John Tong Hon
| His Eminence John Tong Hon | |
|---|---|
| Cardinal-Bishop of Hong Kong | |
 | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Archdiocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Guangzhou (nominal) |
| Province | Guangzhou (nominal) |
| Metropolis | Guangzhou (nominal) |
| Diocese | Hong Kong |
| Appointed | 30 January 2008 (Coadjutor) |
| Installed | 15 April 2009 |
| Predecessor | Joseph Zen SDB |
| Other posts |
Cardinal-Priest of Regina Apostolorum Member of Council for the Economy |
| Orders | |
| Ordination |
6 January 1966 by Pope Paul VI |
| Consecration |
9 December 1996 by John Baptist Wu Cheng-chung |
| Created Cardinal |
18 February 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI |
| Rank | Cardinal-priest |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
31 July 1939 Hong Kong |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Residence | Hong Kong |
| Previous post |
|
| Alma mater |
Chinese University of Hong Kong Pontifical Urbaniana University |
| Motto | Dominus Pastor Meus |
| Coat of arms |
 |
| John Tong Hon | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 湯漢[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 汤汉 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Styles of John Tong Hon | |
|---|---|
|
| |
| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
John Tong Hon (born Hong Kong, 31 July 1939) is a Chinese Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, and Bishop of Hong Kong. Appointed by Pope Benedict XVI, Tong Hon is the Cardinal priest of the church of Regina Apostolorum in Rome.[2]
Biography
In his youth, Tong Hon spent ten years living in Huadu, Guangzhou before returning to Hong Kong.[3] His father died in China in 1952, at the young age of 42.[4]
He earned a master's degree in philosophy from the Chinese University of Hong Kong before earning both licentiate and a doctorate in dogmatic theology at the Pontifical Urbaniana University.[1][5] He was ordained a priest on 9 December 1966.[2] On 13 September 1996, he was appointed auxiliary bishop of Hong Kong.[1][2] He was named to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in 2003, after 24 years of service with their Holy Spirit Study Centre in Hong Kong.[6] In March 2005, he travelled to Guangzhou on official business as a representative of the pope, along with other Hong Kong religious leaders; they were received at a banquet luncheon by Zhu Zhenzhong, chairman of the city's political consultative committee.[3]
On 30 January 2008, Pope Benedict XVI raised him to coadjutor bishop from his former position as the auxiliary bishop of the Hong Kong Diocese.[7] He had been named by the Church as being in line for Zen's job as early as 2006; however, he stated he felt little excitement at the prospect of taking up the post.[8] He assumed the post of Bishop of Hong Kong on 15 April 2009 with the retirement of Joseph Zen.[9]
In 2010 as part of his Christmas message, Bishop Tong Hon, called on the Chinese government to free Liu Xiaobo, activist Zhao Lianhai and all those who are in jail for promoting human rights. He also urged Beijing to release all the clergymen from the underground Church who are behind bars for demanding greater religious freedom in China. In his message, he expressed four dreams or aspirations he has for the future of his diocese, namely evangelisation, vocations, the Universal Church and acting as a bridge with mainland.[10]
On 18 February 2012 he was created Cardinal-Priest of Regina Apostolorum. He will have voting rights until his 80th birthday. In March 2012 Cardinal Tong Hon said that the diocese of Hong Kong would take up the role of "Bridge Church", and that the local Church was helping the mainland Church to have better formation, reconcile among themselves and achieve full communion with the Holy Father (the Pope) and the Universal Church. He went on to call for prayers for "the reopening of the China-Vatican dialogue" and for "the graces bestowed upon the excommunicated, so that their early repentance could bring reconciliation in our Church and thus the wounds of our Church could be healed."[11] Cardinal Tong Hon said that he is confident that "if Catholics in China were to enjoy full freedom of religious belief and activities, they would not only be able to contribute more fruitfully to the well-being of society, but would also earn for their Motherland a higher reputation in the international community." Regarding his elevation, he added that, "I feel inadequate yet grateful" and the appointment is both "an honour and a responsibility".[11]
On 21 April 2012 Cardinal Tong Hon was appointed a member of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples and the Pontifical Council for Inter Religious Dialogue.
On Saturday, 30 November 2013, Cardinal Tong Hon was named a Member of the Congregation for Catholic Education by Pope Francis.[12]
He was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the 2013 papal conclave that selected Pope Francis.
On 8 March 2014, he was named by Pope Francis to serve as a Cardinal Member of the newly established Council for Economic Affairs, which will oversee the work of the new Secretariat for the Economy, an agency which will have financial regulatory authority over all departments of the Roman Curia.[13]
In July 2014 Cardianal Tong Hon received three auxiliary bishops to assist him in the running of the diocese, Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing, O.F.M., Bishop Stephen Lee Bun-sang and Bishop Michael Yeung Ming-cheung.
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Chang, Chih-ming (30 January 2008). 教宗委任湯漢主教為香港教區助理主教. Radio Taiwan International News (in Chinese). Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Bishop Tong, Hon John". Hong Kong Catholic Diocesan Archives. Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Leung, Yu (30 March 2005). 湯漢回故里 鄉情尤切切. Wen Wei Po (in Chinese). Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ↑
- ↑ John Tong Hon
- ↑ "Mons. John Tong Hon, Obispo auxiliar de Hong Kong, nombrado consultor de la Congregación para la Evangelización de los Pueblos". Fides (in Spanish). 28 July 2003. Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ↑ "Pope Names Hong Kong Bishop". Associated Press. 30 January 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ↑ Kiu, Fung (9 October 2006). 陳日君施以退為進伎倆. Ta Kung Pao (in Chinese). Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ↑ "Rinuncia e successione del vescovo di Hong Kong (Cina)". Vatican.va. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 15 April 2009.
- ↑ Mgr Tong urges Beijing to free Liu Xiaobo, Catholic clergymen and human rights activists
- ↑ 11.0 11.1
- ↑ http://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2013/11/30/0795/01791.html
- ↑ http://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2014/03/08/0171/00360.html
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Vacant Title last held by Peter Lei |
Auxiliary Bishop of Hong Kong 1996–2008 |
Vacant |
| Vacant Title last held by Joseph Zen |
Coadjutor Bishop of Hong Kong 2008–2009 | |
| Preceded by Joseph Zen |
Bishop of Hong Kong 2009–present |
Incumbent |
| Order of precedence | ||
| Preceded by Sik Chi Wai President of the Hong Kong Buddhist Association |
Hong Kong order of precedence Catholic Bishop of Hong Kong |
Succeeded by Tong Yun-kai President of the Confucian Academy |
|