austraLasia #2804
 
Cardinal Zen's Golden Ages: The Fruit of Growth

HONG KONG: 13 February 2011 -- “God has overwhelmed me with love, by making me grow in life through a series of golden ages”: thus Salesian Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze Kiun, during the homily of the Golden Jubilee of Priestly Ordination Mass celebrated Friday, February 11th, Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima, in Salesian Missionary House (Shau Kei Wan, Hong Kong).
    The golden ages that Card. Zen, looking back on his almost octogenarian life, has found, span the first forty years of his life. The first golden age is that of Salesian presence in Shanghai, during and just after World War II, a presence animated by the saintly Provincial Fr. Carlo Braga, when little Joseph was an aspirant (1944-1948). The second golden age is that of initial Salesian formation with such spiritual guides as Novice Director Fr Luigi Massimino and Rector Fr Vincenzo Ricaldone (1948-1952). The third golden age is that of the Salesian Aspirantate in Macau and Hong Kong in the fifties, when Joseph was the Salesian assistant of dozens of aspirants (1952-1955). The fourth golden age is that of his theological studies in Crocetta’s Ateneo Salesiano during the Turin years with people like Frs Brocardo and Valentini as Rectors, Frs Quadrio, Camilleri, Bertetto et al. as professors and mentors (1955-1961). The fifth golden age is that of Cheung Chau (Hong Kong) when he was Catechist and Prefect of Studies of Salesian House of Studies with as many as sixty young Salesians hailing from a dozen countries in Europe, America, and South East Asia (1964-1970).
    Full of gratitude for this abundance of graces, Card. Zen expressed also a deep sense of repentance. Recalling the generosity and fervour with which in his youth he responded to these divine calls, he applied to himself the stern words of the Lord Jesus to “the angel of the Church in Ephesus”: “I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first” (Rev 2:3-4). After inviting all participants to thank God together with him, he also begged them to continue to pray for him.
    The chapel wall was decorated with the words inscribed on the memorial card of the priestly ordination in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin at the hands of Archbishop Maurilio Fossati in 1961: “Unless the grain of wheat…” (John 12:24) and “Carissimi, my sacrifice and yours in the Sacrifice of Christ for the Church of Silence”. Concelebrating with Card. Zen and sharing in the family agape that followed the Mass were two Shanghaiese Jesuit confessors of the faith.  Frs Zhu and Gu spent from 26 to 29 years in goal for the faith. Their presence highlighted the deep love for the suffering China Church that has characterised the priestly and episcopal service of Card. Zen. Present were also Card. Zen’s younger sister, numerous Salesian confreres from Hong Kong and Macau, and a dozen young men connected with the Salesian Aspirantate.
    Saturday, February 12th, about one hundred faithful, volunteer helpers of the Diocesan Audio-Visual Centre, came to Salesian Missionary House to continue the celebration of Card. Zen’s Golden Jubilee of Priesthood. Led by their supervisor Dr Dominic Y. Yung, they received the New Year 'laisi' from the Cardinal, together with words of encouragement for their generous promotion of evangelisation and catechesis through the distribution of the fine audio-visual products of their Centre. In the chapel they prayed in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament exposed, with prayer formulas that reflected their precise and deep knowledge of the critical situation of the Church in China. A group photo before the statue of St. Dominic Savio in our garden concluded the joyful encounter.
    The provincial celebration of Cardinal Joseph Zen’s Golden Priestly Jubilee of Priesthood will take place on Don Bosco’s Birthday, August 16th, in the company of all the other priestly, Salesian, religious, and matrimonial jubilarians of the Salesian Family.
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