of reference. They should also receive adequate in-service training, and take part in some formation related to pastoral ministry.

The establishment of small communities of faith has been encouraged by the Cardinal in his pastoral letter: ‘March into the Bright Decade’. In the initial stages, each of these communities is very dependent on its leaders, until a sense of belonging or even of mission, can be established among the members. Pastoral ministers of the parish should actively encourage more laity with the charism of leadership to join small communities of faith and provide them with training (encouraging them to take part in different training courses). The parish should provide space for these small communities, and confirm their ministry and contributions. Leaders of small communities should be aware of their mission, and seek for support from actual resources of the Church, especially when faced with problems.

It is necessary to look into and strengthen the role and ministry of godparents. For adults, one and a half years before their baptism, godparents should already be sought for, and should be invited to attend at least two classes of catechism. Besides receiving short formation in this way, godparents can understand the situation of their godchildren, and strengthen their relationships. In the same year, one person should not become the godparent of two or more catechumens.

Parishes or catechists should make use of various occasions to look for more lay people available to become godparents and not wait until the period of baptism to do so. After baptism, meetings can be organized for godparents and the newly baptized, in order to strengthen their relationships. At the same time, the pastoral ministers can follow up the newly baptized and understand their conditions.

For the baptism of children, parishes should visit all families with baptized infants, to understand their family situation, the practice of faith by the parents etc. This is the best occasion to contact those who do not come often to the parish. These data can be stored and filed by the parish, so that after a few years, the parish can actively contact the families again, to understand their conditions and invite the children to participate in Sunday schools.