by Mary Button, USA

After Bishop Dr. Zephania Kameeta’s keynote presentation we broke up into our Bible study groups to discuss further our thoughts and feelings. Each group was given an envelope with a few words from the presentation inside. The envelope was passed around and each of us talked about what the word meant to us within our own contexts. The word that my new friend Lydia Fong received was: “injustice.” Bishop Kameeta spoke very strongly about the Christian imperative to fight injustice and Lydia said this word made her think about the situation of Christians in mainland China. She went on to say that in light of the injustice faced by Chinese Christians she prays. It was after she shared this with our group that I knew that I had to interview her and share with everyone her perspective on Lutherans in Hong Kong. I wanted to share a few questions with Lydia Fong with you.

What do you do in Hong Kong?
I work for a German company as an assistant operations manager, but my work is primarily retail. In my church, I work with young people.

What are your hopes for this Pre-Assembly?
I am excited about being in communion with other international youth. I am excited to see how we young people can elaborate on the theme “Give us today our daily bread.”

Can you tell me about your church in Hong Kong?
We are called the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hong Kong (ELCHK). I work in the youth department. The most important thing we do is prepare youth to work at a macro level. There are 52 ELCHK churches and we provide a number of social services, including schools and elderly services. The churches have a very well organized structure. We just celebrated our 55th anniversary. From the youth perspective, I think the ELCHK is providing many opportunities and activities.

Can you tell me about the Christian church in mainland China?
Because Hong Kong was ruled by the British, we are accustomed to freedom of religion. I would say the situation in mainland China is better than in North Korea. The situation has improved from older days but the government still fears that Christianity would encourage opposition to the government. There are many underground churches. As a young person, I think that traditional Chinese thinking results in parents discouraging children from joining the church, in some cases.