John Ha Tiong Hock

Last updated


John Ha Tiong Hock

Archbishop Emeritus of Kuching
Coat of arms of John Ha Tiong Hock.svg
Church Roman Catholic Church
Archdiocese Kuching
Appointed21 June 2003
Installed16 July 2003
Term ended4 March 2017
Predecessor Peter Chung Hoan Ting
Successor Simon Peter Poh Hoon Seng
Orders
Ordination14 December 1972
by Charles Reiterer, MHM
Consecration6 June 1998
by  Peter Chung Hoan Ting
RankMetropolitan Archbishop
Personal details
Born (1947-03-05) 5 March 1947 (age 76)
Previous post(s) Auxiliary Bishop of Kuching (1998-2003)
MottoVerbum caro factum
Styles of
John Ha Tiong Hock
Coat of arms of John Ha Tiong Hock.svg
Reference style His Grace
Spoken styleYour Grace
Religious style Archbishop Emeritus
Ordination history of
John Ha Tiong Hock
History
Priestly ordination
Ordained byCharles Reiterer, MHM
Date14 December 1972
Place St. Joseph's Cathedral, Kuching
Episcopal consecration
Principal consecrator Peter Chung Hoan Ting
Co-consecrators Anthony Soter Fernandez & Gregory Yong Sooi Ngean
Date6 June 1998
Episcopal succession
Bishops consecrated by John Ha Tiong Hock as principal consecrator
Julian Leow Beng Kim 6 October 2014
Simon Peter Poh Hoon Seng 24 September 2015

Dato John Ha Tiong Hock (born 5 March 1947) is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the Archbishop of Kuching, from 2003 to 2017. Previously, he served as an auxiliary bishop of the same archdiocese from 1998 to 2003.

Contents

Early life and education

Ha was born on 5 March 1947 in Kuching, Sarawak. He studied at St Joseph's secondary school. At that time, the late Brother Albinus and the late Brother Hilary were instrumental in inspiring him to join the priesthood. [1]

Ordination and ministry

Ha first joined the religious order as a De La Salle brother. [1] However, he decided to join College General in Penang and was ordained to the priesthood on 14 December 1972. He was later sent to Rome, Italy to study at the Pontifical Biblical Institute. He then obtained a Licentiate in Sacred Scripture and later with Doctorate in Sacred Scripture. [2]

After a two-year pastoral work back in the Archdiocese of Kuching, Ha was appointed to teach Bible at College General. After the St. Peter's College seminary was set up in Kuching, he was appointed as its second rector, from 1986 to 1991. He was commissioned to run the Bible Year and served as the rector of the St. Joseph's Cathedral, Kuching. In 1997, he was appointed back to the seminary again. [2]

Episcopal and ministry

Auxiliary bishop of Kuching

On 17 January 1998, Pope John Paul II appointed Ha as auxiliary bishop of Kuching and titular bishop of Canapium. He received his episcopal consecration on 6 June 1998 from Archbishop Peter Chung Hoan Ting with Cardinal Anthony Soter Fernandez and Archbishop Gregory Yong, serving as co-consecrators. [2]

Archbishop of Kuching

Coat of arms as Archbishop of Kuching Coat of arms of John Ha Tiong Hock.svg
Coat of arms as Archbishop of Kuching

On 21 June 2003, Ha was appointed Archbishop of Kuching to succeed Archbishop Peter Chung Hoan Ting who resigned upon reaching canonical age. He was installed on 16 July 2003. [3] During his tenure, he was the president of the Malaysia-Singapore-Brunei Episcopal Biblical Commission. [4] [2]

After several years of serving as archbishop, Ha revealed that he was increasingly feeling his age after it gradually showed symptoms. Thus, he saw the need for an auxiliary bishop. He took a considered decision to write a letter to Fernardo Cardinal Filoni, requesting the appointment of an auxiliary bishop. [5] Fr. Simon Peter Poh Hoon Seng was appointed and consecrated in September 2015. [6]

On 4 March 2017, Ha tendered his resignation from the archbishop's office, deliberately coinciding with his seventieth birthday. He took into consideration age 70 as the perfect age for a person to retire. The following day, Pope Francis accepted Ha's resignation and appointed Auxiliary Bishop Simon Peter Poh Hoon Seng as his successor. [5] Ha officially handed over the archdiocese to Poh on the night of 20 March 2017. On the same day, Poh was also installed as the third archbishop of the archdiocese. [7]

Honour

Honour of Malaysia

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Church in Malaysia</span>

The Catholic Church in Malaysia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the pope in Rome. The apostolic nuncio to Malaysia is currently Archbishop Wojciech Załuski, who was appointed on 22 September 2020; The resident ambassador of Malaysia to the Holy See is Westmoreland Anak Edward Palon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur</span> Roman Catholic archdiocese in Malaysia

The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Malaysia. It was erected as the Diocese of Kuala Lumpur by Pope Pius XII on 25 February 1955, and was elevated to the rank of a Metropolitan Archdiocese on 18 December 1972, with the suffragan sees of Malacca-Johor and Penang. It also administers the capital city of Malaysia, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur as well as the federal administrative centre of Putrajaya and the urbanised states of Selangor and Negeri Sembilan in the central region as well as Pahang and Terengganu on the East Coast. The archdiocese's Mother Church and thus, seat of its Archbishop, is St. John's Cathedral. It was one of the three Roman Catholic archdioceses in Malaysia, with the ecclesiastical archdioceses of Kota Kinabalu and Kuching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kuching</span> Roman Catholic archdiocese in Malaysia

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kuching is a Metropolitan Latin archbishopric of the Roman Catholic Church in Sarawak, a Malaysian state on Borneo, however remains dependent on the missionary Roman Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu</span> Roman Catholic archdiocese in Malaysia

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Roman Catholic Church in Sabah, a state of Malaysia on the island of Borneo. The archdiocese is the oldest ecclesiastical territory in Malaysia, with a long history slowly rising along with the Catholic population from a prefecture to an archdiocese. Its cathedral archepiscopal see is Sacred Heart Cathedral, Kota Kinabalu. The patron saint of the archdiocese is St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Sibu</span> Roman Catholic diocese in Malaysia

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sibu is the ecclesiastical territory of the Latin Church or the diocese of the Catholic Church in the state of Sarawak, Malaysia. It is headquartered in Sibu and covered the divisions of Sibu, Mukah, Sarikei, and Kapit.

Leo Christopher Byrne served as the Roman Catholic Coadjutor Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominic Anthony Marconi</span> 20th and 21st-century American Catholic bishop

Dominic Anthony Marconi is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Marconi served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey from 1976 to 2002.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei (C.B.C.M.S.B.) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic bishops of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Leow Beng Kim</span> Malaysian archbishop

Julian Leow Beng Kim is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur since 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Peter Poh Hoon Seng</span> Malaysian prelate

Simon Peter Poh Hoon Seng is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Kuching since 2017. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the same archdiocese from 2015 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Joseph's Cathedral, Kuching</span> Church in Kuching, Malaysia

The St. Joseph's Cathedral also called Cathedral of Kuching is a religious building that is affiliated with the Catholic Church and is located in the city of Kuching, capital of Sarawak state in northern Borneo island and east part of the Asian country of Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Parker</span> American Roman Catholic bishop (born 1972)

Adam John Parker is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland since 2016. Parker has also served as vicar general and moderator of the curia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Joseph Boulette</span>

Michael Joseph Boulette is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of San Antonio in Texas since 2017.

Sfasferia is a former ancient city and bishopric in Roman North Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph Hii Teck Kwong</span> Malaysian prelate

Joseph Hii Teck Kwong is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Sibu since 2012. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the same diocese from 2008 to 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Ng (bishop)</span> Malaysian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1966)

Richard Ng is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Miri since 2014. He was a priest in the Archdiocese of Kuching prior to his appointment as bishop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregory J. Studerus</span> Roman Catholic priest

Gregory James Studerus is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey since 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Chung Hoan Ting</span>

Peter Chung Hoan Ting was the metropolitan archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kuching, Malaysia from 1976 to 2003, the first archbishop of the diocese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph A. Espaillat</span> American bishop

Joseph Armando Espaillat II is a Dominican-American prelate of the Catholic Church who has served as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of New York since 2022.

References

  1. 1 2 Zora Chan (6 August 2013). "Former student cherishes fond memories of the late Brother Albinus". The Star. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Archbishop John Ha". Woomb International.[ permanent dead link ]
  3. "Muslim group attends Catholic Mass in Malaysian "breakthrough"". Catholic News Agency . 26 October 2007. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
  4. "The beauty of family". L'Osservatore Romano. 9 September 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  5. 1 2 "Archbishop Emeritus John Ha: I retire with peace of mind and heart". Today's Catholic. 16 April 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  6. Emmor (11 July 2015). "Pope appoints Fr Simon Poh as auxiliary bishop". The Borneo Post . Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  7. "Most Rev Simon Poh is the third Archbishop of Kuching Archdiocese". Herald Malaysia. 2 April 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  8. "105 terima darjah kebesaran Sarawak". 11 July 2018. Archived from the original on 11 July 2018.
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Paul Michael Boyle
Titular Bishop of Canapium
6 June 1998 – 16 July 2003
Succeeded by
Jonas Ivanauskas
Preceded by Archbishop of Kuching
16 July 2003 – 4 March 2017
Succeeded by