Ngai Ching-yiu (B.Th. 1) The Prodigal Son I made the decision to believe in the Lord in junior high school and started going to church in high school. On my journey of faith, a significant and profound experience was related to my baptism. The reason why I decided to be baptized was actually very simple. I could not but acknowledge the reality of God, so I decided to confirm and acknowledge my Christian identity. The church I attend happens to be the same church that my grandmother used to attend, and I believe this is truly God’s leading. ...

Hosanna Ho (M.Div. 1) From being confused about faith to being determined to follow the Lord I am a second-generation Christian and grew up in the church. However, during secondary school, I also went through the stage of confusion about faith that most second-generation Christians go through: I didn’t know why I went to church, and I was even less sure whether I really believed in Jesus. Thankfully, I had great spiritual companions and mentors around me who helped me through that phase. ...

Jaclyn Ng (M.Div. 1) Doing good leads to suffering? I attended a Christian primary school since I was young, and when I was in primary 3, I joined the Girls' Brigade of Christ. From then on, Christ took on an increasing share of my life. I began to know more about God's Word and wanted to grasp the values of the Kingdom of Heaven and become a daughter who pleases God. Therefore, when something happens that I consider to be unjust, I cannot tolerate it. When I was in Primary 6, I reported my classmates’ misdeeds to the teacher. As a result, the whole class boycotted me. I felt extremely lonely every minute in the classroom, and I was always the only one left in all group activities. I cried and cursed God every day, not understanding why I insisted on doing righteous things for Him, but He took away all my friends! However, I still simply believed in His existence and continued to attend church meetings regularly. ...

Eric Kwong Associate Professor of Practical Theology (World Religions) Self-protection and love for neighbour When an epidemic breaks out, people’s instinctive reaction is to protect themselves from infection. This is understandable and can even be regarded as a civic responsibility, because if one less person is infected, it will reduce the pressure on Hong Kong’s medical system and help control the epidemic. But when the epidemic spreads, people only care about protecting themselves, which may evolve into a self-centered lifestyle. The Bible does not teach us to live a self-protective life, but to care for our neighbors around us. ...

Vincent Lau Assistant Professor of Practical Theology (Christian Ethics) If the novel coronavirus had not broken out, we could have worshipped and gathered together as usual. People would not have to keep a distance from each other and reduce meetings. Schools would not have to be closed, group members would not have felt disconnected from each other, and the market would not have been so depressed. Baptist Theological Seminary has stopped classroom teaching and switched to online teaching for some time. Many students feel that they have no fellowship life. They can neither review, do homework, eat, drink and have fun in groups of three or five, nor do they have face-to-face communication. They feel cut off from each other and their spiritual lives are drying up. ...

Andres Tang Professor of Christian Thought (Theology and Culture) What kind of generation is this? The political movement that lasted for more than half a year had not yet completely subsided when the new coronavirus epidemic broke out. What kind of era is Hong Kong society living in? Whether it is a natural disaster or a man-made disaster, it is not what we want to see. Who likes to be in a state of panic? Who wants to live in panic and fear? However, are humans themselves completely without responsibility for the situation we find ourselves in today? Or, we have to admit that whether it is a natural disaster or a man-made disaster, it is only because people themselves have not treated human society and the natural world well that they have caused today's consequences and ultimately have to bear the consequences themselves. This is the judgment of "being left to perish" mentioned in the Bible. God does not have to deliberately punish us. He only needs to turn a blind eye to us, limit His protection, and not stop us from doing evil, so that we can suffer the consequences and fall into panic all day long. ...

Sarah Shea Assistant Professor of Christian Education We, a group of people who have always been able to move around, have been stopped in our tracks by the epidemic since the beginning of the Lunar New Year: we have lost our previous daily routines, some areas of activity, most social opportunities, face-to-face classroom learning, and even the opportunity to attend church gatherings. Perhaps, at this time, we can learn a life skill from our disabled friends, called "the art of losing" (the...

Nathan Ng Professor of Christian Thought (Church History) After the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003, the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has recently emerged.

Jonathan Lo Assistant Professor of New Testament Last year, due to social unrest caused by different political views, Christians and other members of the community in Hong Kong experienced various difficulties and their lives were greatly affected. Now, the outbreak of the new coronavirus seems to further prolong these uncertain and fearful days. Perhaps now is a good time to reflect on what the Bible says about suffering, so that when we do minister to those who are suffering, our words can be both inspiring and theological—so that those we minister to can be comforted and come to know more about who and what God is like, and therefore trust Him. ...

Wong Fook-kong Professor of Old Testament Two Natural Reactions When faced with danger, humans always tend to fight or flee. This phenomenon is also relevant to our current situation. Panic buying and protests against neighborhood sites becoming quarantine camps are examples of “combat” responses. The more positive side of this "combat" mode is that medical staff are willing to take on dangerous work and care for infected patients. Evading quarantine orders or simply fleeing to another place is considered "escape" mode. There is nothing wrong with these reactions in themselves. However, it would be wrong if, for example, the action endangered others or harmed the general welfare. ...