HONG KONG (SE): As part of the Church’s celebration of the Jubilee Year 2025, the Diocese of Hong Kong will host a special relic pilgrimage titled, “Pilgrims of Hope: Walk with the Saints”, from July 1 to 13, inviting the faithful to deepen their spiritual journey through the veneration of saints’ relics and reflection on their holy lives.
To be held at the Caritas Community Hall and Raimondi College, the event will feature 26 sessions designed to accommodate thousands of participants, and will conclude with a Thanksgiving Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.
Organised by the Diocesan Commission for Marriage and the Family, the Catholic Education Office, and various religious congregations, the event will showcase approximately 120 relics of saints and martyrs. These include early Church figures as well as modern witnesses to the faith, demonstrating the diverse expressions of holiness within the Catholic tradition.
Significantly, the Coptic Church has contributed relics of early Egyptian saints from the third and fourth centuries, alongside those of the 21 Coptic martyrs of Libya, who were beheaded in 2015 and recently included in the Roman Martyrology by Pope Francis. Their presence underscores the Church’s universal witness across time and tradition.
Relics serve as a means for us to emulate the holiness of saints, who achieved their sanctity not merely by their actions, but by allowing God to work through them
Bishop Ha
Online registration is required for participation. Prior to attending, all participants are asked to watch a video message by Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing, who explains the meaning and importance of relic veneration.
“Relics serve as a means for us to emulate the holiness of saints, who achieved their sanctity not merely by their actions, but by allowing God to work through them,” Bishop Ha says in the video, available on the Catholic Way YouTube channel. “By venerating relics, we are reminded to offer ourselves to God, just as the saints did throughout history.”
Kevin Lai, executive secretary of the Marriage and Family Commission, highlighted the unique opportunity this pilgrimage presents, stating that the richness of the Christian faith is made most vivid through the witness of the saints. He encouraged participants to listen attentively to the religious congregations’ narrations of the saints’ lives, noting their deep familiarity with these holy men and women.
In addition to relic veneration, participants will be invited to engage in meditation and sacred music during prayer times, and to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation, making the pilgrimage a full spiritual encounter rooted in reflection, renewal, and hope.
