“May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all…, so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen.” (1 Thess 3:12-13)

Dear Sisters and Brothers in the Lord and Friends,

The Second Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops was over just a few weeks ago, and the Season of Advent is right around the corner. The Church, as the People of God, is awaiting a new dawn from the Holy Spirit, the protagonist of the Synod. With enthusiastic anticipation, we look forward to the beginning of the Ordinary Jubilee of the Year 2025 with the theme “Pilgrims of Hope” because “Hope does not disappoint” (Rom 5:5)

The Church as the “People of God,” which incorporates everyone in the Church, is a main theme in Lumen Gentium of the Second Vatican Council. This model of the Church is the foundation of what we are called to become — a synodal Church. As such, we are the Sacrament of Unity, bringing God’s salvific love through our unity while honouring diversity and plurality.

Synodality, which is the nature of being Church, must be mission-oriented. It involves gathering of all levels of the Church in mutual listening, dialogue, and communal discernment. The goal of the gathering is to reach a consensus guided by the Holy Spirit so as to be witnesses of the presence of Christ among us.

Ordained and lay ministers are to share and exercise powers and authority, and shoulder respective responsibilities, i.e., we are co-responsible according to our different roles and functions within the faith community. This is particularly so when we come from a plurality of contexts and diverse roles within the Body of Christ, called to practice the “Together for Mission” in unity so as to witness Christ’s salvific love. It will be a life-giving harmony that is much needed for the world today.

Hence, for the Church in Hong Kong, the different units should learn to collaborate in projects and missions regardless of their functions and goals. Indeed, this is an important aspect of our conversion.

Indeed, an essential approach to becoming a synodal Church is the conversion of our hearts through respectful and empathic listening, followed by communal discernment for decision-making and decision-taking. Hence, it is most desirable for pastors and lay leaders of parishes, small faith communities, religious communities, different commissions, ministries, work entities, etc., to start learning and working on this process.

Key elements for communal discernment include research and preparation, time for prayer and reflection, inner freedom to listen and pursue the common good, listening attentively and respectfully, searching for the widest possible consensus and lowest common denominator, and formulating consensus.

As pastors and pastoral leaders, recognising the different gifts in the parishioners and members of the community is most helpful for the exchange of gifts that are meaningful for synodality. “Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3) encourages us to share generously and to receive humbly. When making decisions, pastors and lay leaders must ensure transparency and accountability and have appropriate evaluation for the decisions made, including their making and taking processes.
We are also called to take root firmly in where we belong and support our local Church, contributing to its well-being. Nonetheless, we should also remind ourselves that our destiny is the eternal Kingdom of God, which is beyond this world. Such is the special reminder of the Season of Advent, that everything in this world will come to an end, except for God’s love and our eternal abode.

Our Holy Father has recently issued a new encyclical, Dilexit Nos (He loved us), in the latter part of the Second Session of the Synod of Bishops, which is on the love of the Sacred Heart for us. Its issuance was by no means coincidental. As stated by the Holy Father, the renewal of the devotion of the Sacred Heart is of particular relevance in the present heartless world. We journey together as missionary disciples of synodality because of the immense love of the Sacred Heart motivating each one of us.

Finally, the Jubilee Year 2025 will commence on December 24, 2025. Besides love, hope based on the promise of God is also a much-needed value in our
world today. Most of all, let the love of the Sacred Heart transform us from within so that we will become effective agents for the transformations in the Church and the world.

+ Stephen Cardinal Chow, S.J.
Advent 2024