I attended a mass at Mother of Good Counsel Church on November 18th (Sun) at 3:00pm celebrating the 50th anniversary of Young Christian Workers (YCW). Cardinal Joseph Zen was the main celebrant and seven priests were concelebrants.

“Young Christian Workers" is an international organization established in 1925 in Belgium by Fr Joseph Cardij (who was later appointed as Cardinal by the Pope) . The main purpose of this young workers' movement is to explore lives through examination of conscience (according to the spirit of the gospel and social justice) and to improve the social environment by action. The three sonatas that Cardinal Cardij promotes in order to solve problems are: see, judge and act.

When the Young Christian Workers (YCW) was first established, most of the members were blue-collared workers. Their biggest accomplishment in the movement was overcoming the sense of inferiority, affirming their self-worth, and elevating themselves in the culture comparable to that of international youth. The motto of YCW’s 50th Anniversary is that “The biggest success of Young Christian Workers is to persist in failure.” Cardinal Joseph Cardij's advice to youth is: "Young christian workers' worth is more precious than all the gold in the world!”

In his speech, Cardinal Zen stated that “The Young Christian Workers' movement (Hong Kong) seems to be declining in recent years. But it is still God’s divine gift and it has its value of existence. We should seek different ways to pour God's gift into the hearts of young people.” A prayer of the Young Christian Workers says: “Lord, I pray that you teach me to be generous and serve you with an undivided heart. Teach me to give and do not count the cost; teach me to struggle but do not mind being hurt; teach me to work but do not evade hard labour; teach me to get along with people but do not long for any reward; only to follow Your Will. Amen.”

May the Lord help the young Christian workers in Hong Kong to affirm their self value and build a harmonious, conscientious society diligently.