A tour of Church Messages

My running route on Boxing Day may seem aimlessly meandering at first glance.  When I showed my friend J the map, he spotted quickly there were certainly points where I lingered and turned around.  But the map, shown on the small screen of my smartphone, was not detailed enough for him to identify those key points. 

There was, actually, a method to the rout. I wanted to see what messages are the churches sending to the public via their front gates - their public faces. I visited the following churches on my 20 kilometre, 3 and a half hour route. 

Sheng Kung Hui The Church of The Magnificat 聖公會頌主堂

SKH Holy Carpenter Church 聖公會聖匠堂

St. Mary’s Church 紅磡聖母堂

Rosary Church 九龍玫瑰堂

Tsim Sha Tsui Baptist Church 尖沙咀浸信會

TST Swatow Christian Church 尖沙咀潮人生命堂

TST Canaan Church 尖沙咀迦南堂

EFCC Spring Church 播道會泉福堂

Kowloon Methodist Church 循道衞理聯合教會九龍堂

Truth Lutheran Church 信義會真理堂

EFCC Waterloo Hill Church 播道會窩打老道山福音堂

Kowloon City Baptist Church 九龍城浸信會

Saint Teresa’s Church 聖德肋撒堂

Saint Francis of Assisi’s Catholic Church 聖方濟各堂

EFCC Yan Fook Church 播道會恩福堂

Most churches have cancelled in-person gatherings and moved online because of the pandemic.  They are not inactive.  But from the street, one wouldn’t know it. 

Some did post notices of online worship and other activities.  

A few had clear and more visible messages related to Christmas.  The best that I found was the Nativity scene at the Catholic Rosary Church at the corner of Chatham Road and Austin Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. They have always had a Nativity Scene at Christmas  every year and this year is no different.  The Nativity scene was visible from the street.  The gate to the grounds was open and people could just walk in from the street. 

At the Truth Lutheran Church on Waterloo Road, there is a big billboard proclaiming the Christmas message.  

At the Catholic Saint Teresa’s Church on Waterloo Road and Boundary Street, there was a picture of a Nativity scene on the tympanum on top of the columns at the front.  It is visible from the street from a great distance.  One can walk through the open gates onto the grounds.  

The sanctuary remains open for prayer.  

At many of the churches, gates and doors were closed. There was nothing to indicate that anything was going on.  

Space is at a premium in Hong Kong.  For many churches who can only afford premises on upper floors in high rises, it is very difficult to make a visible presence on the street.  But even for many churches with premises at street level, or even their own grand buildings, there is hardly any Christmas message.  

There was even a very unfortunate image of a homeless person eating a foul-looking box of food sitting on the ground in front of a closed church on Nathan Road. 

It just seems like an opportunity lost.  Christmas is such an opportune time to send a message of hope, love and faith to the world.  People literally expect people, particularly Christians, to say “Merry Christmas!” to each other, to even strangers.  Here are so many church with precious street presence seemingly without a message for the world. 

It is particularly jarring for this year. When the pandemic, wars, conflicts, prejudice bigotry, exploitation, nepotism, social injustice and naked hatred make for a miserable world.  

It is a missed opportunity.