Annie Lam

The bishop of Hong Kong sees the continuous postponement of the National Assembly of Catholic representatives as positive. The Chinese church absorbs the directives of the Pope's 2007 letter. Urgent challenges: vocations and religious formation. January 2011: Year of the Laity in Hong Kong.

The Chinese president extols the “harmony and stability” of the former Portuguese colony. He lays the first stone of the new campus of the University of Macau, which will be home to 10,000 students. Activists and lawmakers call for more democracy, slam the current government for its corruption and housing policy, as less affluent people can't afford high-priced flats.

Mgr José Lai, the bishop of Macau, looks at the ten years since Macau returned to China. Relations have been established with the mainland Church and Lusophone Churches in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The Church in Macau serves as a bridge between Chinese and Western (Lusophone) cultures.

On 20 December, Macau’s bishop will call for prayers for the territory, a former Portuguese colony. The new Chief Executive Chui Sai-on will be sworn in before President Hu Jintao. On the same day, a civic group led by two Catholic legislators will launch a march for democracy and against corruption.

Suffering from cancer, the bishop emeritus of Kaohsiung releases an autobiography titled “Seeds sown by those who love: a story of Shan Kuo-hsi”. The proceeds from sales will fund an orphanage for the indigenous children in Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties.

The China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group has released the English-language edition of a book on human rights in China. In it, the group describes lawyers’ work, government repression, the biographies of frontline activists and the trials in which they are involved. It notes that mainland lawyers are a sword to defend people in human rights cases, but also in need of a shield of their own to protect themselves from persecution. The Chinese-language edition will be released next month.

An exhibit has opened at the Hong Kong Museum of History on the pioneering work of the PIME missioner, who is held in high regard among mainland and Hong Kong archaeologists. He was the first to use carbon dating in archaeological finds. His work is a sign of the love missioners have for China and its history.

The assembly is of one the bodies the Pope views as “irreconcilable with Catholic doctrine”. The meeting was planned for the second half of 2009. In the past Cardinal Zen asked Chinese bishops to avoid the event.

A conference opens commemorations for the 400th anniversary of the death of the great missionary. Education is a bridge between cultures and religions in China and the world. In agenda other conferences and concerts, organized by the Matteo Ricci Institute of Macao.

Celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the Church of Taiwan close. The Archbishop of Taipei stresses unity, cooperation and the ability of Catholics to organize events on a large scale in a professional manner. The commitment to evangelism. President Ma Ying-jeou thanks Catholic missionaries for their efforts in recent years.

The territory’s government released a package of political reforms that would change little to the current electoral system. Neither the direct election of the chief executive nor universal suffrage in legislature's election would be achieved. For Henry Tang, this is “the best deal” Beijing would allow. A seminar is organised with the participation of Cardinal Zen, political leaders and scholars.

The cardinal’s letter raises some questions. It is useful because it spurs the clergy to re-read the Pope’s 2007 letter to better study it, but it has its limits because of the great challenges clergymen must face in today’s China, namely secularism and utilitarianism. Benedict XVI’s instructions are being implemented too slowly. For cardinal Zen, the papal letter is the best contribution of the Church to Chinese society.