HONG KONG (SE): Educators, parents and students from the eight schools affiliated with the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception gathered for an Education Day Mass on September 27. They prayed for all who teach and learn, and asked for grace to walk together in their shared mission of education.
This year’s theme, drawn from Philippians 2:2, was: “Be united in your convictions and united in your love, with a common purpose and a common mind.”
The Mass was presided over by Father Dominic Chan Chi-ming, parish priest of the cathedral. School supervisors, principals, teachers, Catholic parents and students joined the celebration, together with Joseph Kung Kwong-pui, the episcopal delegate for Catholic education.
In his homily, Father Chan said that deep prayer and praying in communion with others help the faithful find renewed strength in the Lord. Reflecting on the day’s readings and the Gospel, he noted that true faith is not a matter of outward observance alone, but calls for sincere repentance from within. Christ came not to condemn the world, he said, but to bring salvation to all.
Father Chan encouraged the faithful to remember that an encounter with Christ can change a person’s life and influence the lives of others. He urged the congregation to put faith into practice by caring for people who are overlooked or in need, enabling them to experience both material support and respect.
Father Chan also reminded everyone to live with gratitude, love one another in the Lord, walk together with one mind, and do the Lord’s will, so that their lives may testify to Christ’s salvation and thereby fulfil the joy of the Lord.
Addressing the congregation, Kung Kwong-pui, the episcopal delegate for Catholic education in Hong Kong, outlined the current challenges facing Catholic education, including a declining student population, children’s mental health issues, and a growing culture of complaints in schools.
He reaffirmed the core mission of Catholic education: to remain steadfast in faith during adversity, to seek the truth, and to serve the vulnerable while respecting every human life with love.
Kung called on all present to embrace a spirit of walking together through prayer, generosity, and active participation in education. In doing so, he said, they could bring hope to young people and help them grow in an environment of love and care.
At the conclusion of the celebration, Lam Ngan-yin, chairperson of the cathedral’s joint school council, led educators, parents, students and parishioners in reciting the Education Day pledge.
Together, they committed to following Christ the Good Shepherd, upholding the core values of Catholic education, and nurturing children in every aspect of their development—moral, intellectual, physical, social, aesthetic, and spiritual—while living as children of God at home and at school.
