New archbishops across the Anglican Communion: The Church of England Newspaper, June 30, 2013 p 7 June 28, 2013
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea, Anglican Church of Tanzania, Church of England Newspaper, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, La Iglesia Anglicana de Mexico.Tags: Clyde Igara, Francisco Manuel Moreno, Jacob Chimeledya, Paul Kwong, Valentino Mokiwa
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Archbishop Francisco Manuel Moreno
The Anglican churches in Mexico and Papua New Guinea have elected new primates, while the primate of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui has re-elected to a second term.
The Anglican Communion news service reports that on 14 June the provincial Council of the Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea elected Rt. Rev. Clyde Igara, Bishop of the Dogura, to serve as primate and archbishop of the province. He succeeds Archbishop Joseph Kopapa who retired last year. As metropolitan of the church Archbishop Igara will not have diocesan responsibilities and a new Bishop of the Dogura is expected to be elected shortly.
The website of La Iglesia Anglicana de México last week announced that on 14 June 2013 the VII General Synod meeting in Mexico City elected the Rt. Rev. Francisco Manuel Moreno as primate and archbishop of the province. Bishop Moreno will continue to serve as Bishop of the Diócesis del Norte de México and succeeds Archbishop Carlos Touche-Porter of Mexico City whose term of office expired.
The VI General Synod of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, the Anglican Church in Hong Kong and Macao, meeting 2-5 June re-elected Archbishop Paul Kwong to a second six year term. ACNS reports that in other business the Synod endorsed the Anglican Covenant — a document championed by former Archbishop Rowan Williams to set the bounds of Anglican doctrine and discipline, but received with little enthusiasm by large parts of the communion.
On 19 May 2013 the Anglican Church of Tanzania enthroned Archbishop Jacob Chimeledya as archbishop and primate of the East African Church after a fierce internal dispute. On 21 Feb 2013 Archbishop Chimeledya defeated the incumbent Archbishop Valentino Mokiwa in an election for a five-year term as primate.
Supporters of Archbishop Mokiwa charged the new Archbishop’s election had been fraudulently obtained and claimed that American money and had been used to bribe bishops and diocesan deputations. Members of the election Synod filed a complaint with the church, but the canons of the Anglican Church of Tanzania did not foresee this situation and no legal remedy was available to the Mokiwa camp.
Both sides in the dispute engaged attorneys and Archbishop Mokiwa’s camp were prepared to file a civil lawsuit and seek an injunction blocking the installation. However the archbishop’s indecision of over which firm of attorneys to use in the lawsuit, the cost of pursuing the lawsuit, and his reluctance to state publicly what he was saying privately to his supporters led to a collapse in his support.
The faction that opposed Archbishop Mokiwa, drawn primarily from members of the Gogo tribe, declined to support financially the national church under his tenure as Archbishop. With power shifting to the Gogo tribe whose members include the archbishop, dean, general secretary, and registrar of the province, Mokiwa supporters tell The Church of England Newspaper they expect the province will remain paralyzed.
Hong Kong push for gay civil rights: The Church of England Newspaper, April 14, 2013 p 7. April 13, 2013
Posted by geoconger in Church of England Newspaper, Civil Rights, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, Human Sexuality --- The gay issue, Marriage.Tags: Hong Kong, Sexual Orientation Discrimination Ordinance, York Chow Yat-ngok
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Church leaders in Hong Kong have welcomed the proposal for public consultations on a Sexual Orientation Discrimination Ordinance (SODO) that would protect the civil rights of the homosexual community. While declining to speak to the merits of any particular bill, Roman Catholic and Anglican leaders have voiced their general approval of civil rights legislation.
On 1 April 2013 Dr York Chow Yat-ngok, a leading Anglican layman and the former secretary for food and health, took office as chairman of Hong Kong’s Equal Opportunity Commission.
Last month gay activists attacked the appointment of Dr. Chow arguing that his religious principle would prejudice the debate. However Dr. Chow told the South China Morning Post he was a “liberal-minded” Christian and not prejudiced against gay people.
The issue should be handled discreetly. “In the process of legislation, there should be more discussion. Because not everyone would be courageous enough or would choose to disclose their own sexual orientation,” Dr. Chow told Radio Television Hong Kong.
“My religious background is relatively conservative, but even the Anglican Church in England is discussing this issue now,” he said adding that “regardless of what my religious background is or my personal view… these people should not be discriminated against.”
In November 2012 a proposal was put forward in the Legislative Council to launch a public consultation to gauge potential support for SODO. After vigorous debate the motion was defeated and Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying dismissed calls for a consultation in a policy address in January.
Evangelical leaders had voiced concern that SODO would lead to gay marriage. Choi Chi-sum, secretary-general of the Society for Truth and Light, said they were “disappointed” that Dr. Chow had now offered his public support for the ordinance before consulting groups who opposed the legislation.
Created in 1996 the equal opportunities commission has a mandate to work towards the elimination of discrimination on the grounds of sex, marital status, pregnancy, disability, family status and race. This brief should be extended to sexual orientation Dr. Chow said.
China anger over new schools plan: The Church of England Newspaper, August 12, 2012 p 5 August 16, 2012
Posted by geoconger in Church of England Newspaper, Education, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.Tags: Chinese Model National Conditions Teaching Manual, Donald Tsang, Hong Kong Professional Teachers Union
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Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Hong Kong last week in protest to a government plan to introduce a “Chinese Model National Conditions Teaching Manual” for the territory’s schools that critics charge whitewashes the crimes of the Communist regime.
Organisers of the march from Victoria Park to the government education department offices stated 90,000 parents, children, teachers and concerned residents of Hong Kong took part in the demonstration chanting slogans denouncing “brainwashing” and “thought control”.
Hong Kong’s Anglican, Evangelical Lutheran and Roman Catholic parochial schools have vowed not to use the “patriotic education” programme, which they say was adopted by the government of the outgoing pro-Beijing Chief executive Donald Tsang without public consultation or review by the legislative council.
The manual was prepared by the Hong Kong Patriotic Education Services Centre organized by the 26,000-member Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers – a teacher’s alliance run by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong political party with the closest ties to the mainland’s communist government. The Tsang administration gave HK$13 million to the Centre to produce the booklet.
The 32-page booklet extols the virtues of the mainland government and one-party state. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is described as “progressive, selfless and united” in contrast to the two-party American and multi-party European political systems. While short references are made to recent mainland political and economic scandals there is no mention of the 10-year Cultural Revolution, the 1989 Tiananmen massacre or state-induced famines of the Maoist era.
The Hong Kong Professional Teachers Union, which represents the majority of teachers in the territory with a membership of 80,000, called upon the government to drop the patriotic education programme. Teachers’ Union chairman Fung Wai-wah said the government “should not wait until students refuse to show up in class before it reviews the course,” the Hong Kong press reported.
Private Schools are not required to use the curriculum. The state-aided Anglican, Lutheran and Catholic parochial schools – which comprise a third of the territory’s schools — have declined to use the materials, while Taoist and Muslims schools will join secular state schools in using the materials. Schools were offered $530,000 grants for implementation of the curriculum, which will become mandatory for primary schools in 2015 and for secondary schools four years later.
First printed in The Church of England Newspaper.
Moderation in all things, HK archbishop advises: The Church of England Newspaper, Jan 21, 2011 p 6. January 24, 2011
Posted by geoconger in Church of England Newspaper, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.comments closed
Archbishop Paul Kwong of Hong Kong addressing a press conference at Lambeth 2008
First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
The Archbishop of Hong Kong has urged Chinese Christians to live frugally and give graciously to those in need.
In his Christmas address, Archbishop Paul Kwong noted that more than 1.2 million people lived below the level of subsistence in Hong Kong, while the number of newly rich businessmen and property speculators had grown sharply.
The archbishop said it was a worthy ambition to grow rich through hard work. But success was incomplete if giving did go hand in hand with wealth. The rich should not “pocket the last penny” or squeeze the poor in their pursuit of wealth, he said.
Nor was the opulence displayed by some of China’s nouveau riche conducive to social harmony. While some hoped to emulate their conspicuous consumption, others were disgusted by their hedonism.
The archbishop urged Christians to emulate those who gave. “Hong Kong would be a more civilized and warm place if more people followed the example of the customs officer who donated his liver to save his colleague’s life, or of those people who lost their lives in saving victims of natural disasters.”
In November, customs officer Simon Hui Sai-man donated part of his liver to save the life of a colleague, Yuen Wai-cheung who was critically injured during an anti-smuggling operation. Hong Kong volunteer worker Wong Fuk-wing died rescuing children during the Qinghai earthquake in April.
The message of Christmas was one of God’s love for all people, irrespective of race, class or political opinion. “However, for many Hong Kong people, this Christmas brings them neither joy nor warmth because they live at the level of subsistence and despite the long hours of work, many still cannot make ends meet,” the archbishop said, urging his congregations to reach out to those in need.
“To be moderate with others is to leave a space to the needy and to give them a light of hope. This is the meaning of Christmas,” Archbishop Kwong said.
New Chinese Bible released: The Church of England Newspaper, Oct 22, 2010 p 8. October 23, 2010
Posted by geoconger in Biblical Interpretation, Church of England Newspaper, Evangelism, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.comments closed
Archbishop Kwong dedicating the RCUV Bible at St John's Cathedral in Hong Kong
First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
The first new translation of the Bible in Chinese since 1919 was launched last month at a ceremony at St. John’s Cathedral in Hong Kong. On Sept 27 Archbishop Paul Kwong of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui (HKSK) dedicated the Revised Chinese Union Version (RCUV) of the Old and New Testaments.
Produced in collaboration by the United Bible Society and the Hong Kong Bible Society, the RCUV was twenty-seven years in the making and replaces the Chinese Union Version (CUV) prepared by British and American missionaries in the early years of the Twentieth Century. Scholars from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and the United States sought to overcome the tremendous changes in the Chinese language seen in the past century.
The Hong Kong Bible Society stated that “conscious of the extreme importance of such a daunting task, the scholars involved in the project have been working diligently and prayerfully, imploring the Holy Spirit for guidance. They have been weighing carefully every word and every expression, including the punctuation, confronting constantly with the original text, and consulting other versions, all for the purpose of producing a revision that conveys more accurately the message of the Bible.”
The revision of the New Testament is based on the Greek New Testament 4th Revised Edition published by the United Bible Societies in 1993. The revision of the Old Testament is based on the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia published in 1984, the Hong Kong Bible Society said.
Beside the issue of faithfulness and accuracy, there was also a concern about naturalness and fluency. Changes are being introduced wherever the old text presents problems such as archaisms, ambiguities, or structures not conforming to current usage.
Certain words and expressions that formerly sounded smooth and natural have since become unnatural and unintelligible. Chris Chow, marketing manager of the Hong Kong Bible Society, told the UCA New, as the translation produced 91 years ago had lost some of its meaning for modern Chinese speakers.
Mr. Chow cited the CUV’s use of the verb “rallying” in Galilee in John 7:1. “This is now revised as Jesus ‘visits’ Galilee, since the word ‘rally’ nowadays carries the meaning of protest and confrontation,” he said.
“We hope this new translation will allow the nation of China and Chinese readers throughout the world to read, with familiarity and ease, the Bible’s life-changing message, ” said Marco Herrera, director of international ministries of American Bible Society.
Hong Kong faces £15 million tax bill: CEN 2.12.10 p 8. February 21, 2010
Posted by geoconger in Church of England Newspaper, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.comments closed
The Diocese of Hong Kong has been hit with a £15 million tax bill after a court ruled that its profits from the development of church land were not part of the church’s charitable activities.
The Jan 27 ruling comes as a blow to the diocese, which now must pay taxes on the future income from its property ventures, and will likely impact the Anglican Consultative Council, which had received grants from Hong Kong to support its operations.
In 1998 the diocese formed a joint venture with Cheung Kong Holdings to develop St Christopher’s Orphanage located in Tai Po in Hong Kong’s New Territories into luxury condominiums. The sale of the land generated a profit of £37 million, while the Sheng Kung Hui Foundation, which manages church properties, earned £55 million on the sale.
High Court Justice Anselmo Reyes rejected the argument proffered by church counsel Anthony Neoh that neither the diocese nor its trust arm was empowered to engage in business.
In his opinion Judge Reyes wrote the existence of a prohibition against business activities in the diocese’s charter did not by itself “preclude an investigation into fact or falsify the [tax authority’s] conclusion.”
“Read in context, all that the [Inland Revenue] was saying is that the church and the foundation had a laudable motive of using as much of the income generated from the old lots as possible in their charitable activities.”
“That does not mean that, at the end of the day, all the income generated was expended on charitable activities,” Judge Reyes said, “nor does it say anything about how much of the income generated was actually used in charitable activities.”
In its original ruling the Inland Revenue Department said the diocese had not provided for an accounting of the profits, and noted that one of the conditions for tax exempt treatment of the profits was that they not be “expended substantially outside Hong Kong.” At ACC-14 in Kingston in 2009, ACC General Secretary Kenneth Kearon reported an “extraordinary gift” from the Hong Kong Anglican Church, which forgave a £500,000 loan that it had extended in 2005 towards the refurbishment of the offices of the ACC at St. Andrew’s House in London.
Attorneys for the diocese are reviewing the ruling and no decision has been made on an appeal at this time, a spokesman said.
Scenes from Alexandria: Hong Kong and South America February 21, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Album (Photos), Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, La Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sur de America, Primates Meeting 2009.comments closed
The Primates of Hong Kong and South America, Paul Kwong and Gregory Venables on Feb 1 at the Helnan Palestine Hotel in Alexandria.
The Primate of Hong Kong August 17, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Album (Photos), Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, Lambeth 2008.comments closed
The Most Rev Paul Kwong, Archbishop of Hong Kong addressing the press on Aug 2 at the 2008 Lambeth Conference
Anglicans stay away from democracy protests: CEN 1.25.08 p 6. January 28, 2008
Posted by geoconger in China, Church of England Newspaper, Civil Rights, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.comments closed
Democracy activists led by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Hong Kong, Cardinal Joseph Zen and the President of the Hong Kong Christian Council, the Rev. Ralph Lee Ting-sun of the Methodist Church led some 6000 protesters through the streets of the city last week demanding Peking reverse its decision to delay the introduction of universal suffrage.
However, Anglican leaders in Hong Kong were absent from last week’s democracy marches, sources tell The Church of England Newspaper, as the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui under former Archbishop Peter Kwong, and the current Archbishop Paul Kwong have followed a policy of non-interference in political affairs.
At a prayer meeting held before the start of the Jan 17 rally, Cardinal Zen called Peking’s decision not to introduce universal suffrage by 2012 “brutal.” The Roman Catholic Church would continue to agitate for the civil rights of the people of Hong Kong as guaranteed by international treaty and the Basic Law—Hong Kong’s governing charter, he stated.
In contrast to the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church in Hong Kong does not offer its comments or opinions on political issues and has taken no stance, for or against, democracy. Its clergy have been pressured not to participate in pro-democracy activities, and its leaders were absent from last week’s rally, sources in the Hong Kong church tell CEN.
At his installation on Sept 26 at St. John’s Cathedral, the new primate of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, Archbishop Kwong told the congregation the Anglican Church would not take part in Hong Kong’s campaign for universal suffrage or in “political activities. But it will observe the general social situation in order to see how it can be of useful assistance”.
Hong Kong Church ‘to work with Chinese government’: CEN 10.05.07 p 6. October 4, 2007
Posted by geoconger in China, Church of England Newspaper, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.comments closed
The Anglican Church in Hong Kong will work with the Chinese government and eschew political activism, Archbishop Paul Kwong pledged during his service of institution last week.
The new primate of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui told the congregation of St. John’s Cathedral on Sept 26 the Church would not take part in Hong Kong’s campaign for universal suffrage or in “political activities. But it will observe the general social situation in order to see how it can be of useful assistance”.
Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper.
Conger 