Stephen Chow Sau-yan, SJ (, born 7 August 1959) is a Hong Kong Chinese bishop of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He is the Bishop of Hong Kong, appointed to the position in 2021 after previously serving as the provincial superior of the Chinese Province of the Society of Jesus.

Early life

Chow was born in British Hong Kong on 7 August 1959. He studied psychology and philosophy at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, obtaining a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

and a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in Educational Psychology. He subsequently joined the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

in 1984, completing his noviceship in 1986. He joined the

Milltown Institute of Theology and Philosophy Milltown may refer to: * Mill town, a settlement that developed around one or more mills Places Canada * Milltown, New Brunswick *Milltown, Newfoundland and Labrador * Milltown, Ontario Ireland * Milltown, Ballymore, a townland in Ballymore civ ...

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and gaining a Licentiate in Philosophy in 1988. After obtaining the licentiate, he returned to Hong Kong and taught at

Wah Yan College, Kowloon Wah Yan College, Kowloon (WYK; ; demonym: ''Wahyanite'', pl.: ''Wahyanites'') is a Catholic secondary school for boys run by the Chinese Province of the Society of Jesus. It is located in Kowloon, Hong Kong and is a grant-in-aid secondary sc ...

for two years. Starting in 1990, he studied theology at the

Holy Spirit Seminary The Holy Spirit Seminary () is the seminary which is affiliated with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong. Since its foundation in 1931 as the "Regional Seminary for South China" (), it has provided theological and pastoral formation to youn ...

in Hong Kong. On 16 July 1994, Chow was ordained to the Catholic priesthood at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception by John Baptist Wu, the Bishop of Hong Kong at the time. He undertook

postgraduate studies Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and s ...

at the Loyola University, Chicago, receiving a master's degree in

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in 1995.

Presbyteral ministry

Chow's first pastoral assignment was at Wah Yan Kowloon and Hong Kong, where he was chaplain, teacher, and school manager from 1996 to 2000. He commenced doctoral studies at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 2000 and was granted a

Doctor of Education The Doctor of Education (Ed.D. or D.Ed.; Latin ''Educationis Doctor'' or ''Doctor Educationis'') is (depending on region and university) a research or professional doctoral degree that focuses on the field of education. It prepares the holder for ...

six years later. His thesis was titled "Understanding Moral Culture in Hong Kong Secondary Schools: Relationships among Moral Norm, Moral Culture, Academic Achievement Motivation, and Empathy". He made his final vows on 17 April 2007. Up until his appointment as bishop, Chow served as supervisor of both Wah Yan colleges in Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. He was an honorary assistant professor at the

University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public university, public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest Higher education in Hong Kong, tertia ...

from 2007 to 2014, as well as a part-time professor of psychology at Holy Spirit Seminary (his alma mater). He was a participant at the Jesuits' 36th General Congregation in October 2016. Chow succeeded John Lee Hua as provincial superior of the Chinese Province of the Society of Jesus on 1 January 2018.

Episcopal ministry

Chow was appointed Bishop of Hong Kong on 17 May 2021. The see had been vacant since 3 January 2019, when Michael Yeung died in office after less than two years at the helm. His appointment was described as a surprise by the Jesuit magazine ''

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'' given that he was not previously mentioned as one of the likely candidates for the post. However, the

Union of Catholic Asian News The Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN) is a news agency that covers issues and matters of interest for the Catholic Church on the Asian continent. It was launched in Hong Kong in 1979. Since its foundation, it has become one of the largest Cathol ...

mentioned in January 2019 – shortly after Yeung's death – how two of the candidates were Jesuits, without specifically naming them. Chow revealed how he initially declined to be bishop in December 2020, as he was of the opinion that the post should be taken up by a member of the

secular clergy In Christianity, the term secular clergy refers to deacons and priests who are not monastics or otherwise members of religious life. A secular priest (sometimes known as a diocesan priest) is a priest who commits themselves to a certain geogra ...

. However, he ultimately relented after receiving a handwritten letter from

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

. He was consecrated on 4 December 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chow, Stephen 1959 births 20th-century Chinese Roman Catholic priests 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in China Alumni of Milltown Institute of Theology and Philosophy Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni Hong Kong Roman Catholic bishops Jesuit bishops Hong Kong Jesuits Living people Loyola University Chicago alumni People from British Hong Kong University of Minnesota alumni