Hong Kong Diocese revises pastoral guidelines

If there are arguments regarding practices, everyone should refer to the new guide, says priest.

Jun 05, 2017

HONG KONG: The Hong Kong Diocese has published a revised pastoral guide to meet the needs of modern times replacing the 35-year-old previous edition.

The new guide has been in production for at least five years. The English edition and the part on the sacrament of matrimony has not yet been completed.

"We think something is still lacking in the guide but as new priests have been asking for advice on contemporary matters, the Board of Diocesan Consultors decided the publication should not be delayed any longer," Father Dominic Chan, the vicar general of Hong Kong Diocese, told ucanews.com.

"There were sometimes arguments about certain pastoral practices so it is within the natural development of the diocese to revise the guide," he said.

"If there are any arguments in the future, everyone should refer to the new guide," Father Chen said.

The diocese held four lectures on May 24-26 to introduce new guidelines on parish management, liturgical practices and pastoral care.

In the open lecture on May 26, Father Thomas Law Kwok-fai, director of the Liturgy Commission, told some 400 catechists and parish staff that the Catholic Church has various rites but "differences are usually pastoral in nature and not doctrinal."

The new guide addresses a wide range of issues ranging from burial to receiving communion and differs from the old one.

It puts to rest, for example, an open debate among local Catholics in recent years as to whether receiving communion by mouth or by hands is more correct.

"As long as the bishop approves, receiving holy communion by hand or on the tongue is all right. We should not judge or dictate to others and we should not criticize others because of personal favor," said Father Lee Len, the chancellor of Hong Kong Diocese.

In 2003, when Hong Kong was hit by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the then Bishop Joseph Zen allowed Catholics to receive communion by hand for hygiene reasons.

"The new guide needs more promotion as many people just don't follow the rules," a parish secretary who did not want to be named, told ucanews.com.

"The old pastoral guide sat on dust-covered shelves for years. No one would look at it. I used to ask the priests or senior parishioners to ask another parish if they had any questions," she said.

"Though I prefer to follow the rules, I would not be rigid and keep space for the parish priest to make discretionary decisions," said the secretary.

Catechist Winnie Lee said the new guide offers some convenience to laypeople. For example, now, if one can provide photos or other evidence that a deceased relative was Catholic, they can get buried in a church cemetery.

She recalled that when her 99-year-old grand aunt died two months ago, her family turned their home upside down to look for her baptismal certificate but could not find it. "Who would look at their baptismal certificate from time to time, especially when it had not been used for decades?" she told.--Ucanindia.Com