HONG KONG (SE): Celebrating the Year of St. Joseph, St. Joseph’s Church, Garden Road, held a photography and essay competition in September. Before the deadline in early September, the parish received over 90 entries foe the competition— photos together with an essay describing the photo and sharing thoughts about the saint. The winning entries were displayed on the parish notice board, and the prizes were awarded during a ceremony on September 22.
According to the Divine Word missionary and parish priest, Father Joseph Tan Lei-tao, the photos submitted were of high-quality. They were judged on the basis of their creativity, impact and the caption. “Participants took pictures of statues of St. Joseph in Hong Kong or in the Philippines. Some Filipino domestic workers shared in the caption about how they come to Hong Kong and connected their lives to the trials of St. Joseph,” he said.
Winner of the best photo, Joceryl Pipasupil, said during the award ceremony that, “I joined the competition because I love going to church, which is my family. I am from a broken family and St. Joseph is like a father who listens to my prayers.” Through her photo she wanted to tell people, especially those in broken families, not to give up praying.
“Living in Hong Kong is not easy. I always pray for protection for I am alone. One of the saints that I have asked for help is St. Joseph,” Pipasupil wrote in her article. She said that the kind smile of St. Joseph in the picture brings her peace. “Every man on earth should be like St. Joseph when it comes to having a good heart and being a kind person,” she said.
Micaela Almeida, the third prize winner, wrote in her essay that she was happy to restore the broken thumb of the statue of St. Joseph, sent to her from Rosary Church, Tsim Sha Tsui. The thumb was broken due to it bearing the weight of decorative flowers over the years. She said it was by the grace of God that she could carry out the restoration work with a good result so that she could give homage to St. Joseph, a great fatherly figure.
Father Tan and the committee members of the 150th Anniversary Celebrations presented the prizes to the winners who were given small statues of a sleeping St. Joseph, free photography tutorials at the Bayanihan Centre, Kennedy Town and supermarket cash coupons sponsored by parishioners. Besides the first three prizes, distinction and recognition prizes were given to other contestants.
‘Living in Hong Kong is not easy. I always pray for protection for I am alone. One of the saints that I have asked for help is St. Joseph… Every man on earth should be like St. Joseph when it comes to having a good heart and being a kind person’
Joceryl Pipasupil
Apart from the competition, the parish will also stage a musical performance on the life of St. Joseph Freinademetz at 7.30pm on October 14. Father Tan, producer of the musical, pointed out it is being performed in the Year of St. Joseph because there are many similarities between St. Joseph, who took care of the Holy Family, and St. Joseph Freinademetz, who took care of the Chinese people. “They were both ordinary people who responded to the calling of God with faith and passion,” he said.
Just as St. Joseph had to flee to Egypt with Mary and the infant Jesus to escape from being killed by King Herod, St. Joseph Freinademetz served in China during turbulent political times in the late 19th century. “But their love for people never changed,” he said.
The musical was first staged in Hong Kong in 2018, at St. Margaret’s Church, Happy Valley, and then at Sai Wan Ho Civic Centre. It is directed by renowned dancer, Ngan Lai-nor, with Anthony Cheng Yu-sum as the musical director.
While a film of the musical in Cantonese is being played on stage, The Good Hope School Choir, Wah Yan College Kowloon Boys Choir, as well as the Nor Chinese Dance Studio will give live performances.
Father Tan noted that the show this year is different from 2018 as prayers will play a more important role. He will lead a prayer and reflection session in between the five acts of the musical. The lyrics of musical’s theme song have been translated into 20 languages. It is the first Chinese musical to receive awards at international Catholic film festivals.
Free tickets can be collected at St. Joseph’s Church from September 30.
