HONG KONG (SE): “People in Hong Kong have been so warm and so welcoming, and I see that the Church feels its position as a small minority in a very secular culture. So, it needs encouragement. It needs strengthening, so that Catholics can be aware of the dignity they have as God’s people in the midst of the world, be the light of the world, the salt of the earth, and be courageous in fulfilling their mission,” said Dr. Mary Healy, a Catholic theologian and an international speaker,who sat down with the Sunday Examiner to share her views as she visited different communities in Hong Kong in mid-June.
She encouraged the migrant communities in Hong Kong by reminding them that Jesus understands the plight of migrants as he was one among them, and they should stay close to him and find fellowship with other Catholics for support.
Healy arrived in Hong Kong on June 14 at the invitation of the Diocesan Commission for Marriage and the Family, CHARIS Hong Kong, the local arm of Catholic Charismatic Renewal International Services, the Renewal in the Spirit Community and Joy of Life group. Prior to her departure from Hong Kong on June 24, she visited and spoke to a variety of groups.
“The main message of the visit is that Jesus Christ is victorious in all struggles and hurts, and that he can offer healing, grace, and strength to let us walk victoriously in the freedom of the children of God,” she said.
People in Hong Kong have been so warm and so welcoming, and I see that the Church feels its position as a small minority in a very secular culture. So, it needs encouragement. It needs strengthening
Dr. Healy
Healy is the chairperson of the theological commission of CHARIS in Rome—which is overseen by the Pontifical Council for Laity, Family and Life. She is also a professor of scripture at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, where she teaches approximately 100 seminarians, 300 lay students, and 30 priests.
The professor believes many Catholics and even seminarians do not know scripture well, often seeing it as an old, irrelevant book. In her teaching, she strives to change this perception by encouraging future priests to study the Bible daily, memorise passages, and use them in their ministry, including homilies and counselling.
Considering the abundance of excellent Bible study resources in the United States, she hopes that they can begin Bible studies with parishioners to develop a habit of reading scripture on a daily basis and understanding salvation history. She sees the need for similar resources in places like Hong Kong.
Furthermore, Healy pointed out that seminarians should not be isolated from women during their formation. In order to prevent unhealthy, clericalist, or superior attitudes towards women, they should learn to relate to both women and men in a spiritually mature manner.
She has noted that there is a general illiteracy in the Bible among Catholics as well as the misconception that reading the Bible is only for Protestants while Catholics only focus on the sacraments.
The main message of the visit is that Jesus Christ is victorious in all struggles and hurts, and that he can offer healing, grace, and strength to let us walk victoriously in the freedom of the children of God
“That is such a crazy misconception because the Church strongly exhorts Catholics to read the Bible. You see that in the teachings of Vatican II and in all of the recent popes, there has been a strong exhortation for Catholics to read the Bible and come to know the Bible.” she pointed out.
Healy also observed that it is common for Catholics to feel embarrassed about their faith or sharing Bible quotes, particularly if no one in the community has done it, or they don’t know the scriptures well enough.
“We need to cross the chicken line, and that means stop being fearful. We have to be bold about sharing the Lord. I mean, if we believe he is the answer to all of the sorrows and the problems of human life, and he is the desire of every human heart, we can’t be shy to share him,” she said. She added that the first move would be to talk about faith and the Word of God in small groups.
As a female Biblical theologian, she believes women have a unique perspective, often focusing more on the primacy of the person and love, which can bring greater richness and complementarity to biblical understanding. It is also important for women to bring a feminine perspective to topics like sickness and suffering in the Bible.
For example, women interpreters tend to pay more attention to female characters in the Bible, such as Hagar in Genesis, an Egyptian slave woman who belongs to Abram’s wife Sarai, highlighting issues like exploitation and God’s compassion.
Healy was one of the first three women appointed to the Pontifical Biblical Commission in 2014. She recalls being surprised and honoured to have been appointed, having received the news through an email out of the blue and then being invited to a commission meeting.
We need to cross the chicken line, and that means stop being fearful. We have to be bold about sharing the Lord. I mean, if we believe he is the answer to all of the sorrows and the problems of human life, and he is the desire of every human heart, we can’t be shy to share him
Her priority, however, was not to include women’s perspectives in the commission. “I would say even more important is simply a perspective of faith, a perspective of radical faith in the living word of God, that we interpret the Bible not just as an ancient artifact that tells us some interesting things about what people thought back then, but that it is the living word of God today. It speaks with authority. And that we have to be attentive to it, believe it, and obey it,” she said.
The current project of the commission, assigned by Pope Francis during the pandemic, aims to address global suffering with a message of hope and healing.
As a general editor, Healy said the 18 volumes of the Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, covering the books of the New and Old Testaments, fill a gap between academic and children’s readings in Catholic biblical resources while offering practical resources for ordinary people to reflect on daily life. In addition, deacons, priests, and bishops have found the books helpful in preparing homilies.
Her commentary on the Gospel of Mark took six months to write, and the commentary on Hebrews took eight years because of all the mysteries about ancient priesthood in the book. She has been working on Genesis for several years now
The theologian said writing commentaries is challenging, as she needs to make them accessible and applicable to life today. It is only through prayer and faith that she will be able to overcome the difficulties, including a stolen computer recently!
Over the past 10 years, Healy has also been a member of the Pentecostal-Catholic International Dialogue under the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. A dialogue between the two denominations has been ongoing since 1972, fostering mutual understanding and addressing theological differences. In order for Christians to be united, she believes that prayer is crucial as it draws them closer together and to Christ.
