HONG KONG (SE): In 2000, Pope John Paul II canonised 120 Chinese Martyrs who were killed in during the 19th and early 20th centuries in China. Twenty years later, Ss. Peter and Paul Church, Yuen Long, invited artist, Gary Chu Kar-kui, to depict the martyrs in painting to honour their lives.
It was blessed during a livestreamed Mass celebrated by Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun on 13 December 2020. The cardinal expressed his appreciation of the martyrs for bravely upholding the truth and sacrificing their lives.
According to parish priest, Father Gervais Baudry, the parish invited Chu to do the painting in April.
A blessing ceremony had been scheduled for October 1 to mark the 20th anniversary of the canonisation of the Chinese Martyrs, but was postponed due to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.
Father Baudry said a commemorative plaque containing information about the lives of the martyrs is now being made for people to read and meditate on.
The painting, 2.40 metres wide and 1.20 metres high, is situated the corridor outside the chapel on the first floor of the parish. It is flanked by a couplet written by Sister Juan Gu, the pastoral sister of the parish, which honours the sacrifices of the saints.
A banner engraved by Father Baudry is situated above the artwork.
