Pray for Hong Kong

Hong Kong has one of the world’s most impressive skylines, with its millions of people living in towering residential buildings and working in skyscrapers. Steep mountains, countryside, and surrounding waters force the city to build upward rather than outward, making Hong Kong one of the most densely populated areas in the world. It is also a leading global financial center. Bordering the South China Sea, Hong Kong celebrates traditional Cantonese holidays alongside its distinct global culture. As a Special Administrative Region of China, it operates under a ‘one country, two systems’ framework designed to give the city its own legal and economic rules, though this relationship remains a subject of deep domestic and international debate.

As Beijing seeks to tighten control, Hong Kong’s freedoms are at risk. In 2019, millions of pro-democracy protesters rallied to oppose a law that would allow people in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China for trial. They would be subjected to China’s legal system instead of Hong Kong’s, restricting Hong Kong’s political power. Protesters also spoke out against the government’s reach into the region’s affairs. Mainland authorities now treat peaceful activism and critical speech as direct threats to state security. Political arrests have increased.

Hongkongers practice Chinese folk religions, Buddhism, and Christianity, along with other minority religions. Hong Kong enjoys religious freedom and has received immigrants fleeing persecution and poverty in mainland China. Many Christians in this affluent Church generously support local ministries and outreach to the poor, though the nation also faces the challenge of balancing worldly success with spiritual growth. While only about 13 percent of the population identify as Christians, the Church runs many of the region’s hospitals, schools, and social organizations. In the past, the Church sent missionaries to mainland China, but recent tensions have limited these efforts.