Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - Card. Joseph Zen, bishop emeritus of Hong Kong , has thanked Pope Francis for his generous support to the campaign to donate 10,500 mooncake (or " moon cakes " made with lotus seed paste and egg ) to all the prisoners on the occasion of the mid-autumn festival. The festival represents the unity of the Chinese family and was celebrated on September 19.
In a statement posted on October 13 in the diocesan weekly Kung Kao Po , Card. Zen said : "We were very encouraged by Pope Francis' gesture. His act of generosity was very successful and we collected 23,884 euro ( 253 thousand Hong Kong dollars ) , out of total expenditure for the purchase of cakes of about 18 thousand euro ( 200 thousand Hong Kong dollars.) the prelate said that he had asked Francis to donate 2 Euros for the purchase of the sweet and he instead sent 500 . Due to the success of the campaign the faithful of Hong Kong will donate the 4,700 advanced euro to support of the Pope's charity. "In this way - said Cardinal - we contribute willingly to support two significant works ."
In mid-September , for the fourth consecutive year , 10,500 moon cakes were sent to all prisons and detention centers in Hong Kong. In response to the Cardinal , Pope Francis sent his donation accompanied by a letter that said: "Dear Faithful: Gladly I join with you to donate moon cakes to our brothers and sisters in the prisons of Hong Kong. Jesus will recognize us at the door of Heaven. Happy Moon Festival! I cordially bless you, PP Francis. "
Card. Zen translated the pope's words into Chinese and has included them in a card along with a picture of both , taken during their meeting in June at the Casa Santa Marta, in the Vatican. Copies of the card were sent to donors . In early September, the cardinal said: " I have sent to the Holy Father a box of mooncake, to share the joy of this feast with him."
