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Order of Malta admits new members

Initiation ceremony held in public for the first time for postulants in SAR
Order of Malta admits new members
Thomas Wong (second right) receives a cross of the Australian Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Published: October 18, 2011 09:58 AM GMT
Updated: October 19, 2011 10:19 AM GMT

The Australian Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta admitted six Chinese and two other foreign members to its ranks at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral yesterday. It was the first time the association has held a public investiture Mass for its postulants in Hong Kong. The first three local members were admitted in 2009 in a private ceremony. Hong Kong has no order of chivalry. To qualify as members, Father Michael Yeung Ming-cheung, the magistral chaplain, said one has to serve society and be firm in faith as a member’s primary mission is to defend the faith, unity and values of the Church. He said he hopes the five new knights and three dames can spread the Malta Order’s spirit to mainland China to help leprosy sufferers and the poor in remote areas. Now with a total of 11 members, Hong Kong is still not ready to form a regional association since it needs to have 20 to do so, Fr Yeung said. Thomas Wong, one of the new knights said membership is not only an honor but serves as a reminder to his responsibility to serve the poor and the sick. “I hope we 11 members can be salt and light and cooperate together to help our compatriots in mainland China,” said Wong, who is also president of Serra International, a lay organization that promotes vocations within the Church. A number of the other members are council or committee members of Caritas Hong Kong. Peter Lee, a 65-year-old new knight, believes the honor given to him stems from his 42-year service in Caritas schools. He feels he doesn’t deserve the honor but will try to uphold the spirit of the order. The Order of Malta was founded in 1048 and nowadays is a Catholic charitable organization with its headquarters in Rome. Currently, it has over 12,500 members and 80,000 skilled volunteers around the world engaged in humanitarian service. The order is unique in that it has its own government and is a sovereign subject of International Law. It has diplomatic relations with 104 nations and permanent observer status with many international bodies such as the United Nations. END Related reports: Taiwan Catholics ponder what it means to be a knight

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