This is the fifth in a series of articles covering the origin and development of the Diocesan Justice and Peace Commission since its inception
HONG KONG (SE): “Promoting integral human development is consistent with the social teaching of the Church. The Church responds to the aspirations of people today by attending to current issues on ecology, conservation and the preservation of our cultural heritage. With the evolution of society, integral human development will help all people to find their proper identity,” said Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing.
Bishop Ha pointed out that in recognising integral human development as one of the signs of the times, the Justice and Peace Commission of the Hong Kong Catholic Diocese will be renamed the “Diocesan Commission for Integral Human Development” at the end of the year. While retaining its past objectives, it will follow the Church’s social teaching with a broadened scope and go deeper, in response to the signs of the times and in defence of human dignity.
Bishop Ha emphasised the change in name of the commission as a testimony to the Church’s progress in discerning the signs of the times. “After Vatican II, the Church has been showing a greater concern for integral human development. Pope St. Paul VI’s encyclical, Populorum Progressio [On The Development of Peoples], in its reflection on the post-World War II tendency of the international community to give priority to progress in the material well being of mankind, reminded the world to pay more attention to human civilisation, human dignity and the true growth of the human person. Even though the full concept of “integral human development” had not yet taken shape at that time, the Church has long been convinced that society should focus not only on economy, but also on the mental and spiritual well being of mankind.”
The bishop said, “The Church’s concept of integral human development has broadened today. While previously, the focus was on the institutional and structural aspects of society, today it is extended to the relationship between mankind and creation.” In his 2015 encyclical, Laudato Si’ [On Care for Our Common Home], Pope Francis proposed an “integral ecology” which, going beyond environmental protection, enriches the concept of integral human development by incorporating ecological, cultural and communitarian considerations into his analyses.
Pope St. Paul VI’s encyclical, Populorum Progressio [On The Development of Peoples], in its reflection on the post-World War II tendency of the international community to give priority to progress in the material well being of mankind, reminded the world to pay more attention to human civilisation, human dignity and the true growth of the human person
Bishop Ha commended the Justice and Peace Commission for beginning to get involved in environmental protection in recent years. For instance, it has been organising some activities on ecological issues every September during the specially designated period of the Season of Creation, offering the faithful various recommendations on environmental protection and raising their awareness to care for the wellbeing of mankind under different aspects.
However, it is necessary for the commission to have a deeper and broader understanding of the social teaching of the Church. “The objectives of the commission need to be broadened. Instead of just scrutinising social structures and institutions, the commission has to turn its attention to the living conditions of other creatures, as well as to social cultures, interpersonal relationships within civic communities, etc. Moreover, this concern should involve not just a horizontal dimension embracing different perspectives, but also a vertical dimension that looks at social phenomena as a summing up of our historical heritage.”
Bishop Ha believed that the commission should reorient its work to take into consideration different aspects of ecology, and it should explore such areas as the history and culture of Hong Kong people, their daily lives, their environment and their economy. “Hong Kong cannot simply ignore its past. If our society only cares about progress by demolishing all the old buildings and erasing the memories of how our city has gone through different historical periods and has gradually grown up, we will definitely not be happy,” he said.
In Bishop Ha’s view, since Hong Kong has increasingly taken up environmental and cultural conservation issues, the Church’s ministry on ecology and conservation can serve as a response to such a trend. “Once the work of the Church on environmental protection and ecology has gained public recognition, we should occupy ourselves with how the Church can lead the faithful to a deeper reflection on their faith and link it to human dignity. This is necessary, otherwise our work would be no different from ordinary environmental work.”
He said, “Whatever might happen in the future, the social teaching of the Church will remain the basis of our social concern mission, and the dignity of the human person will continue to be our starting point. However, the focus will be different from that of the past, as it will not be restricted to the dignity of human beings as the children of God, but will also incorporate our respect for the rest of creation, because all things created by God are intimately related to us. Moreover, we should take into consideration the wellbeing of our next generation as well.”
Hong Kong cannot simply ignore its past. If our society only cares about progress by demolishing all the old buildings and erasing the memories of how our city has gone through different historical periods and has gradually grown up, we will definitely not be happy
Integral human development is related to the whole human family and all of creation, embracing all aspects of the present, the past and the future as an integral whole. From this perspective, Hong Kong is at a juncture where people are examining their cultural heritage and thinking about how to pass it on, the bishop noted.
“Integral human development has a link with the problems faced by Hong Kong people today. Given the limited room for external changes, we should ponder how we can carry out our mission. In fact, there can be more than one way. We can, say, count on a more solid spirituality, or be more open in sharing with others the experiences of our intimate union with God, or retrace the footprints of our predecessors and look back at the heritage of human civilization. Thus in different ways we can identify ourselves with our roots and nurture a sense of belonging to the past,” the bishop said.
He is confident that these efforts will be of benefit to the Church and to society at large in terms of development.
Bishop Ha expects that once the work of integral human development has become deeper and broader than in the past, the formation, social affairs and human rights sections of the commission will be in a better position to improve their mutual cooperation and dialogue in the future, thereby opening up new ways of working together.
The bishop suggested that at the same time, a subsidiary group in charge of ecological issues can be set up to promote integral human development.
