The head of the Hong Kong Catholic Diocese, Stephen Chow, on Friday said a trip to the capital this week allowed for meaningful exchanges with mainland counterparts on fostering young clergy.

Speaking to reporters after holding a mass in Beijing, the bishop also stressed the importance of loving the country and the church.

"We all have to learn to love the country and the church. Everybody wants their country to do well. Nobody wants their country to be bad. Being patriotic is a duty. If you are resident of Hong Kong or the mainland, you should love your own country," Chow said.

He brushed aside suggestions that it was an "ice-breaking" visit, noting that Cardinal John Wu went to three mainland cities in 1994 and his trip this week continued the tradition.

Chow also said he has invited the head of the Beijing Archdiocese, Archbishop Joseph Li, for a visit to Hong Kong.

Kung Lap-yan, a theologian and associate professor at the Chinese University, said Chow's visit will mean more regular exchanges between Hong Kong and mainland churches going forward.

"What the Hong Kong churches are doing is to make the kind of connection or communication between churches in China and Hong Kong more formal, more structural and more systematic," Kung said.

Asked about Hong Kong's role in terms of Sino-Vatican ties, Chow said the Hong Kong Diocese can act as a communication bridge and foster exchanges at a grassroots level.

Kung told RTHK his visit highlights the SAR's role in fostering relations between Beijing and the Holy See following a bilateral agreement in 2018 on the appointment of Chinese bishops.

"[For] any kind of top-level agreements or consensus, it needs some kind of solid base, that is the grassroots communication and encounter between Catholic churches in China and Hong Kong," he said. "What Bishop Chow is doing is to make the consensus between these two governments more substantial, through the visit, through the dialogue, and through holding the mass together."
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Last updated: 2023-04-21 HKT 18:20