With the theme of "Do you believe this?" (John 11:26), the annual Joint Ecumenical Communion Service in celebration of the 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity was held on Thursday, attended by around 350 ministers and church workers from 32 local denominations and organizations.
Annually coordinated by the World Council of Churches, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18-25) is an annual event organized by the Hong Kong Christian Council and Hong Kong Catholic Diocesan Ecumenical Commission. The joint communion service is held every year to embody the spirit of unity.
Earlier on January 18, an ecumenical prayer service was held at St. Ignatius Chapel in Kowloon.
Conducted by by member churches and organizations in Hong Kong at the Tsung Tsin Mission of Hong Kong Sham Shui Po Church, the communion service was officiated by Rev. Ip Tsz Leung, chairman of the Hong Kong Christian Council's Unity and Church Relations Committee.
The liturgy for this service was originally written by the Italian monastic community Monastero di Bose. The offering from this service will be used for emergency flood relief in Myanmar.
Colonel Philip Maxwell of the Salvation Army was invited to deliver the sermon on the death of Lazarus from John 11:17-27. He stated that Jesus' delayed arrival, four days after Lazarus' death, was intended to remove any doubt about His power over life and death.
When Jesus arrived at Martha and Mary's home at un expected time, Martha greeted him but with disappointed words. Although she acknowledged Jesus' power, she still limited the space for Him to act.
"The Lord always meets us deeply in our brokenness and despair; it is in our despair that we make room for him to act," he said.
He then led the congregation to a deeper understanding of the journey of faith. In constrast, Mary was overwhelmed with grief and unable to immediately welcome Jesus. Similarly, when faced with difficulties and disappointments, people are often distracted by emotions and overlook the power of faith.
However, Jesus revealed God's glory through Lazarus' resurrection, reminding us that even in desperate situations, his redemption can still be manifested, and we should always trust in His plan throughout our faith journey.
In his conclusion, Colonel Maxwell quoted Jesus' saying, "Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?" He added that the Lord calls us to have steadfast faith and to remain firm no matter how bad the situation is, believing that everything is meant to fully reveal the Lord's glory in our lives and influence others through our lives.
Following the sermon, the congregation recited the unified Chinese translation of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, which was adopted at the Second Ecumenical Council in AD 381, on the occasion of the 1700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea.
Then the communion service was presided over by Rev. Leung Kam Wah of the Tsung Tsin Mission of Hong Kong and assisted by the clergy from the Hong Kong Council of the Church of Christ in China, the Methodist Church, Hong Kong, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, and the Kowloon Union Church.
In the end, Rev. Wong Ka Fai, general secretary of the Hong Kong Council of the Church of Christ in China, blessed and sent forth the congregation.
Among the 32 participated churches, organizations, and schools were major Protestant denominations like the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, the Methodist Church, Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Council of the Church of Christ in China, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hong Kong, the Salvation Army, and the Orthodox Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and South East Asia, St. Mark & St. Thomas Coptic Church, and the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong Focolare Movement.
Christian organizations included Chinese Christian Literature Council, the Young Men's Christian Association of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Young Women's Christian Association, Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong, Christian Action, and Hong Kong Bible Society, Tao Fong Shan Christian Centre, Wycliffe Bible Translators (Hong Kong), and the Amity Foundation.
