A New Era Begins 1975-78

today invite fresh Chinese University graduates to go and teach the Chinese language, I don't suppose our students would be naive and light- minded enough to take up the post without a second thought. Does the mere fact that one is born Chinese qualifies one to teach Chinese in foreign universities? That, again, is another phenomenon which was universal scores of years ago, and has gradually disappeared as time went by. Nevertheless, that policy has left me w i th a deep impression. It has played a part in the formation of my own philosophy o f higher education in the later stage of my life. I do not propose to stand here today merely to talk nostalgia. My main points are about the present and the future of Chung Chi College. We all know that more than half o f the primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong are now run by Protestant and Catholic missionaries, but Chung Chi College is the only College that has joined a university which is authorized to confer university degrees. Yet the importance and contribution o f Chung Chi do not lie in the fact that i t is the extension of primary or secondary missionary schools, or the fact that it has a chapel, a theology building and theology programmes. The significance of the College lies in the positive role it plays in The Chinese University. Personally, I think one of the greatest messages of the Christian spirit lies in " human i t y ". This is a term which is difficult to express in Chinese. 人類的同情心 might come close to it. The passage in the Bible which impresses me most is the one which describes the crucification scene. Nailed on the cross, the dying Jesus cried: “ My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Then he gave a loud cry, and breathed his last. (Ma t t. 27:46 ， 50) As I see it, the son of God who became Man shows true human sentiments before dying; that is the most touching and dramatic episode. For this vividly reminds us that Jesus is one of us. He is human. And at the same time He sacrificed Himself for our salvation. There stands the greatness o f Jesus——something all of us should bear in mind at all times. The basic doctrine o f Christianity is that all men are sinners. To put it more plainly: we all have faults, and we can always be changed. Christianity teaches us that we all have souls. Rich or poor, powerful or humble, we are all equal before God. We Chinese have similar notions too, though embodied in our own traditional ethical concepts. My favourite story is about the great poet T'ao Ch'ien (A.D. 365-427). When he learned that his son was having a hard time working to support himself away from home, the poet sent him a servant, together w i th this note: "Your father understands that you have found it difficult to work alone and support yourself. Maybe this boy I am now sending you can be a relief. Yet you should treat h im we l l 一 f o r he is also someone else's son." T'ao Ch'ien was actually saying, “ I love you, for you are my son. But don't you forget that this boy has a father too——he is someone else's son." To an educated Chinese scholar who is well-versed in Confucian teachings, all men are equal because we are all somebody else's sons. It is my hope that the Chung Chi College can combine the 34