HONG KONG (SE): Father Louis Lee Kwok-hung passed away on the morning of April 5 at Canossa Hospital, Old Peak Road, after a month in hospital. The diocesan priest was the editor of the Catholic Truth Society for more than four decades.
Before he celebrated the 50th anniversary of his priesthood in 2019, Father Lee told the Kung Kao Po in an interview that, while working as a teacher after his graduation from the Northcote College of Education in 1959 and supporting the family financially, he still had a determination to respond to his vocation. So he joined the seminary in 1964.
He was ordained in 1969 as his rector believed that he should be ordained in his early thirties, which was quite late at that time as priests were usually ordained in their 20s. (Sunday Examiner, 17 November 2019)
Father Lee said he hoped to be assigned to manage schools after his ordination. However, Bishop Francis Hsu Cheng-ping assigned him to be the editor of the Catholic Truth Society which decided on the direction of publications according to catechism and the focus of the diocese.
As the Catholic Truth Society published books in Chinese, Father Lee encountered with a lot of challenges. He had to deal with the translation of books from English, which had first been translated from another language. In order to better handle books written in foreign languages, Father Lee took up a Masters degree in religion and ethics at the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium in 1971.
After he returned in 1973, he was assigned as assistant parish priest in St. Peter’s Church, Aberdeen. In 1974, he was again appointed editor of the Catholic Truth Society until his retirement in 2015.
He was also the spiritual advisor of the Legion of Mary starting from 1992.
The funeral Mass for Father Lee will be celebrated by John Cardinal Tong Hon at St. Margaret’s Church, Happy Valley, on April 17.
It will be followed by an interment ceremony celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing at St. Michael’s Catholic Cemetery, Happy Valley.
May he rest in peace.
