Hospitals as sanctuaries of faith and hope

Diversity of religions, faiths and beliefs is seen in the public hospitals of HA, yet all 43 hospitals are driven by a common mission – to give the best possible treatment and to bring comfort and hope to patients and their families.

 

Cleanse your soul with flowers and water

Two important rituals are held in the Hong Kong Buddhist Hospital (HKBH) every year. The first is the ‘bathing the Buddha’ ceremony held on Buddha’s birthday co-organised by the HKBH and the Hong Kong Buddhist Association. Hosted by Buddhist venerables, patients, employees, and members of the public are invited to pour scented and blessed water from a ladle over the statue of a Buddha in a ritual intended to cleanse people’s inner troubles and help them live at ease.

The second ritual is held before the Chinese New Year when the HKBH and the Hong Kong Buddhist Association host an offering ceremony during which flowers and fruits are presented to the Buddha while venerables chant and pray for the wellbeing of patients and employees.

Both rituals take place in a ceremonial hall in the hospital which features a merit wall recording donors who supported the establishment of the HKBH in the 1960s and 1970s. The wall presents over 1,000 leaf-shaped plates bearing donors’ names and is designed in the shape of bodhi tree, one of three sacred trees of Buddhism.

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Chapel design vividly displays Christ’s love for man

Established in 1964, the St. Charles’ Chapel of the Caritas Medical Centre (CMC) has been a sanctuary for worshippers, and remains so after it was relocated to the newly-built Wai Ming Block in 2014. Anticipated Sunday Mass on Saturday and Sunday Mass are held every week, as well as devotion to Sacred Heart of Jesus on the first Friday each month.

The design of the chapel is based on the concept ‘from Reconciliation to Heaven’, meaning believers reconcile with God and redeemed by Christ. When one enters the chapel, he passes the reconciliation rooms on both sides, then walks along the passage to the altar with five ceiling lights, representing the stigmata of Jesus. Symbolically, by leading a good life, man will go to heaven. On the other hand, the mosaic wall painting named ‘Christ the Healer, Man for All Seasons’ outside the entrance was designed by Dr Doris Tse, the Hospital Chief Executive at the time of the chapel’s relocation. The four trees in different colours represent four seasons of the year and the image of Christ facing the congregation demonstrates his omnipresence and power to help people in times of need. The painting also represents the story of Christ healing the blind, reflecting the service for patients with eye diseases provided by the Kowloon West Cluster Ophthalmic Centre at CMC.

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Divine Farmer harvests blessings for patients

Shennong, the Divine Farmer, is the founder of Chinese medicine, and is said to have tasted hundreds of herbs to test their medicinal value. Kwong Wah Hospital (KWH) has a memorial tablet to the deity in its Tung Wah Museum. Hospital management, representatives from departments, and the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals (TWGHs) gather on KWH’s anniversary and Shennong’s birthday on lunar 28 April for a ceremony in which incense sticks are burned and roasted pig is cut for the good health of patients and staff and smooth development of the hospital.

The museum’s resplendent main hall, resembling an ancestral hall, where the ceremony is held, is decorated with suanzhi wood furniture used since the hospital’s establishment more than a century ago in 1911. The hall is now temporarily closed to the public due to KWH redevelopment project.