Prayers for Hong Kong

For several years I worked on the same ministry team with the Rev. Cathy Russell who is a colleague now in Belleville. Cathy's mother, a retired United Church minister, was originally from Hong Kong. The family is watching the massive and growing protests in Hong Kong with great interest.

You might recall that the tiny but wealthy island was relinquished by the British to the Chinese government in 1997 after 150 years of colonial rule and association. While in some ways Hong Kong went from faded empire to rising empire there was also the shift from democracy and autonomy to life under a communist regime. The compromise was a "one country, two systems" agreement which would ensure certain freedoms for fifty years, until 2047.

Elections are on the horizon and the residents of Hong Kong are determined that this agreement is not compromised and that they will be able to vote fairly, not in sham elections with limited choices. The Chinese government has already demonstrated an ominous level of force which leads some to wonder whether this will escalate to a crackdown on the level of Tiananmen Square in the late 1980's.

As Christians we are called to be people of justice and we need to pray that the people of Hong Kong will not be subsumed by a system that limits freedom and has a terrible human rights record. There are so many other important hotspots around our world which require our diligence, yet Hong Kong shouldn't be pushed into the background.

Did you know about this agreement? Have you been aware of the unrest in Hong Kong? One more situation to add to our prayer list?