Originally published in The Gateway Issue No. 12 (March 2009)
Brother Paul was born into a well off family in the province of Jehol, (熱河), (in modern day Inner Mongolia). He was strongly influenced from early childhood by the piety of his father and grandfather. As a young man he studied in a seminary. Later, having graduated from Fu Jen University (輔仁大學), he decided to devote his life to education.
Brother Paul was not a De La Salle Brother. Yet, to the Brothers, he was a true Lasallian in all but name. It came as no surprise that he was made an affiliated member of their Institute.
A man of unusual charm, culture and spirituality, he had been closely associated with the Brothers in Hong Kong since his first arrival there from China in 1949. Eight years previously he had been appointed Superior-General of a diocesan Society of Brothers which operated schools in northern China. They were called the Society of the Disciples of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
This Society had been founded by Bishop Janssens in 1911 in the province of Jehol in the north-east which at that time was situated in inner Manchuria. The Bishop had chosen St John Baptist de La Salle as the principal Patron of the Society. After each religious exercise the invocation “St John Baptist de La Salle, pray for us”, was said. The Brothers ran a number of primary and secondary schools but one by one they had to close as the Communist net tightened. In 1947, the Brothers were compelled to leave their diocese for Beijing where they opened a primary school but that too was taken over by the Communists in 1953.
Meanwhile, in 1949, Brother Paul and some of the Brothers managed to get to Hong Kong. Some of them, including Brother Paul, were given accommodation by the De La Salle Brothers in Kowloon, while others went to Indonesia and opened a Chinese middle school there. Brother Paul thought it best to merge his Society with that of the De La Salle Brothers and he himself spent 2 years at the Brothers’ Novitiate in England. The church authorities in Rome, however, decided that Brother Paul should retain his post of Superior General as well as the separate identity of his society while at the same time working closely with the De La Salle Brothers in Hong Kong.
In 1956, while planning to open a school in Hong Kong, Brother Paul began to teach Religion and Mandarin in La Salle Primary School, Kowloon. Here are the recollections of one of his students: “More popularly known as Brother Sun, he never failed to strike us as a very kind and patient teacher. He had a strong physique, quite typical of Northern Chinese. Though strong and tall, he exuded passion and love for teaching, and was approachable at all times”.
With the encouragement, help and support of the De La Salle Brothers, as well as through his own personal charm, hard work and doggedness, Brother Paul succeeded in establishing St Joseph’s Anglo-Chinese School, first the Primary section in 1958, and later, in 1968, the Secondary section. The De La Salle Brothers have St Joseph as Patron of their Institute. Brother Paul and his Society also had a very special devotion to St Joseph and so the school was named after him. There were 300 pupils on opening day, but, with the building of the secondary school, numbers shot up to 3,000 pupils. Brother Paul personally managed both schools.
The De La Salle Brothers not only gave Brother Paul moral support, but allowed some of their own Brothers to teach and help in the administration of St Joseph’s Anglo-Chinese School. Chief among these was Brother Anthony Knoll who helped the English department in particular. It was normal to see Brother Anthony marking pupils’ scripts day after day. He and Brother Paul became soul-mates and, together with some teachers, they would hike the hills of Kowloon at every opportunity. Brother Henry Pang was also a valiant supporter and, in the earlier years, would help with the registration of new pupils.
The St Joseph Anglo-Chinese Schools flourished. Brother Paul never advertised his schools. His own magnanimous and dynamic personality was advertisement enough. He worked quietly and tirelessly to make the schools earn a good name. He also gathered together a band of loyal, hardworking teachers and, together, they set the schools on a prosperous course.
There was accommodation in the school for Brother Paul and he resided there until his death. He was a familiar sight to the staff and students as he greeted them each morning near the school entrance. He became a fatherly figure, reassuring and benign and in many ways taught them more by example than by word.
Brother Paul was unceasing in his expressions of gratitude for the help he had received from the De La Salle Brothers. Even after his schools were up and running, he would unfailingly visit La Salle College or St Joseph’s College every weekend, invariably bearing gifts. For nearly all practical purposes he was one with them in devotion to St La Salle and he joined in their prayers, retreats and major functions.
His wonderful attachment and good example was recognized when, to his great delight, he was affiliated to the Institute by the then Superior General, Brother Charles Henry. Brother Charles was making a visit to Hong Kong as part of his programme of visitations to the Brothers in Asia and could therefore perform the ceremony in person. The ceremony took place on the 5th March, 1972.
As the years began to take their toll, the effects of spondylitis and arthritis began to show. Brother Paul had to use a neck brace. There was severe curvature of the spine and of the fingers. Still he soldiered on, fulfilling his educational mission, never giving way to or looking for pity.
Eventually ill health compelled him to take to his bed. He was cared for by friends and by Father Philip Chao. He would receive visitors graciously and enquire after Brothers, staff and students.
Brother Paul’s death at the age of 78, while not unexpected, was greeted with a genuine outpouring of grief. Many who had been close to him felt they had been in the presence of a saint.
It came as no surprise that his funeral was a big one. At a packed requiem Mass in St Teresa’s Church, presided over by Bishop John Baptist Wu, Brother Henry Pang had this to say in the homily: “With his passing, we have lost an exemplary religious, an outstanding educator and, dare I say, a saint. He was one of nature’s gentlemen. He was a man of God, with a vision and a mission. Today his mission is accomplished. May you, Brother Paul, realize your vision also, as our Lord opens his arms to receive and welcome you”.
Brother Paul was laid to rest in Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Cemetery, Kowloon.
He was not a De La Salle Brother but he was a true Lasallian, a model of the spirit of faith, of zeal, of community union, faithful to the Lasallian ideal of the Christian education of youth. To this he had devoted his whole life, all that he had and all that he was.
