For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5:7b-8)
To all the fellow residents and dwellers of Hong Kong, as I write this Easter Message, the wars and conflicts in the Middle East, with the possibility of spillover to other parts of the world, do not allow us to be optimistic of the conflicts ending soon.
Honestly, I do not know what our world will be like on Easter Sunday. Given the devastating acts of the aggressors and the maddening hate of the one being attacked, to where are they dragging the rest of the world? Not towards a nuclear disaster or a living hell, we hope. Let us earnestly pray for God’s deliverance.
Yet, as fellow global citizens, we cannot and should not wait helplessly for these horrific possibilities to become reality. If not, we could be counted among those partly responsible for the disastrous outcome, even if only for a very small part of it. For everyone contributes, positively or negatively, knowingly or unknowingly, to the human consciousness in his or her communities, society, country, or even neighbouring regions. Hence, if many of us feel and act negatively towards our neighbours, how would the chain effects affect the region or even the world in which we reside?
In other words, what can we do to ease the tension in our own communities, which will eventually affect the global sentiment? I think almost all of us would consider ourselves insignificant players with negligible impact in this overwhelmingly hostile world. What good can we do when we are facing immense evil? The sad part is that most of us may feel so helpless that we choose to do nothing constructive but curse the darkness.
But thank God that there is Easter! The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus means that goodness, truth and love will ultimately overcome evil. The fragrance of life will eventually dispel the stench of death. What is pivotal is our conviction in the summative benefits of life and goodness over the extent of damage incurred by death and evil. Believing in life and goodness means embodying it not only in the head but also in the heart and through one’s actions. If we want our world to enjoy a new beginning, we need to stay away from the old yeast of “malice and wickedness.” And I would include the old yeast of allowing ourselves to be consumed by hopelessness, or joining the militia of cynical, hateful and destructive criticism. Therefore, we need to halt the spreading of hate and violence, through social media in particular, no matter how desirable it might appear to be.
Again, violence begets violence, never peace. One should wonder whether there can be just wars nowadays when other peaceful or less destructive means are available, or whether just have not yet been exhausted.
How about Hong Kong? According to The Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention at HKU, in 2024, suicide cases among the 15 to 24 age group, and among young adult males, remained just as high and rising respectively when compared with 2023. But the cases for the rest of Hong Kong decreased in 2024. Recent updates also indicate no increase in suicide cases in these age groups in 2025. This may be due to, but is not confined to, improved awareness and social support in our society. Indeed, Easter exhorts us not to give up hope or succumb to hopelessness. And this is particularly important for our younger generations.
When all seems dark and lost, have faith that light is not far away. We only need to get up and walk, and invite our peers to walk with us. The God of Life and Love, who loves everyone of us, especially our young people, will never forsake us. Angels are reaching out through the good people around us, though we might not recognise them readily. Please know that demons cannot consume us unless we allow them to do so. The life-giving power of the Lord of Easter can protect us whenever we take shelter in him.
Allow me to call on parents and schools to protect our children by not allowing them to go under the life-sapping and blindingly competitive culture, although a relatively small number of students may thrive in it. It will be more helpful if our children and young people are not intently compared with each other but with their own selves. This will need to start with our parents, whose anxiety largely stems from comparing themselves with other parents or comparing their children with the children of other parents, worrying that their children would become less competitive.
Emphasising personal betterment through self-comparison will provide our young people more room to breathe and space to grow, while discovering their own gifts and talents. Chain effects from such changes will help transform the existing suffocating culture, bringing fresh air for our children and young people to thrive with hope. Let us be free from the worry that our young people may resort to self-harming measures due to the highly demanding culture of schooling in many schools. The law of natural attrition should not be applied to our students, certainly not in education. Every life has its own dignity and value that rise well beyond achievements.
And I call on our leaders in the government to reduce the use of “Key Performance Indicator” (KPI) so as to allow our educators more time and space to better accompany their students. An increase in funding to recruit extra clerical and professional services alone cannot meaningfully ease the burden on our educators. Continuing demands for “value-addedness” are simply exhausting and distracting.
There are important values which are not emphasised with KPIs but are crucial for the healthy development of our young people. For example, their psycho-spiritual well-being and conviction in their ability to shape their own desirable future. I believe we all want to witness the joy of Easter among our students, not constant suffering and hopelessness.
Besides KPIs, I call on our government and civic leaders to give our young people who have been in trouble with the law a second chance to start anew. This will allow them to have the much-needed hope and faith in our society. Investigations put aside in the past couple of years remain threatening to them, which in turn, has taken its toll on their mental health. Criminal records, even relatively minor ones, are crippling barriers to their career pursuits. Can we not identify some legal provisions to help those whose crimes are minor and who have served their sentences to continue pursuing their careers? We can help them regain faith in society and reconstruct hope for their desirable future. Again, Easter joy and hope should not be an unattainable luxury for them.
Before I finish this Easter Message, not knowing what our world will be like when we read or hear about it, please do not let ourselves or our young ones succumb to hopelessness, or worse still, resort to vengeful hate and violence. Have faith in the power of love that should form the basis of hope.
Our Lord is risen indeed! A hope-filled Easter to you all!
+ Stephen Cardinal Chow, S.J.
