Ambrose Mong - Forgiven but Not Forgotten: The Past Is Not Past

T he bonds that bind society are very fragile, for the ties that unite us as people and prevent us from killing each other out of jealousy or envy can easily be broken. Therefore, among other things, a level playing field where everyone has a chance to succeed through equal opportunities in education and employment is crucial in maintaining social harmony. Hence, I would argue that the unrest in Hong Kong today is symptomatic of the unequal distribution of wealth arising from the greed of financial oligarchs and property developers colluding with senior government officials. The situation is further exacerbated by the influx of rich Chinese mainlanders who come to buy anything and everything, but especially property, which is a contributory factor to the phenomenon of many Hong Kong residents being unable to afford an apartment or raise a family without resorting to heavy mortgages or other financial encumbrances.

Thomas Hobbes, the seventeenth-century English philosopher, believed that the state of war was the natural state of human beings and that harmony among human beings is artificial because it is based on an agreement. Hobbes advocated an absolute monarchy to counteract the fact that human beings, at their core, are selfish, brutal, and irrational. Here in Hong Kong, in the summer of 2019 , we witnessed the wanton violence and mindless destruction of private and public property, which would seem to bear out Hobbes assertion. Nowadays many people feel that the autonomy of Hong Kong guaranteed by the Basic Law has been undermined, first by the proposed Extradition Bill and more recently, by the new National Security Law that has come into effect. The government seems ineffectual while desperately appealing to the good sense of the people. The harmony of the people is under threat because the agreement that Hobbes refers to is seemingly being broken. The words of the Irish poet W. B. Yeats aptly describe the situation in the Fragrant Harbor:

Turning and turning in the widening gyre

The falcon cannot hear the falconer;

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere

The ceremony of innocence is drowned;

The best lack all conviction, while the worst

Are full of passionate intensity.

The Second Coming 1919

In view of the violent protests in 2019 , Professor Lai Pan-chiu from The Chinese University of Hong Kong urged me to write about the issue of forgiveness and reconciliation in society. Ironically, it is the pandemic caused by the spread of Covid- that has provided us with respite from the uprisingsa brief period of anxious peace. The partial lockdown and social distancing have also given me space and time to act on Professor Lais suggestion by researching and writing the following chapters.

Many people have assisted me with this project. Special thanks to Ellen McGill and Kenzie Lau for proofreading and editorial assistance. I would also like to thank the following, who have encouraged and supported me in my writing endeavors all these years: Denis Chang SC, George Yeo, Patrick Tierney FSC, Marie Whitcomb, Columba Cleary OP, Mary Gillis CND, Anthony Tan FMS, Wendy Wu, Teresa Au, Henry So, Ronnie Enguillo, Sylvia Lam, Garrison Qian, Teoh Chin Chin, James Boey, Josephine Chan, William Chan, Judy Chan, Charles Chu, Lothair Leung, Juliana Jie, Matthew Goldammer, K. S Goh, Esther Chu, Francis Chin, Gerard Lee, Philip Lee, Judy Lee, John Tan, George Tan, Leo Tan, Catherine Yau, Marina Kwan, Adelaide Wong, Gemma Yim, Henrietta Cheung, Abraham Shek, Vivencio Atutubo, and Emmanuel Dispo. Thanks also to the Parish Priest of St. Andrews Church, Rev. Jacob Kwok and my colleagues, Rev. Mitch Reginio CICM and Rev. Joseph Fung, for their fellowship and care.