Sowing the Seeds of Change under Urban Renewal
Tsang Wun-lam
B.Th. Student
Group 1 (Yau Ma Tei)
The neighborhood that our group visited is Yau Ma Tei. We walked through the streets and alleys of Yau Ma Tei with our tour guide, learning more about this old district that faces urban renewal.
Our first stop was Portland Street. Next to a number of cross-border bus stops is a new hotel towering over facilities of an old district. Our guide told us that tourism development in Hong Kong has put a lot of old-fashioned small shops out of business. Gone along with the small shops is the strong social bond that the community once shared.
We then found ourselves in front of a church building with a tower. In the past when there were not so many high-rise buildings, the church tower used to look over the whole Yau Ma Tei. Pastors used to pray for the community at the top of the tower. At that time the church had a much closer relationship with local residents than it has with the community now.
As we were pondering the problem of alienation, a café on Tak Cheong Lane came into sight. It has an outward-facing fridge by the roadside with a sign that reads “For everyone.” People may take what they need from this fridge, which has also become a small open platform for others to give food and drinks.
We then arrived at Life Workshop on Hamilton Street where they sell old and new crafts, most of which come from closed small shops. Life Workshop serves as a consignment shop so that these crafts can stay in the market, hoping that this would perhaps keep the feeling of the good old days alive.
The tour has inspired me to reflect upon mission work in the community. The design of the church with a tower manifests the church’s sense of responsibility towards the community in the past and the close ties the church and the community used to enjoy. As the environment is changing (tangible change: taller buildings block the view from the top of the tower; intangible change: people are becoming more closed off and distant from others), has the church adjusted its community care ministry accordingly? The arrangement of that fridge in the café shows that a simple gesture goes a long way in bringing people together. I could not help but think that it may be easier than it seems for the church to evangelize people in the community. It all depends on how deeply we are prepared to being with them and how hard we are willing to work with them.
