As the universal Church concludes the Jubilee Year of 2025—a year dedicated to thanksgiving, reconciliation, and renewed missionary enthusiasm—the Diocese of Hong Kong gracefully enters a moment of great importance: the celebration of its 80th anniversary.
Before we cross this threshold, our hearts pause to acknowledge the tragedy that has recently shaken our city. The five-alarm fire tragedy at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po—which claimed over 150 lives and injuring and displacing hundreds more—has left families, neighbours, and entire communities in grief and uncertainty. In this moment of deep pain, the Church stands in solidarity with all who are mourning loved ones, searching for stability, or struggling to rebuild what was lost.
We offer our prayers, our compassion, and our concrete support. The Jubilee Year inspired us to reconnect with the heart of the gospel and renew our sense of mission. Here in Hong Kong, this special year has led to many meaningful changes: more active involvement in the parish, a renewed passion for works of charity, and a deeper awareness that the Church should be offering welcome and healing in a city that’s changing rapidly.
This is especially meaningful as we celebrate the diocese’s 80th anniversary. Founded in 1946 during a time of war, uncertainty and migration, our diocese has grown through decades of change—political, social, and economic—and through it all, the Church has grown into a steadfast spiritual home for nearly 400,000 Catholics across 52 parishes, served by over 260 priests and 450 men and women religious.
We recall with gratitude the generations of missionaries, religious, clergy, and lay faithful whose dedication shaped Catholic life in Hong Kong. Schools, hospitals, social services, youth ministries, and parish communities bear witness to their vision and labour. Their legacy is not simply historical memory, it is a mission placed into our hands.
Advent 2025 invites us into that mission with renewed clarity. The Church begins the liturgical year not with triumphant fanfare, but with the longing: “Come, Lord Jesus.” This cry echoes the deep desires of our diocese today—desires for unity amid differences, for healing where wounds remain, for wisdom as we navigate complex cultural and moral landscapes, and for courage to proclaim the gospel in a world shaped increasingly by ideologies, technology, individualism, and rapid change.
As we approach the anniversary year, our celebrations must go beyond the ceremonies to become a spiritual roadmap for the future. The Advent Pastoral Letter 2025 of Cardinal Stephen discusses strategies to strengthen laity formation, support families, assist the young, care for the elderly, and address the challenges of our time with clarity and charity. We must continue fostering synodality—a spirit of listening, dialogue, and shared responsibility that Pope Francis tirelessly encouraged.
Closing the Jubilee Year is, therefore, not an ending; it is a threshold. As the first Advent candle is lit, may its gentle flame illuminate the path before us. jose, CMF
